Laura Chubb is a PhD candidate in the Department of Educational Psychology focusing on special education. She is currently working as an interdisciplinary doctoral fellow with the Non-Invasive Neuromodulation Lab at the Masonic Institute for the Developing Brain.
“I selected the University of Minnesota to work alongside Dr. Frank Symons and Dr. Jason Wolff, experts in neurodevelopmental disabilities,” she says. “My research group studies intellectual and developmental disabilities, neurodevelopmental disorders, and rare diseases.” The group focuses on self-injurious behavior and pain-related behavior for individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities and neurodevelopmental disabilities.
Chubb’s goal is to address healthcare equity for those with profound disabilities. “My research program is an interdisciplinary approach to pain, behavioral psychology, and clinical neuroscience,” she says. Chubb’s dissertation seeks to discover molecular inflammatory biomarkers associated with chronic self-injurious behavior in children with neurodevelopmental disorders, identify person-centered care considerations and make them more accessible to a population with intellectual and developmental disabilities, and apply non-invasive neuromodulation through behavioral psychology approaches. “I plan to continue to work within both academic and healthcare systems once I have completed my degree,” she says.
Helping Chubb toward her goal is the Bentson Foundation Special Education Assistantship Fund, which supports doctoral students in the area of special education. The Bentson Foundation was established by Twin Cities philanthropists Larry and Nancy Bentson. The fund was made upon recommendation of the late George Reilly, a UMN Law School graduate and former chief deputy attorney for Minnesota, who served on the Bentson Foundation Board.
Chubb says receiving the fund was instrumental in completing her dissertation. “Without it, I would not be able to ethically and appropriately compensate the families of those willing to participate in my study,” she says. The funding also will allow Chubb to pay open-access fees to publish her work in academic journals and to disseminate the information at national and international conferences.
“I am incredibly grateful for the funding and am appreciative of the consideration and care for research on disability,” she says.
–Kevin Moe
Photo by Tyler Wear