Deborah Lowe VandellDeborah Lowe Vandell is the Chair of the Department of Education at the University of California, Irvine. After receiving her Ph.D. in psychology from Boston University, Dr. Vandell began conducting extensive research on the effects of early child cae on children's development, as well as the effects of after-school programs, extracurricular activities and self-care during middle childhood and adolescence. Dr. Vandell has been recognized for excellence in teaching and research by the University of Texas and by the University of Wisconsin. She has served on advisory boards and panels for the National Academy of Science, the National Institutes of Health, the U.S. Department of Education, the Charles Stewart Mott Foundation, and the National Institute for Early Education Research. She works with national, state, and local officials to translate research into effective policies to support children's development. Read More Read Less