This page is no longer being updated and remains online for informational and historical purposes only. The information is accurate as of the last page update.
For questions about page contents, contact the Communications Division.
Ann McGillicuddy-DeLisi, Marshall R. Metzgar Professor and head of psychology at Lafayette, has been named co-editor of the Journal of Applied Developmental Psychology.
“Ann’s qualifications for this new role are professional and personal,” writes Irving E. Sigel, founding editor and editor emeritus, in the January-February 2002 issue of the journal. “She is an outstanding scholar, researcher, and educator in developmental psychology. Scholarship aside, the editorial job requires social skills at every level of the editorial process. As head of the psychology department at Lafayette College, Ann has demonstrated her exceptional ability to work with others under a variety of circumstances.”
The Journal of Applied Developmental Psychology is scheduled to move its headquarters to Lafayette this year upon completion of Oechsle Hall, a $10 million, 45,000-square-foot, state-of-the-art home for psychology and neuroscience.
McGillicuddy-DeLisi joined the Lafayette faculty as assistant professor of psychology in 1985, receiving a promotion to associate professor in 1990 and assuming the Metzgar chair in 2000. As a developmental psychologist, her research is focused on the development of spatial and mathematical knowledge in children, and the influence of family environment factors on the development of children and adults.
McGillicuddy-DeLisi shares this expertise in the classroom and while working closely as a mentor to many Lafayette students engaged in honors theses and other special research projects. For example, Christina Croft, a junior neuroscience major from Highland Park, N.J., is conducting an independent study with McGillicuddy-DeLisi on how estrogen and testosterone hormones affect the spatial ability of males and females. Croft’s final report will include related laboratory research conducted in Advanced Developmental Psychology, a separate course taught by McGillicuddy-DeLisi.
“She is great to work with,” Croft says. “She has a great passion for this independent study, which is reflected in the enthusiasm she exhibits in our hourly meetings. I have had her previously for two classes and I think that she is very knowledgeable and insightful. I also enjoy doing this independent study with her because she is a very caring person and is always interested in how things are going for me.”
Recipient of the Lafayette Student Government Teaching Award in 1991 and 1997, McGillicuddy-DeLisi also has earned the Marquis Distinguished Teaching Award (1996), Thomas Roy and Lura Forrest Jones Award for superior teaching and scholarship (1994), and the Thomas Roy and Lura Forrest Jones Lecture Award (1991).
Institutions such as the U.S. Office of Education, the National Institute of Mental Health, and the National Institute of Health have awarded McGillicuddy-DeLisi grants totaling more than $1 million.
McGillicuddy-DeLisi has given presentations at more than 25 conferences. She has edited two books, including Biology, Society, and Behavior: The Development of Sex Differences in Cognition, published this year by Lawrence Erlbaum Associates, and Parental Beliefs: The Psychological Consequences for Children, published in 1992 by Ablex Publishing Co.
She has authored and coauthored over 40 book chapters and journal articles, including ones this year in the forthcoming third volume of The Handbook of Parenting and Biology, Society, and Behavior: The Development of Sex Differences in Cognition. In the past several years, she has published articles in Journal of Experimental Child Psychology, Child Development, and Journal of Applied Developmental Psychology, a review in Contemporary Psychology, and. She has written reports for the U.S. Office of Education, the National Institute of Mental Health, Educational Testing Service (Princeton, N.J.), and the Newark (N.J.) Preschool Council.
McGillicuddy-DeLisi served on the editorial board of Child Development from 1988-1990 and Journal of Applied Developmental Psychology 1981-1994. She is guest reviewer for Child Development and 11 other publications.
Since 1997, McGillicuddy-DeLisi has served as a consultant to the Advisory Panel on Educational Television, Annenberg Public Policy Center, University of Pennsylvania. She has been a consultant for the Educational Testing Service; ADVANCE, an AT&T-funded project for development of science knowledge and skills in minority children; and Newark Full Day Head Start.
In addition, McGillicuddy-DeLisi is a grant proposal reviewer for many organizations, including National Institute of Child Health and Human Development, National Endowment for the Humanities, National Institute of Education, National Science Foundation Division of International Programs, and National Institute of Mental Health.
McGillicuddy-DeLisi earned a Ph.D. in developmental psychology and M.A. in psychology from The Catholic University of America and a bachelor’s in psychology from University of Rochester.