Jamie Jirout, Phd (CV)
​principal investigator

Jamie Jirout leads the Research in Education and Learning Lab at UVA. She is originally from Florida, and attended the University of Miami where she majored in psychology and began studying cognitive development with Dr. Daryle Greenfield. She earned her Ph.D. from Carnegie Mellon University under the mentorship of Dr. David Klahr. While at CMU, she developed a measure of young children's curiosity based on uncertainty preference, which she continues to use in her research today. She was trained in the Program for Interdisciplinary Education Research, and was affiliated with the Pittsburgh Science of Learning Center. Jamie then joined the Spatial Intelligence and Learning Center as a postdoc working with Dr. Nora Newcombe at Temple University. While there, she worked at the Temple Infant and Child Lab to study the development of spatial reasoning skills, and how spatial learning takes place through playful activities. She continues research in these areas now as a faculty member at the University of Virginia. Jamie enjoys living in Charlottesville, VA with her family, including her daughters who provide inspiration and feedback on new research protocols and are expert research participants.

Student Research Assistants

Mary Grace Britton
Spatial Learning As Play (SLAP) Coordinator
        Mary Grace Britton leads the weekly spatial playgroups for the Education and Learning Lab. Born and raised in Virginia, she is currently studying psychology at the University of Virginia. Mary Grace's academics focus on education and autism. Her interest in child development and learning started while watching her six younger siblings grow up. She continued her passion for child development by working as a camp counselor and going on a mission trip to an orphanage for the developmentally delayed and disabled.
        In her free time, Mary Grace enjoys hiking and being part of the Club Swim team at the University of Virginia. Mary Grace is excited to continue her journey with the Education and Learning Lab.

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Savannah Sunvold
Curiosity and exploration project
Savannah is a military brat and has lived all over the country and the world, but currently calls Chesapeake, Virginia home. She graduated from the University of Virginia in December of 2016 with a bachelor's degree in speech pathology and audiology, with a minor in religious studies. She hopes to attend graduate school for speech-language pathology in the fall with dreams of becoming a speech therapist for children with Down syndrome.

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 Kayleigh Warburton
Exploring Spatial Play and Implicit Associations Project
Kayleigh was born and raised in Charlottesville, Virginia and is currently a fourth year student at the University of Virginia studying Speech-Language Pathology and Audiology. After graduation, she plans on attending graduate school to earn her Master’s degree in Speech-Language Pathology. In her free time, Kayleigh enjoys calligraphy and graphic design, hiking the beautiful Blue Ridge mountains, traveling, couponing, and eating mint chocolate chip ice cream!

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