Welcome!

I’m an applied developmental psychologist and a NIMH T32 Postdoctoral Fellow in the Institute of Child Development at the University of Minnesota.

My research brings together developmental psychology and education to examine how caregivers and caregiving environments shape children’s development across culturally and socioeconomically diverse contexts. The ultimate goal of my work is to produce evidence that can inform programs, policies, and practices to support caregivers and provide opportunities for all children to thrive.

I earned a Ph.D. and M.S.Ed. in Human Development from the University of Pennsylvania, and a B.S. in Psychology from the University of Massachusetts Amherst. Outside of academia, I apprenticed in the Office of Community Services at the U.S. Administration for Children and Families and worked as a Research Associate at The University of Texas at Austin School of Social Work, where I served as a program evaluator for the AdoptUSKids project.

To learn more about my work, chat about shared interests, or explore potential collaborations, you can reach me at noellems@umn.edu. View my Google Scholar.

I am on the 2025-26 job market.