Jayneva Mills, MSW, is a doctoral student at the University of Pittsburgh, where she intends to explore approaches to social-emotional skill development and learning in Black children. She holds a Bachelor of Arts in Human Services with a concentration in Children and Family Services from Southern New Hampshire University and a Master of Social Work from Springfield College in Massachusetts.

During her studies and internships, Jayneva supported students through counseling, social skills groups, and collaboration with AmeriCorps and adjustment counselors. As an outpatient clinician intern, she collaborated with interdisciplinary teams to coordinate care, maintained clinical documentation, conducted client assessments, developed individualized treatment plans, monitored client progress, and connected families with community resources.

Her research focuses on social-emotional interventions, racial discrimination and disparities, and their effects on Black children’s identity development, child-parent relationships, and relationships within their communities and peer groups. She is passionate about strength-based and community-based approaches, as well as collaborative and proactive solutions that support and strengthen children’s identity development and social relationships.