Sandra M. Chafouleas

Sandra M. Chafouleas serves as Board of Trustees Distinguished Professor and Neag Endowed Professor in the Neag School of Education at the University of Connecticut, where she co-founded and directs the UConn Collaboratory on School and Child Health (CSCH). With over $20 million in research funding as PI/Co-PI, she specializes in evidence-based practices for whole-child well-being with emphasis on social-emotional and behavioral health systems.

Her research program centers on trauma-informed school frameworks, universal screening tools, and emotion-regulation interventions like the award-winning Feel Your Best Self toolkit. Current work examines emotional well-being metrics for diverse learners, caregiver-child synchrony, and district-level implementation of whole-child models through NIH-funded networks.

Key publications demonstrate consistent focus on:

• Usability of assessment tools across K-12 settings
• Implementation science for multi-tiered support systems
• Consequential validity in student screening
• Equity-centered adaptation of interventions

Award highlights include:

• American Psychological Association Presidential Citation (2022)
• Telly Awards for digital mental health programming (2023-2024)
• Thomas Oakland Mid-Career Scholarship Award (2016)
• APA and APS Fellowships (2010)

Her leadership extends to $20M+ in funded projects including NIH U24 M3 Emotional Well-Being Network and Project ESSY, with prior administrative roles as Associate Dean for Research (Neag School) and Graduate School. She maintains active clinical licensure as Connecticut psychologist while translating research through Psychology Today's Promoting Student Well-Being blog.