Graduate School of Education

Professor Jan Blacher

Founding Director, SEARCH family autism research center (Support, Education, Advocacy, Resources, Community, Hope)

Undergraduate Degree, major

A.B., Psychology, Brown University

Doctoral Degree, research area, conferring institution

Ph.D., Special Education/Developmental Psychology, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill

Area of research:

I’ve had an abiding interest in families of children with disabilities. I began graduate school as a developmental psychologist studying typical development, However, as a Fellow of the NIH program in mental retardation I took many disability-related courses, one of them was taught by a professor who was a mother of a child with severe retardation. I became very close with that family. Over the course of my graduate studies, I became fascinated by children with mental retardation, in the context of their families and schools. At UCR my first NIH grant, in 1982, was focused on understanding families and severe disabilities, as well as the recent federal mandate for schooling for all handicapped children. I subsequently followed these 100 families for 22 years, from early childhood to young adulthood, and studied the critical life stages (e.g. out of home placement,the transition to adulthood). I also studied several other longitudinal samples of families with a child with mental retardation, including a large Latino sample in an effort to understand the role of culture in family adjustment.Over the past decade I have worked collaboratively with colleagues at two other universities to conduct a NIH-supported longitudinal study focused on the question of why children and adolescents with mental retardation are at such heightened risk for mental disorder.

Overlapping these research studies has been 20 years of clinical work on behalf of families of children with autism. As autism grew from being a rare disorder affecting 1 in 2,500 children to today’s epidemic-like level of 1 in 150, I began to focus research on their families. I became aware of the fact that Latino families experience autism differently from Anglo families, and that they certainly receive services differently – often fewer of them. My interest in the cultural context of autism led me to develop SEARCH at UCR. SEARCH [Support, Education, Advocacy, Resources, Community, Hope] provides educational and advocacy services to families of children with autism, focusing on low-income and/or Latino families. SEARCH also facilitates training of professionals to work with such families, and serves as the nexus for research into questions that can inform service delivery policy.

Selected publications:

Blacher, J., & Baker, B.L. (2007). Positive impact of intellectual disability on families. American Journal on Mental Retardation. 112, 330-348.

Blacher, J., & Hatton, C. (2007). Families in context: Influences on coping and adaptation. In S.L. Odom,R.H. Horner, M.E. Snell, & J. Blacher (Eds.), Handbook on Developmental Disabilities (pp. 531-551).Guilford Press.

Krraemer, B.R. & Blacher, J. (in press). Transition for Hispanic and Anglo youth with severe intellectual disability: Parent perspectives across two time points. Journal on Developmental Disabilities.

Blacher, J., & McIntyre, L.L. (2006) Syndrome specificity and behavioural disorders in young adults with intellectual disability: Cultural differences in family impact. Journal of Intellectual Disability Research, 50,349-361.

Eisenhower, A. S., Baker, B. L., & Blacher, J. (2005). Preschool children with intellectual disability:Syndrome specificity, behavior problems, and maternal well-being. Journal of Intellectual Disability Research,49, 657-671.

Only at UCR's Graduate School of Education do you find.

The kind of personalized attention that a student might not find elsewhere. I know the current slogan is “the one to watch,” but I’d say we’re also “the one to get involved with.” There are so many opportunities for students, who have interests in wide-ranging content areas, to work closely with really talented faculty. UCR is an exciting place to be.

What I like about being at the GSOE:

I really like the work atmosphere right now. I’ve been here a lot longer than people think, and I sound really hokey, but each year has been better than the last. I think the level of professionalism of the school has risen. I like the new look of the school, the quality of students, the opportunities for faculty, and the enthusiasm for each other’s work. It’s gratifying to hear faculty speak so well of each others’ work.

How I discovered my professional passion:

I always wanted to be a lawyer. I come from a family of lawyers. But I majored in Psychology at Brown, and from the time I did my senior honors thesis I was hooked. I had decided by then on a career in psychology focused on research and teaching.

What reading do you keep on your night stand?

I read everything from children’s books like The Princess Bride (with my 14-year-old son in my mother and son book club) to Barack Obama’s Dreams from My Father and The Audacity of Hope. I just finished Three Cups of Tea, a remarkable and true account of building schools for girls in the mountains of Pakistan. My favorite mystery author is Robert Parker.

Why UCR's GSOE is a good place to carry out my commitment to helping families of children with autism and developmental disabilities:

One particular reason is that there are so few services in this part of California. So, as I tell potential funders at development events, every dollar that is given to SEARCH seems to bring $100 in terms of work out of my students. Every effort we make out here in the Inland Empire seems to have a ripple effect.

How my students have influenced — and inspired — me:

I just think I have the most wonderful students and right now, more than ever, I’m learning from my students. I see the cohort of SEARCH fellows right now as individuals who are going to leave UCR with a SEARCH banner behind them. They are the best. They tackle a problem immediately and thoroughly. They are creative. They keep me far too busy by doing their work more quickly than I expect them to, and I can barely keep up.

One of the funniest questions a student asked me:

After I had lectured a lot on children with severe handicaps, a student approached me and asked: “Would you please give us a lecture on the severely gifted?”

A favorite book from childhood?

Make Way for Ducklings, by Robert McCloskey. I grew up in Boston, and the book takes place in the famous Boston Public Garden.

Leisure activities:

I play tennis. My entire family plays tennis. I was a 10K runner and marathoner, up until I started chasing after my two boys instead. I love yoga, and I love to travel with my family. I’m a great dessert baker.