Karen Vander Ven

Karen Vander Ven
School of Education
University of Pittsburgh
5809 Wesley W. Posvar Hall
Pittsburgh, PA 15260
PHONE: 412-624-6945
EMAIL: kvander@pitt.edu

Full Time Faculty - Professor

Prior to joining the faculty, Dr. Karen VanderVen worked directly with both normal and exceptional children, and families, in a variety of settings. These included early childhood programs, psychiatric treatment facilities, and community mental health.

Among her major professional activities are currently serving as Senior Visiting Fellow at the SEARCH Institute; in the past she has been a Visiting Scholar at the Harvard Graduate School of Education, a founder of the North American branch of the International Federation of Educative Communities (FICE), and Project Director of the Conference-Research Sequence in Child Care Education.

Dr. VanderVen's interests include early childhood education with a special focus on play, professionalization of early childhood and child and youth work, leadership development, the developmental role of activity, practical strategies for activity programming, intergeneratiional and life span practices. She is also interested in analogical scholarship e.g. application of non-linear dynamical systems theory (chaos and complexity), game theory, hermeneutics, to developmental issues and practices.

Dr. VanderVen is a former professional journal editor, is on the editorial boards currently of 5 professional journals, and is the author of over 200 professional works including books, monographs, columns, chapters and articles. In her professional work, Dr. VanderVen has traveled and presented all over the world. She has also been adjunct faculty at Wheelock College and Nova Southeastern University.

School Affiliations

Department: Psychology in Education - Professor
Program: Applied Developmental Psychology

Education

Certified child and youth care practitioner, The Association for Child and Youth Care Practice, Inc., 2/2007
Certificate of Achievement, Geriatrics/Gerontology, Geriatric Education Center of PA, 1988
Certified to teach elementary school, special education for emotionally disturbed children, nursery school and kindergarten, PA State Board of Private Academic Schools, 1969
A.B., Psychology, Vassar College
M.S., child development and child care, University of Pittsburgh
Ph.D., Education, University of Pittsburgh

Recent Publications

Books

VanderVen, K. (2008). Promoting positive development in early childhood: The Early Childhood Developmental Asset Framework. New York: Springer Publishers.

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Recent Course Instruction

Fall 2008 (2091)

Summer 2008 (2087)

Spring 2008 (2084)

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Recent Presentations

The Twenty-First Century Erikson: A New Life Span Theory For a Changing World.
Society for the Study of Human Development conference. New York City.
From Play Zones to Trading Zones: The Relationship Between Childhood Play and Scientific Interdisciplinary Inquiry
Winter "Blueberry Brain" conference of the Society for Chaos Theory in Psychology and the Life Sciences. Middletown,CT. Wesleyan University
What About Homework in Afterschool Programs? A Developmental Appraoch
Beyond School Hours XI Conference, sponsored by Foundations for a Brighter Future. Jacksonville, FL
Professional Development in Out of School Time
Webinar (on line with voice over) sponsored by the Academy for Educational Development, Washington, DC
Innovative Activities in Out of School Time: An Innovative Approach
Webinar (on line with voice over) sponsored by the Academy for Educational Development, Washington, DC
The Twenty-First Century Erikson: A New Life Span Theory for a Changing World
Poster Session, Society for Research in Human Development. The Pennsylvania State University
You've Decided to Get Rid of Your Point and Level System- Now What ?
American Association of Children's Residential Centers, Orlando, FL