Molfese leaving a legacy of learning

25 Apr 2018     By Katie Ballue

Victoria Molfese, Chancellor Professor and Co-Director of the Early Development and Learning Lab, is retiring after eight years with the University of Nebraska–Lincoln.

Molfese is nationally recognized as an expert in the development of language, reading, and math skills during early childhood. Her research at the university has focused mostly on how sleep influences behavior and learning and teacher/child relationships and the way these can affect performance.

After earning bachelor’s and master’s degrees in psychology, Molfese attended Penn State University as a doctoral student, where she met her husband, Dennis Molfese (currently Founding Director Emeritus and Mildred Francis Thompson Professor in Social Sciences), and their cooperative efforts began. She started her teaching career at Southern Illinois University at Carbondale while finishing up a doctoral degree in psychology from Penn State. It was here that she had her first taste of research in early childhood education.

Victoria Molfese discovered a passion for studying children and the different factors that impact their learning, such as parent relationships, child characteristics, and how relationships influence learning ability. Since Victoria Molfese and her husband have intersecting interests in research when it comes to what affects learning and the way the brain processes information under certain stressors, they have had the unique opportunity to collaborate throughout their careers.

This has led to impactful research that contributes to further understanding about how children learn. The Molfeses spent fifteen years doing a longitudinal study funded by the the National Institute of Health tracking children from birth in order to learn how children pick up language skills and what effect the initial ability to hear and discern sounds has on the eventual ability to pick up words and use language.

For 40 years, they have partnered to learn more about dyslexia. More recently, Victoria Molfese testified before the Nebraska Legislature's Education Committee in support of LB645, which defined dyslexia as a specific learning disability in Nebraska statute, and was successfully enacted into law in 2017.

Victoria Molfese’s research has been funded by grants from the National Institute of Health, March of Dimes, the United States Department of Education, the United States Department of Health and Human Services, the Kellogg Foundation, and NASA, and with that funding she has contributed greatly to the understanding of early childhood education and psychology.

In 2012, Nebraska recognized the dual threat impact of the research of the Molfeses in the practices of brain, sleep, and child development and brought them to the university as faculty. While at the university, Victoria Molfese created and co-directed the Early Development and Learning Lab in order to study the sleep patterns of toddlers and has worked with Jessica Namkung, assistant professor in the Department of Special Education and Communication Disorders, in order to study reading and math disabilities.

Victoria Molfese received the Outstanding Scholarship, Research & Creative Activity Award in Social Sciences from the University of Louisville and the Distinguished Research/Creative Career Award from the College of Education and Human Sciences at Nebraska. She is also recognized as a Fellow of the American Psychology Society and the American Education Research Association.

Susan Sheridan, the Director of the Nebraska Center for Research on Children, Youth, Families and Schools, regarded Victoria Molfese as a “thoughtful and passionate” researcher, saying, “she is an exceptional role model who does rigorous research in a way that maintains the ‘personal element.’ We have all benefitted from her ability to integrate roles as a very good scientist, effective leader, thoughtful mentor, and compassionate advocate for children.”

When asked if there were any unanswered questions she’d like to see others study in the future, Victoria Molfese explained that early childhood research is complicated by environmental factors but that there are a lot of unanswered questions, especially when it comes to sleep. Why do females seem to need more sleep than males? Why do some children take hours to fall asleep, while others take a few minutes? She explained that there is a lot of misinformation out there, and that the cliché that we all need eight hours of sleep a night is not based on research. The truth is that everyone is different, but no one knows why. The only thing known is that a lack of sleep affects the ability to process and access information and can change behavior, and it’s true for children and adults alike.

Victoria Molfese is especially passionate about supporting the next generation of scholars. Richard Bischoff, department chair of Child, Youth and Family Studies, commented that “she has played an important role in setting the tone for research excellence in the department. Her emphasis has always been on creating and maintaining a culture of scholarship. She is particularly skillful in mentoring early career and mid-career faculty, and doctoral students in developing high impact research and scholarship portfolios.”

Victoria Molfese believes it is the place of current faculty to help them learn to conduct their research, access information, and encourage their excitement to make a difference through research and outreach so that they take their place in the field fully equipped to do the same. She supervised students in the Child Development Master’s Program and the Early Childhood Education Doctoral Program and included many, like Amanda Prokasky, in her research efforts.

“Dr. Molfese is driven by a desire to include graduate students in all aspects of the research process, from study design to manuscript publication, in order to pass on her vast knowledge to the next generation of child development researchers. Her passion for high quality and impactful research is inspiring and contagious, and many graduate students, including myself, are better researchers because of her mentoring," stated Prokasky.

Victoria Molfese will be missed in the College of Education and Human Sciences. Sheridan added, “Tori embodies the mission and spirit of the College of Education and Human Sciences. Her lifetime contributions are unparalleled, and her mark on CEHS will be indelible.”

A retirement reception honoring Victoria Molfese will be held in the International Quilt Study Center & Museum on May 8, 2018 from 3:00-5:30 PM. To R.S.V.P., please visit go.unl.edu/tori.