Principal Investigator – Dr. Tara Mantler

Dr. Tara Mantler (PhD) is an Assistant Professor at Western University who has expertise in child development, community engaged learning, and program evaluation research. Dr. Mantler teaches HS2700: Health Issues in Childhood and Adolescence, and will be facilitating the community engaged learning partnership between the approximately 400 students in this course and elementary school teachers. She will also be leading the research component of this partnership to investigate the impact of the community engaged learning course and resulting online resource repository on the learning outcomes and engagement of undergraduate students creating the resources and elementary school children using the resources. Dr. Mantler also has extensive research expertise in child development, adjustment, and wellbeing. Featured works in the field can be found below.

Co-Investigator – Julia Yates

Julia Yates (MSc) is a PhD candidate under the supervision of Dr. Tara Mantler who has research expertise in child adjustment and wellbeing, program evaluation, and novel methodologies of involving children in research. Julia is the lead teaching assistant for HS2700: Health Issues in Childhood and Adolescence, and will be leading the development of capacity building opportunities for undergraduate students in this course (e.g., how to create quality resources or include curriculum requirements in resources). She will also be co-leading the research component of this project, employing both quantitative and qualitative methodologies to evaluate the impact of the community engaged learning partnership. Featured works in the field can be found below.

Featured Works

  1. Yates, J., Booth, R., Ezezika, O., & Mantler, T. (2025). The development, implementation, and evaluation of an education-based health promotion social media campaign targeting elementary educators. Pedagogy in Health Promotion. https://doi.org/10.1177/23733799251367240
  2. Yates, J., Young, C., & Mantler, T. (2025). Elementary students’ social, emotional, and cognitive development during the COVID-19 pandemic in North America: A scoping review. PLOS Global Public Health, 5(9): e0005148. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pgph.0005148
  3. Yates, J., Davidson, C. A., Orchard, T., Burke, S. M., & Mantler, T. (2025). “I watched my child become half of the person they were”: Emergency remote learning experiences among primary caregivers of elementary school children during the COVID-19 pandemic. Journal of Education. https://doi.org/10.1177/00220574251349795
  4. Mantler, T., & Yates, J. (2024, January 23). Health studies course creates elementary school resources. Western News media coverage. Western University. https://news.westernu.ca/2025/01/shs-learn-lab/
  5. Maxwell, A., Yates, J., Pfingstgraef, K., & Mantler, T. (2025). Undergraduate students’ experiences of a community-engaged learning course: A mixed-methods study. Journal of Experiential Education, 1-23. https://doi.org/10.1177/10538259241309640
  6. Mantler, T., & Yates, J. (2024, November 22). Stories with Impact: SHS LEARN Lab bridges classroom learning and community needs. Health Sciences in the News media coverage. Western University. https://uwo.ca/fhs/news/2024/11_05_mantler_yates.html
  7. Yates, J., Burke, S. M., Orchard, T. & Mantler, T. (2024). The resilience and socioeconomic status of caregivers and school-aged children during the COVID-19 pandemic. The Family Journal, 1-11. https://doi.org/10.1177/10664807241232480
  8. Mantler, T., Burke, S. M., Davidson, C. A., Yates, J., & Orchard, T. (2024). “Being able to get through without too many scars”:  Joy, adaptation, and agency in the resilience narratives of primary caregivers during the COVID-19 pandemic. Discover Public Health, 21(183). https://doi.org/10.1186/s12982-024-00303-w
  9. Yates, J., & Mantler, T. (2023). The resilience of caregivers and children in the context of COVID-19: A systematic review. Journal of Child and Adolescent Trauma, 1-20. https://doi.org/10.1007/s40653-022-00514-w