Dr. Luke Russell
Associate Professor of Human Development and Family Science
- About
- Education
- Awards & Honors
- Selected Research
Current Courses
FCS 333.001 Family And Consumer Public Policy
FCS 433.001 Family and Consumer Public Policy
FCS 335.001 Family Life Education Methods
FCS 435.001 Family Life Education Methods
FCS 101.001 Human And Family Development
FCS 299.001 Independent Honor Study
FCS 499.011 Independent Research For The Master's Thesis
FCS 400.011 Independent Study
FCS 497.001 Introduction To Research Methodology
Teaching Interests & Areas
Family Relationships/Interactions, Health and Well-being, Aging, Family Policy, Research Methods
Research Interests & Areas
My research investigates how individuals living in complex family structures (single-parent, post-divorce, stepfamilies, cohabiting families) and contexts organize their relationships, engage in strategies that promote resilience, and maintain family-members’ health and well-being. I am also interested in how broader social institutions (e.g., health care systems, schools, and government agencies) can better function as supportive resources for complex and diverse families.
Google Scholar Profile:
https://scholar.google.com/citations?user=PQAq5GUAAAAJ&hl=en
Full Curriculum Vitae (December, 2024)
https://drive.google.com/file/d/1ytCmNpl_A9E9LwkTGLi7Sz-LdrYCkLOn/view?usp=sharing
Learn more about Family Science:
https://family.science/
Ph D Human Development and Family Science
University of Missouri
Columbia, MO
MS Family Science
University of Missouri
Columbia, MO
BA Human Development and Family Studies & Political Science
University of Connecticut
Storrs, CT
Connie J. Ley Outstanding Researcher Award
Illinois State University, Department of Family and Consumer Sciences
2025
Impact Award
Illinois State University, Office of the Provost and University College
2025
Outstanding Paper Presentation Award
Illinois Council on Family Relations
2024
Phyllis Memken Outstanding Teacher Award
Illinois State University, Department of Family and Consumer Sciences
2022
Research Initiative Award
Illinois State University
2022
CAST Outstanding Researcher Award (Pre-tenure category)
Illinois State University, College of Applied Science and Technology
2021
Departmental Research Award
Illinois State University, Department of Family and Consumer Sciences
2021
Outstanding University Teaching Award (Teaching Initiative Award)
Illinois State University
2020
Grants and Contracts
Understanding and Alleviating the Wicked Problem of Self-Management Adherence Among Patients with Left Ventricular Assist Devices and Their Caregivers Using AI-Powered Machine Learning and Gamification
Greg Corness, Kristin Anne Carlson, Dan Cox, Luke Russell, Jessie Casida, Simone Downie.
Illinois State University. October 2025 - 2026
Center for Inclusive Intergenerational Environment
Elke Altenburger, Gabriela Fonseca Pereira, Luke Russell, Chang Su-Russell.
Illinois State University. 2023 - 2024
Youth and family experiences of transparent school buildings: Perceptions of connection, exposure, and safety
Elke Altenburger, Luke Russell.
College of Applied Science and Technology - University Research Grant. July 1 2021 - June 30 2022
Evaluating mechanisms associated with college student health and flourishing in structurally diverse families
Luke Russell.
College of Applied Science and Technology - University Research Grant. July 1 2019 - June 30 2020
Book, Chapter
A History of Divorce and Relationship Dissolution Research
Luke T Russell, Micheal Rowley.
(2025), 104-118, 10.4324/9781003404446-9, An Introduction to the History of Human Development and Family Science, Routledge
Coparenting among divorced and separated parents in the United States.
Luke Russell, Jonathon Beckmeyer.
(2025), The sociology of the family: Key debates and contending perspectives., Edward Elgar Press
Family life education with divorcing and separating parents.
Melinda S. Markham, Anthony J. Ferraro, Luke Russell, Jonathon Beckmeyer.
(2025), Family life education: The practice of family science (2nd edition)., National Council on Family Relations
Social Networks and Extended Families
Susan Sprecher, Luke Russell, Chang Su-Russell, Maria Schmeeckle.
(2022), 277-293, The Routledge Handbook of Family Communication, Routledge
Cohabitation, remarriage, and step-relationships in Black families: A systems perspective
Luke Russell.
(2020), Black Families: A Systems Approach, Cognella
Exploring the Complexity of Stepgrandparent-Stepgrandchild Relationships
Ashton Chapman, Caroline Sanner, Lawrence Ganong, Marilyn Coleman, Luke Russell, Youngjin Kang, Sarah Mitchell.
(2016), 101-130, 10.1108/s1530-353520160000010005, Divorce, separation, and remarriage: The transformation of family (Contemporary Perspectives in Family Research, Volume 10), Emerald Group Publishing Limited
Children in diverse families
Lawrence Ganong, Marilyn Coleman, Luke T. Russell.
