Camila Polanco, PhD is a Supporting Promising Academic Researchers postdoctoral fellow at the Center for Violence Prevention (CVP) at Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia (CHOP). Her research examines how social environments shape health, learning, and well-being among children, families, and communities. Dr. Polanco works under Dr. Tracy Waasdorp’s mentorship to advance school-based research and evidence-informed programs that address violence prevention, with particular emphasis on reducing bullying.
Camila Polanco, PhD is a Supporting Promising Academic Researchers postdoctoral fellow at the Center for Violence Prevention (CVP) at Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia (CHOP). Her research examines how social environments shape health, learning, and well-being among children, families, and communities. Dr. Polanco works under Dr. Tracy Waasdorp’s mentorship to advance school-based research and evidence-informed programs that address violence prevention, with particular emphasis on reducing bullying.
Prior to joining CHOP, Dr. Polanco's research centered on the concept of "mattering,” or the feeling of being valued and significant to others. Her work explored how to cultivate this sense of mattering in school settings to improve school climate and student outcomes.
Dr. Polanco has also worked extensively on community-based health initiatives. At Penn Medicine’s Center for Genetics of Complex Disease, she helped establish a Community Advisory Board (CAB) to give community members influence over research priorities. Across all her work from schools to clinical settings, Dr. Polanco focuses on understanding how to reshape social systems in ways that better serve children, families, and communities.
BA, La Salle University (Psychology)
MS, University of Delaware (Human Development and Family Sciences)
PhD, University of Delaware (Human Development and Family Sciences)
Postdoctoral Fellow, Center for Violence Prevention, Children's Hospital of Philadelphia
Carey RL, Polanco C, & Blackman H. (2022). Black Adolescent Boys' Perceived School Mattering: From Marginalization and Selective Love to Radically Affirming Relationships. Journal of Research on Adolescence, 32(1), 151–169. https://doi.org/10.1111/jora.12706
Polanco, C., Paskewich, B. S., Leff, S. S., & Waasdorp, T. E. (2023). Relational Peer Victimization as a Predictor of Academic Engagement. Journal of child and family studies, 32(7), 1882–1894. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10826-022-02470-3
Carey RL, Bailey MJ, & Polanco CI. (2023). How the COVID-19 Pandemic Shaped Adolescents' Future Orientations: Insights from a Global Scoping Review. Current opinion in psychology, 53, 101655. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.copsyc.2023.101655
Carey RL, Vilceus SS, Polanco C, Miller MX, Marianno L, & Woelki\ W. (2024). Studying and Imagining Mattering with Black Boys: Mutual Self-discoveries for Collective Healing and Liberation. Qualitative Inquiry, 0(0). https://doi.org/10.1177/10778004241269976
Carey RL, Polanco C, Blackman H, Daughtry KA, Abrams HR, Miller MX, Marianno L, Vilceus SS, Alobwede E, & Woelki W. (2025). “They Just Don’t Get That We Matter”: Black Boys’ Critical Consciousness Development During a Health Crisis and Racial Reckoning. The Urban Review, 57(2), 349–376. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11256-025-00728-w
Comstock M, Shores KA, Litke E, Desimone LM, Polanco C, & Hill KL. (2025). Toward More Equitable Instruction: How Teachers Integrate Ambitious, Traditional, and Culturally Responsive Mathematics Practices. AERA Open, 11. https://doi.org/10.1177/23328584251331463
Hill KL, Desimone L, Marianno L, Polanco C, & Bendel T. (2025). Role of the Policy Environment in Shaping the Work of Professional Learning Partnerships. AERA Open, 11. https://doi.org/10.1177/23328584251316465