TERA HURT, PH.D., serves as Research Scientist/Project Director for the Program for Strong African American Marriages Study. She earned a dual-title Ph.D. in Human Development and Family Studies and Demography from The Pennsylvania State University in 2005 and later completed one year of postdoctoral training at the University of Georgia’s Center for Family Research. Her research agenda focuses on understanding the relationship among childhood experiences, interpersonal trust, and intimate relationship behaviors. She utilizes qualitative and mixed methodologies to study these issues among African American adolescents and adults.