The Evan B. Donaldson Adoption Institute is pleased to announce the awardee of its first Adoption Scholar's Travel Grant:

Mr. McGinn, an adoptee, is a doctoral candidate in the Child Psychology department at Pace University in New York City. His dissertation topic is Attachment and Psychological Separation in Adopted and non-Adopted Adolescents. He is also a practicing school psychologist for the Freeport Public Schools system in Freeport, New York.

Mr. McGinn's presentation will provide an overview of typical attachment and separation processes and explain how these can sometimes be magnified in adoption. He will also discuss implications of developmental theory on placement and permanency policy and practices, and on open adoption policies.