Valerie Maholmes, Ph.D., CAS has devoted her career to supporting the health and well-being of children and families. From her early work as an educator to her current role supporting biomedical and behavioral sciences research, Dr. Maholmes calls attention to the short and long-term psychological and health consequences of experiencing adversity early in life.

Dr. Valerie Maholmes completed her Ph.D. at Howard University and was a Post-doctoral Research Fellow at the Yale Child Study Center in the School of Medicine. Upon completion of her post-doctoral training, she joined the faculty at the Yale Child Study Center. After serving in numerous capacities including Director of Research for the Comer School Development Program, she was awarded the Irving B. Harris Assistant Professor of Child Psychiatry—an endowed professorial chair in research and social policy. A recognized member of the community, Dr. Maholmes served two terms on the New Haven Public School Board of Education and was elected Vice-President/Secretary.

Dr. Maholmes also served as a minority visiting faculty at the Indiana University School of Education in Bloomington, Indiana.

In 2003, Dr. Maholmes earned a sixth-year degree in School Psychology with a concentration in neuropsychological and psychosocial assessments from Fairfield University. In that same year, she was awarded the prestigious Science Policy Fellowship sponsored by the Society for Research in Child Development (SRCD) and the American Association for the Advancement of Sciences (AAAS). She has published numerous articles and book chapters, lectured and funded research and programs on factors that influence the learning and development of children and adolescents. Notably, Dr. Maholmes co-authored a text on applied child development research published by Taylor and Francis, Psychology Press in 2010 and a comprehensive volume about the intergenerational effects of poverty titled Child Development and Poverty published by Oxford University Press in 2012. A recent text titled Fostering Resilience and Well-being in Children and Families in Poverty: Why Hope Still Matters was published in February 2014 also by Oxford Press.

With her most recent book titled Post Dramatic Relationship Syndrome: How to Find Your Drama-Free Zone, Maholmes' joins the global network of independent electronic book authors and uses her platform to call attention to the ways in which relationship dynamics have an impact on women's emotional well-being and overall health.

Her expertise has been sought after by the media. She has been interviewed by such media outlets as Reader’s Digest, the New York Times, The Washington Post, The Hartford Courant, The American Psychological Association’s Monitor and has been on such radio shows as the NPR’s The Tavis Smiley Show, WHUR’s The Daily Drum and WYCB’s Think on These Things.