Congratulations to Emily Kinkade on winning this year’s Mark T. Suffolk Award for Outstanding Contributions to Developmental Science. Emily is deserving of this award because she excels as a developmental scientist and gerontologist. She is enthusiastic about learning, sharing knowledge with others, and improving the lives of older adults and families through her work.

This award is named in honor of doctoral student Mark Suffolk who passed away in 2016 before he could complete his degree and is given annually to the advanced DS student who exemplifies traits such as intellectual curiosity, enthusiasm, compassion, and dedication to the field, similar to and in honor of the award’s namesake Mark.

Emily is in her final year of the developmental science doctoral program. Emily exemplifies qualities such as strong sense of inquiry, leadership, collaboration, motivation to contribute, generosity of spirit, and compassion that make for a successful developmental scientist. Her research focuses on applied developmental concepts that are impactful for the well-being of aging individuals, and she has designed a dissertation that addresses an issue with important implications for the health and well-being of not only older adults, but their caregivers as well. Emily is a natural mentor to students and her peers, and she excels at collaboration and demonstrates empathy for her colleagues in all stages of their academic journeys. Emily’s excellent contributions to and leadership within the HDFS department and field of Developmental Science demonstrate her dedication and passion for the field.