Katie Todd

Katie Todd is Director of Learning and Research at the Children’s Museum of Pittsburgh.

With over a decade of experience in social science research in informal learning contexts, their work focuses on supporting justice, equity, diversity, and inclusion in museums and other learning environments.

Much of Katie’s recent work leverages emotion, including articulating approaches for museums to support emotional accessibility, building resilience for emotional labor among equity workers, and using emotion as a tool of humanizing research.

Katie is currently pursuing a doctorate in out of school learning at the University of Pittsburgh.

MuseumNext Museums, Health & Wellbeing Summit
Monday, 31 January 2022

Playful strategies for supporting children’s emotional wellness

Children are facing deep emotional stress as they navigate the complexities of COVID-19, racial unrest, and environmental degradation. These stresses have long-lasting impacts on children’s health and wellness that fall disproportionately on Black and Brown children and children with disabilities. Museums are experts in fostering emotional experiences, but have not always committed to supporting visitors’ long-term emotional wellness. This session shares research and concrete examples of how the Children’s Museum of Pittsburgh is supporting children’s emotional wellness by providing intentional opportunities to practice empathy and resilience, building children’s capacity to persist through frustrations they encounter in their daily lives.

Find the full schedule here