NDSU Department of Human Development & Family Science

Congratulations to HDFS faculty members Wen Wang and Heather Fuller! Dr. Fuller won the Mary Berg Award for Excellence in Teaching, and Dr. Wang won the Dean's Research Award. Both awards are from the College of Health and Human Sciences. Dr. Wang's award includes funding for her to conduct a research project across the state of North Dakota on how families are making decisions regarding their children's use of technology.

Check out the article featuring HDFS Professor Emeritus Margaret Fitzgerald as well as Developmental Science PhD student Yufang Tu. It's an inspiring story of dedication across generations.

NDSU Foundation Magazine - NDSU Foundation Get more stories about NDSU students, alumni, faculty, and staff at your fingertips.

Whether you're already an HDFS major or just curious, come join us!

Congratulations to HDFS Alumna Candice Maier on being selected as a Fulbright Scholar! Candice is a graduate of our former master's degree program in Couple and Family Therapy.

UW-Stout marriage and family therapy professor selected for prestigious Fulbright U.S. Scholar Program Maier will teach next year at university in Istanbul, Turkey

We're excited to announce our Hinsz Lecture for this year!

Welcome to Katie Sanchez, our new professional academic advisor for HDFS! Katie advises all of our freshmen and sophomores, as well as all of our HDFS/Elementary Education students for all four years. Students may remember seeing Katie at NDSU One Stop, where she previously worked on campus.

Kudos to HDFS / Social Work student Alexis Aho who worked with the YWCA for her Social Work Methods course project this semester! Alexis visited local businesses and organizations to collect donations and put together 100 comfort bags for women and children in YWCA Emergency Shelter and Supportive Housing. We love seeing the passion of our HDFS students and the wonderful impact they make on our local community! Awesome work, Alexis! 👏🫶

Shoutout to Alexis Aho for choosing YWCA for her class project! Alexis visited local businesses to collect donations and put together 100 comfort bags for women and children in YWCA Emergency Shelter and Supportive Housing. Your kindness and initiative remind us how powerful one person’s effort can be. , Alexis! 🧡

HDFS Professor and Alums Present at National Council on Family Relations.
Professor Christi McGeorge presented a paper at NCFR in Baltimore along with Paige (Ballard) Rice and Ashley Walsdorf, both HDFS alumni. Paige is now teaching at Linwood Elementary School in Wyoming, MN. Ashley is an Assistant Professor at Alliant International University. The paper stemmed from Paige's senior thesis.

Congratulations to Jordan Bentz, a PhD student in our Developmental Science Doctoral Program, who has been selected to participate in the United Way's '35 Under 35' Women's Leadership Program! What a wonderful opportunity and recognition of her role as an emerging community leader!

Imagine what our community would look like if each of us maximized our unique leadership skills to share with the world. It’s a wonderful thought, right?

That’s exactly why we’re so inspired by the women who commit to the journey of our United Way 35 Under 35 Women’s Leadership Program; a space where growth, courage, and community meet. 💛

📣 Announcing the 2026 United Way 35 Under 35 Women’s Leadership Program participants!

We can’t wait to cheer you on as you strengthen your leadership, connect with others, and inspire lasting change in our community. 👏

Learn more about this transformative program ➡️
https://unitedwaycassclay.org/get-involved/35under35/

Congratulations and thank you to Dr. Leanna McWood, HDFS assistant professor, who is the inaugural chair of the new Disability Caucus of the Society for Research in Child Development (SRCD).The mission of this new Caucus is to advance developmental research on disability and increase the representation of children and youth with disabilities. The Caucus also aims to support child development scholars with disabilities and build community among disabled scholars.

Thank you to everyone who participated in NDSU Giving Day! If you donated to the HDFS Endowed Fund, we appreciate the support so much!