(2015), 133-174, Handbook of Child Psychology and Developmental Science Volume 4: Ecological Settings and Processes in Developmental Systems, Wiley
Resilience in stepfamilies
Marilyn Coleman, Lawrence Ganong, Luke T. Russell.
(2013), 85-103, The Handbook of Family Resilience, Springer
Book, Edited
Handbook of Asian American Families
Chang Su-Russell, Luke, Anthony James, Jr..
(2023)
Conference Proceeding
Creating inclusive environments via inter- and transdisciplinary team science.
Luke Russell, E. Sharp, Chang Su-Russell, Elke Altenburger, D. Weiser, Reem Bagais, Connie Dyar, M. Chowdhury.
National Council on Family Relations, (2025)
Exploring Affective Interaction in Self-Management Adherence for Artificial Internal Organ Care
Kristin Anne Carlson, Greg Corness, Jessie Casida, Luke Russell, Dan Cox, Simone Downie.
CHI Workshop on Affective Computing, (2025)
Encyclopedia
Remarriage: Starting over
Luke T. Russell, Marilyn Coleman, Lawrence Ganong.
Wiley-Blackwell, 1675-1678, (2016)
Stepparenting
Youngjin Kang, Lawrence Ganong, Luke Russell, Marilyn Coleman.
Wiley-Blackwell, 1867-1870, (2016)
Preferential treatment of siblings
Luke T. Russell.
SAGE Reference, 1065-1066, (2014)
Remarriage
Luke T. Russell.
SAGE Reference, 1126-1128, (2014)
Stepfamilies
Luke T. Russell.
SAGE Reference, 1279-1282, (2014)
Blended and binuclear families
Marilyn Coleman, Luke T. Russell, Lawrence Ganong.
SAGE Reference, 140-146, (2013)
Stepparent-child relationships
Marilyn Coleman, Luke T. Russell, Lawrence Ganong.
SAGE Reference, 1148-1151, (2013)
Magazine/Trade Publication
Parenting education in the context of divorce, separation, and non-coresidence
Jonathon Beckmeyer, Anthony J Ferraro, Melinda S Markham, Andrew S. Brimhall, Luke Russell.
National Council on Family Relations, (2024)
Sibling relationships and special health care needs: Considering context, loss, and resilience
Luke Russell, Meg Sulak, Halie T Castillo, Sierra L Smith, Bailey R Brower.
National Council on Family Relations, (2024)
What's next in digital scholarship for the Journal of Family Theory & Review
Luke Russell, Ashton L. Chapman, Jeremy B Kanter, Andrea L. Roach, Kimberly A. Crossman.
NCFR Report, 64, 10-11, (2019)
Behind the curtain: Developing meaningful partnerships with schools
Ani Yazedjian, Luke Russell, Dan Lannin.
Facilitating continuous quality improvement of programs by establishing effective collaborative teams and reciprocal cycles
Ani Yazedjian, Luke Russell, Jacqueline Bible, Dan Lannin.
Written Case with Instructional Material
Conducting online research with dyads
Lawrence Ganong, Luke T Russell, Nate Stoddard.
SAGE Research Methods Cases, (2022), 10.4135/9781529602128
Using grounded theory to study chronic illness in post-divorce families
Luke T. Russell, Marilyn Coleman, Lawrence Ganong.
SAGE Research Methods Cases, (2017)
Presentations
Adverse childhood experiences and coparenting relationship dynamics.
Andrew Brimhall, Anthony Ferraro, Kayla Reed-Fitzke, Luke Russell, Claire Trout, Peyton Woods.
2025 Annual Conference of the National Council on Family Relations, Baltimore MD, November, 2025
Creating Inclusive Environments via Inter- and Transdisciplinary Team Science
Luke Russell, Chang Su-Russell, Elke Altenburger, Reem Bagais, Connie Dyar.
Annual Conference of National Council on Family Relations (NCFR), Baltimore, MD, November, 2025
What makes for good or difficult divorces?
Jonathon Beckmeyer, Luke Russell.
Theory Construction and Research Methodology Preconference Workshop of the 2025 Annual Conference of the National Council on Family Relations, Baltimore, MD, November, 2025
Incorporating civic engagement into HDFS curriculum
Luke Russell, Chang Su-Russell.
2025 Annual Conference of the Illinois Council on Family Relations, DeKalb, IL, April, 2025
The use of digital technology by pregnant women during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Sarah Knowlton, Tammy Harpel, Luke Russell, Chang Su-Russell.
2025 Annual Conference of the Illinois Council on Family Relations, DeKalb, IL, April, 2025
Supporting youth and young adults with chronic conditions.
Meg Sulak, Halie Castillo, Sierra L. Smith, Bailey R Brower, Luke Russell.
