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 Susan
Kontos is Professor of Child Development and
Family Studies at Purdue University. She taught
at the University of Northern Colorado and the
Pennsylvania State University before going to
Purdue in 1985. She has a B.A. degree in sociology
with elementary school teacher certification from
Barat College, an M.A. degree in Psychology from
Southern Illinois University-Edwardsville, and
a Ph.D. in Child Development from Iowa State University.
Prior to beginning graduate school, she spent
several years working as an elementary school
teacher and as a head teacher in a child care
center.
Dr. Kontos teaches undergraduate courses for
students preparing to be teachers of young children
with and without disabilities. In 1996, she was
awarded the Mary L. Mathews Award for Outstanding
Undergraduate Teaching by the School of Consumer
and Family Sciences at Purdue University. Her
graduate teaching has focused on child care, classrooms
as contexts for young children's development,
and issues in early childhood education.
Her research interests have focused on the experiences
of children and families with early childhood
programs. She has studied parent-caregiver relationships
and the impact of center- and home-based child
care quality on children's development. Another
major focus of her research has been the inclusion
of young children with disabilities into regular
early childhood programs and how early intervention
contributes to child and family well-being. Most
recently, Dr. Kontos' work has focused on identifying
components of classroom environments that enhance
young children's development.
Dr. Kontos served as associate editor of Early
Childhood Research Quarterly and Child
and Youth Care Forum. She was also Research
in Review editor for Young Children and
has served on numerous journal editorial boards
such as Early Education and Development,
Topics in Early Childhood Special Education
and Journal of Early Intervention. She
was recently awarded the Lifetime Career Achievement
Award by the Indiana Association for the Education
of Young Children (2000) and an Alumni Professional
Achievement Award from the College of Family and
Consumer Sciences at Iowa State University (1999).
Dr. Kontos is the author of numerous journal articles
and book chapters as well as several books.
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