Melissa Gard, M.A.

Doctoral Student


Mgard@ku.edu

Ms. Gard received her BA in Psychology from Creighton University in Omaha, NE. During her undergraduate training, she began work in the field of Applied Behavior Analysis through a home based, intensive early intervention for children with autism run by REM, now FEAT of MN. Ms. Gard has continued to work with FEAT of MN in providing services to children with autism in the Kansas City area. She is working toward a Ph.D in the Department of Human Development and Family Life at the University of Kansas.

Ms. Gard’s research interests are to increase the availability and the effectiveness of services for persons with disabilities. She is working to achieve these goals through her involvement in the RTC/IL projects which include researching a computerized instrument for risk assessment of secondary conditions for individuals with spinal cord injuries. She has also assisted with focus groups that assessed the relevance of research to the lives of consumers which led to the design of a research primer to make scientific articles more understandable for the average consumer. Ms. Gard looks forward to participating in research that examines the factors, such as culture, that affect research results as well as how individuals use the services that are provided by independent living centers.