2025 Illinois State University Research Symposium, Normal, IL, April, 2025
Informal Campus Learning Spaces: Participatory Action Research Based Community Visions
Elke Altenburger, Reem Bagais, Amy Bardwell, Luke Russell, Chang Su-Russell.
Illinois State University Teaching and Learning Symposium, Normal, IL, January, 2025
Challenges, models, & potential futures of family science publishing.
Luke Russell, Anthony J Ferraro, Katherine R. Allen, Anthony G. James, Jennifer Davison.
Annual Conference of the National Council on Family Relations, Bellevue, WA, December, 2024
Adverse childhood experiences, coparenting, and post-divorce adjustment.
Andrew Brimhall, Anthony Ferraro, Luke Russell.
2024 Systemic Family Therapy Conference, Lake Buena Vista, FL, November, 2024
Family structure and parents’ perceptions of the importance of youth developmental assets: Challenging the deficit orientation of structurally diverse families.
Jonathon J. Beckmeyer, Luke Russell, Gabrielle Kline.
Annual Conference of the National Council on Family Relations, Bellevue, WA, November, 2024
Post-divorce repartnering as family transitions.
Jonathon J. Beckmeyer, Ray E. Petren, Luke Russell.
Annual Conference of the National Council on Family Relations, Bellevue, WA, November, 2024
Singlehood, sexual satisfaction, shame, and self-determination among young adults.
Erin K Andrea, Luke Russell.
Annual Conference of the National Council on Family Relations, Bellevue, WA, November, 2024
Who Participates in divorce education? Participant characteristics and reasons for attending divorce education.
Andrew S. Brimhall, Jonathon J. Beckmeyer, Anthony J. Ferraro, Melinda S. Markham, Luke T. Russell, Renee E. Wilkins-Clark, Ellie McCann, J Kale Monk, Judith Myers-Walls.
Annual Conference of the National Council on Family Relations, Bellevue, WA, November, 2024
Belonging/Inclusion in Campus Spaces: Considering Caregiving and Intersectional Identities
Luke Russell, Chang Su-Russell, Elke Altenburger, Reem Bagais, Amy Bardwell, Reecia Orzeck, Gabriela Fonseca Pereira.
Annual Conference of the National Council on Family Relations (NCFR), Bellevue, WA, November, 2024
Post-divorce coparenting: Scholarly definitions & recent findings
Jonathon J. Beckmeyer, Luke Russell.
Reimagining Parallel Parenting Series, Online, October, 2024
I love my family, but I can’t talk about race with them: White young adults’ strengths and struggles in learning about race.
Chang Su-Russell, Erin Andrea, Luke Russell.
International Association for Relationship Research, Boston, MA, July, 2024
Developing and Launching a Center for Inclusive Intergenerational Environments: Lessons Learned and Future Directions
Elke Altenburger, Luke Russell, Chang Su-Russell.
Mid-Atlantic Intergenerational Conference, Lancaster, PA, July, 2024
Most/Least Favorite Spaces on a University Campus: Examining Leverage Points and (Dis)similarity across Generations
Luke Russell, Chang Su-Russell, Elke Altenburger.
Mid-Atlantic Intergenerational Conference, Lancaster, PA, July, 2024
SMART recovery: An alternative pathway to recovery for Illinois families.
Erin K. Andrea, Luke Russell.
Illinois Council on Family Relations Annual Conference, DeKalb, IL, April, 2024
State of families: A brief overview of Illinois families
Erin K. Andrea, Luke Russell, Chang Su-Russell.
Illinois Council on Family Relations Annual Conference, DeKalb, IL, April, 2024
College students’ responses to hypothetical scenarios on race, death, and family structures: The meaning-making process.
Chang Su-Russell, Emily McNulty, Luke Russell.
National Council on Family Relations, Orlando, FL, November, 2023
Parents and their young children discussing different types of families
Erin Andrea, Chang Su-Russell, Luke Russell.
National Council on Family Relations, Orlando, FL, November, 2023
Patterns of knowledge change in divorce education programs: A latent profile analysis
Luke T. Russell, Anthony J. Ferraro, Renee E. Wilkins-Clark, Jonathon Beckmeyer, Andrew S. Brimhall, Kale Monk, Joe Noble, K Oehme, A Perko, L Thibodeau, D Weishaar.
National Council on Family Relations, Orlando, FL, November, 2023
Post-divorce coparenting prior to divorce education and perceptions of divorce education.
Jonathon Beckmeyer, Anthony J. Ferraro, Luke T. Russell, Melinda S. Markham, Renee E. Wilkins-Clark, Joe Noble, K Oehme, A. Perko, L Thibodeau.
National Council on Family Relations, Orlando, FL, November, 2023
Representations of families in everyday life and popular media: Patterns and associations with individual health and flourishing.
Luke Russell, Meara Schaefer, Olivia Heinzeroth, Christine Anangwe.
National Council on Family Relations, Orlando, FL, November, 2023