News

Trace Poll, Ph.D.

Background

Trace Poll, Ph.D., is an Associate Professor in the Department of Speech Pathology and Audiology. He is a speech-language pathologist whose research focuses on social communication and developmental language disorders (DLD) in school-aged children, adolescents, and young adults.

Research Interests

Dr. Poll is interested in developing better assessment practices and better defining the cognitive and linguistic characteristics of individuals with DLD. His work also focuses on enabling adolescents with disabilities to be better prepared for the transition from K-12 education to adult settings such as post-secondary training, employment, and community participation.

Current work in his lab focuses on developing a social communication assessment for at-risk adolescents and young adults and a screening tool to identify adults at risk for DLD.

Dr. Poll can be reached at pollgh@MiamiOH.edu with any questions.

Stanley Seah, Ph.D.

Stanley Seah, Ph.D., is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Psychology. He teaches courses on psychopathology, which explore how biological, psychological, and social factors influence mental health. Dr. Seah’s teaching is student-centered and developmental in nature. Dr. Seah’s lab, the Psychopathology & Emotion Processing (PEP) Lab, aims to advance research and treatment of psychopathology in adolescents and young adults. This includes studies of how emotional processes contribute to mental health problems, using a multimethod and multimodal approach. Several ongoing projects cover a range of topics within this focal area of interest across the translational spectrum. These include examining the role of emotional awareness and regulation, reward processing, brain function and psychophysiology, sleep and circadian rhythms, and social experiences.

Paul Branscum, Ph.D.

Paul Branscum, Ph.D., is a professor in the Kinesiology, Nutrition, and Health Department. As a health promotion and public health scholar, his mission is to enhance the quality of life of individuals in the surrounding communities. Systematic planning, implementation, and evaluation of public health programs is the common thread within his teaching, research, and service activities. Dr. Branscum’s research focuses on predicting and changing obesogenic health behaviors using theory-based approaches. Additionally, his research has focused on implementing and evaluating public health interventions by utilizing process and impact evaluations. Finally, his research has recently begun to focus on the health and well-being of native and Indigenous populations, specifically the Miami Tribe of Oklahoma.

CHDLT Fall Luncheon

The Doris Bergen Center upheld the long-standing tradition of the Fall Luncheon this year. In October, Faculty Associates across various disciplines and colleges met in McGuffey Hall to connect over research and share a meal.

For many new Faculty Associates, this luncheon was their first formal introduction to the Center and the Faculty Associates outside of their own departments. The CHDLT co-directors, Kevin Bush, Ph.D., and Trace Poll, Ph.D., provided insight into the Center’s mission and highlighted goals for the year.

The luncheon is a staple event in Center history, providing intentional opportunities for networking and research collaboration. This ties directly to the Center’s mission in facilitating interaction among faculty researchers from various disciplines, ultimately resulting in interdisciplinary solution-oriented perspectives. We appreciate everyone who was able to take the time this year to stop by the luncheon to share their research initiatives and strengthen the Center’s community!

Research Talks

This year, the CHDLT hosted Spring Research Talks. In April, new Faculty Associates Robin Heinsen, Ph.D., and Stanley Seah, Ph.D., shared presentations.

The first presentation at the Spring Research Talks was delivered by Robin Heinsen, Ph.D. Dr. Heinsen joined the CHDLT in the Fall semester of 2024. She is an Assistant Professor in the Music Education Department. Dr. Heinsen’s research interests include cognition of expert and novice teachers, preservice teacher skill development, learner-centered pedagogy, and lifelong music learning. She uses eye tracking technology to study attention allocation and momentary thought processes of music teachers and shares her work consistently at national and international music conferences and in research journals. Dr. Heinsen’s presentation was titled “What We Learn About Music Teaching from Studying Skilled Teachers' Gaze Behavior.” For questions about her research, please feel free to contact Dr. Heinsen at heinsers@MiamiOH.edu.

The second presentation at the Fall Research Talks was by Stanley Seah, Ph.D. Dr. Seah joined the CHDLT as a Faculty Associate in the Fall semester of 2025. Dr. Seah is an Assistant Professor within the Psychology Department and runs the Psychopathology & Emotion Processing (PEP) Lab. Dr. Seah’s current research within the PEP lab examines the role of emotional awareness and regulation, reward processing, brain function and psychophysiology, sleep and circadian rhythms, and social experiences.

Dr. Seah’s presentation was titled “Understanding Suicide in At-Risk Youth: Interplay of Sleep, Emotions, and Social Experiences.” For questions about his research, please feel free to contact Dr. Seah at stanley.seah@MiamiOH.edu.

This past summer, the CHDLT sponsored a Grant Writing Workshop for faculty and graduate students. This was a half-day workshop titled Are Foundations the Answer to the Research Funding Crisis? (Spoiler Alert: Probably Not). The focus of this Grant Writing Workshop included the basics of producing a grant proposal, the importance of a grant project evaluation, how to search for funders, and a discussion of what makes foundation funders and applications different from state or federal funders.

Thank you to everyone who attended and to the team from the Discovery Center for putting on this event!

This year, the CHDLT is happy to announce a proposal development workshop in August 2026! This workshop is intended to assist faculty who have already identified a funding opportunity and are focused on writing the proposal.

The CHDLT has partnered with UVG (Urban Venture Group) to provide this opportunity. UVG provides proposal development and training services and holds experience with grant submission and award management processes. UVG has a long history of successful trainings and collaborations with ORI and other groups at Miami.

The CHDLT proposal development training will consist of a half-day workshop on proposal development, with a capacity for 20 faculty/staff associates. This will be followed by a limited number of 30-minute 1:1 consultation sessions to further assist in the writing process.

If you are interested in one or both components of the grant proposal training, please complete the application form. Thank you!

Workshop questions can be directed to CHDLT co-directors, Kevin Bush, Ph.D., at bushkr@MiamiOH.edu and Trace Poll, Ph.D at pollgh@MiamiOH.edu.