Connad Higgins will teach on topics including stages of development and relational processes
The Human Development and Family Sciences (HDFS) department recently hired Connad Higgins as an instructor. Higgins received his bachelor's and master's from the Texas Tech HDFS programs. During his time in the Human Development and Family Sciences graduate program, he served as a teaching and research assistant under numerous faculty members and conducted research examining the effects of COVID-19 on family functioning and well-being. He also completed his own longitudinal study examining the developmental impacts of participation in table-top role-playing games on emerging adults during COVID-19. This research became the topic of his master's thesis, Leveling Up: Table-Top Role-Playing Games as Resources for Emerging Adult Development During COVID-19.
This Fall semester, Higgins will teach a section of the Lifespan Human Development. This course covers topics in a broad range of developmental contexts including physical, cognitive, and socioemotional development across the various stages of development from conception to death. He will also be teaching a section of Partnering: The Development of Intimate Relationships, which provides an overview of intimate relationships through adolescence and adulthood, emphasizing relational processes, relationship diversity, and developmental and contextual variation.
"I'm very much looking forward to teaching and mentoring the next generation of Red Raiders," Higgins said. "I also look forward to developing ways to integrate budding technologies, such as AI, into my teaching methods in order to prepare students for the new opportunities and challenges presented by such advancements."
Higgins speaks highly of his time and experiences as a student at Texas Tech and credits his successes to the numerous faculty and staff who supported his interests and provided opportunities to explore them. He said he hopes to continue that legacy by providing his students with the support and resources they need to meet their goals and discover their passions.