Young Acheivers Emerging Professional Award 2006 -
Beth Manke
Beth Manke earned her Bachelor of Science degree in Child Development and Family Studies at the University of Arizona in 1989. She received her masters (1993) and doctorate degrees (1995) in Human Development and Family Studies from the Pennsylvania State University. Upon receiving her Ph.D. Beth took a position at the University of Houston in the Psychology Department as an Assistant Professor. She is currently an Associate Professor in the Department of Human Development at the California State University, Long Beach. Dr. Manke maintains an active research program focused on the interplay of children’s familial relationships (parent-child and sibling), broader contextual factors and developmental outcomes including mental health, academic achievement and behavior problems. She recently received a 3-year grant from the National Institutes of Mental Health to investigate the family and sibling support mechanisms for children diagnosed with type 2 diabetes.
As a faculty member, Dr. Manke has taught courses on life span human development, research methods and design, and program evaluation. She was awarded the 2000 College of Social Sciences Teaching Excellence Award at the University of Houston, Houston, TX. Dr. Menke has started her own program evaluation business. She now has over 12 years of program evaluation experience. She presently serves as the Director of Evaluation for 8 organizations in Houston and Los Angeles including the Center for Community Engagement on the CSULB campus, the Los Angeles Housing Authority, I Have a Dream-Houston, a mentoring program for inner city children, and WiseSkills, a character education company. Dr. Manke has expertise in on-line surveys, paper-and-pencil questionnaires, clinical interviews, and observational techniques. She has described her evaluation findings in written professional reports and community-wide presentations - the goal of which are to improve program and products for children and families. Her results have also been featured in several newspaper articles. Dr. Menke was influenced to continue her graduate studies by Dr. Wendy Gamble and is proud that now one of her students has come to the University to pursue her advanced degree. The FCS Council of Alumni and Friends is proud to recognize Dr. Menke for her outstanding teaching and research for children and families.
