Personal Statement
My research interests primarily focus on public policies that influence access to education for marginalized student groups. Currently, little is known about the effects of policy on the lived experiences of underserved students. I use a sociological approach to understand how social structures influence students’ ability to navigate educational institutions. I primarily explore policies intended to increase educational opportunities for homeless youth, including the McKinney Vento Homeless Assistance Act. During my time in the Pullias Center for Higher Education at the University of Southern California, I worked with William Tierney on an 18 month study of educational policy issues as they pertained to homeless youth. We produced several publications and presentations highlighting the influence of mobility on access to high school and postsecondary education. At the conclusion of the project I co-authored a monograph titled Transitions to Adulthood for Homeless Adolescents, which discussed the findings from the study and made educational policy recommendations. The monograph was distributed nationwide to 3,000 practitioners, policymakers and researchers. As an extension of that work, I conducted a case study of families forced to live together as a result of economic crises—the federal government, through the McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance Act, includes doubled-up families under the definition of homelessness. Although these students represent the majority of homeless youth in the United States, few studies had been conducted to understand their experiences. Using resiliency as a theoretical framework, I analyzed how families structured doubled-up residences in different ways. The residential structure framed youths’ participation in high school and access to information about college. I continued developing this work while at Pacific, which resulted in a book published with Routledge titled Educational Experiences of Hidden Homeless Teenagers Living Doubled-Up. My research over the next three years will involve expanding this work to explore the experiences of newly homeless students and the response of school districts.
During my time at the University of the Pacific, I also conducted a study of undocumented students attending a selective postsecondary institution. These students took advantage of California Assembly Bill 540 (AB 540), which enables students graduating from California high schools to pay in-state tuition regardless of legal status. My goal was to understand how an underserved group of college students experienced the educational process and utilized an underground network to sustain access. I found a tenuous balance between creating a supportive atmosphere and competing for finite resources. The students also developed an “undocumented identity” that limited their ability to participate in other activities on campus and constrained alternative aspects of identity development. Although AB 540 enabled these students to attend college, their access to the college experience was restricted.
My interest in educational access and equity goes beyond exploring the transition between high school and postsecondary education. I am interested in how youth
navigate the educational system and the choices available to them from preschool through postsecondary education. I believe universities play a vital role in building partnerships with high schools in order to increase access to college. A common theme overlapping my research is exploring how marginalized and often invisible youth experience the educational system. I believe qualitative research plays an important role in public policy discussions and intend to continue finding opportunities to explore how underserved student groups experience public policy decisions. My goal is to participate in research that can have direct and indirect influences on the educational system. I plan to seek external funding to develop research projects embedded in the community context that have the potential of informing both local and national audiences as well as improving educational access.
With regard to teaching and learning, I have had three different forms of experience. I began my educational career as a special education teacher in urban school districts. In addition, the first two years at Pacific I was selected as a Learning Lab Fellow. As a fellow, I participated in training and was given the opportunity to teach courses in a flexible learning space equipped with multiple technological teaching tools. This experience allowed me to explore multiple modes of teaching that improve student learning. And most importantly, I have taught graduate courses on qualitative methods, introduction to research, diversity student populations, public policy and sociology of education. I create a rigorous learning environment with high expectations and approach teaching with the belief that every student can learn when given adequate support. I co-authored two manuscripts concerning teaching and advising. One addresses the importance of teaching writing in graduate school and the other discusses finding voice through the dissertation process.
I actively participate in service to the campus, profession and community. I serve on committees focused on improving educational experiences and supporting pre-tenure faculty. Over the past three semesters, I have worked with the technology committee chair to secure university funding for the creation of a technologically advanced flexible learning space in the Benerd School of Education. In collaboration with a tenured member of the faculty, I facilitated a pre-tenure group that met monthly to provide members accountability. I also serve on the university General Education Committee and was chair during the 2012-2013 academic year as the General Education Program prepared for program review. Starting the fall of 2013, I begin a two year term as the chair of the Benerd School of Education’s Faculty Council. My service to the field has involved reviewing manuscripts for national conferences and journals as well as assisting with the Emerging Scholars Pre-Conference Workshop and Local Guest Educators Initiative for Division J of the American Educational Research Association. Service to the community reflects my research and, conversely, my research frequently leads to serving the organizations involved in my work. For example, I assisted in creating college access mentoring programs for homeless youth based upon research with two nonprofit organizations in Los Angeles. For six years I worked with a summer bridge program organized by the Pullias Center. In 2011, I created a summer program (COVE) with Lincoln High School and a parent support group. The past three summers I served as program director of COVE. The five-week program provides up to 60 students the opportunity to learn about the college application process as well as getting information about how to navigate the transition between high school and college. Service to the community naturally builds upon my research on expanding social networks of underserved and marginalized students.
During my time at the University of the Pacific, I also conducted a study of undocumented students attending a selective postsecondary institution. These students took advantage of California Assembly Bill 540 (AB 540), which enables students graduating from California high schools to pay in-state tuition regardless of legal status. My goal was to understand how an underserved group of college students experienced the educational process and utilized an underground network to sustain access. I found a tenuous balance between creating a supportive atmosphere and competing for finite resources. The students also developed an “undocumented identity” that limited their ability to participate in other activities on campus and constrained alternative aspects of identity development. Although AB 540 enabled these students to attend college, their access to the college experience was restricted.
My interest in educational access and equity goes beyond exploring the transition between high school and postsecondary education. I am interested in how youth
navigate the educational system and the choices available to them from preschool through postsecondary education. I believe universities play a vital role in building partnerships with high schools in order to increase access to college. A common theme overlapping my research is exploring how marginalized and often invisible youth experience the educational system. I believe qualitative research plays an important role in public policy discussions and intend to continue finding opportunities to explore how underserved student groups experience public policy decisions. My goal is to participate in research that can have direct and indirect influences on the educational system. I plan to seek external funding to develop research projects embedded in the community context that have the potential of informing both local and national audiences as well as improving educational access.
With regard to teaching and learning, I have had three different forms of experience. I began my educational career as a special education teacher in urban school districts. In addition, the first two years at Pacific I was selected as a Learning Lab Fellow. As a fellow, I participated in training and was given the opportunity to teach courses in a flexible learning space equipped with multiple technological teaching tools. This experience allowed me to explore multiple modes of teaching that improve student learning. And most importantly, I have taught graduate courses on qualitative methods, introduction to research, diversity student populations, public policy and sociology of education. I create a rigorous learning environment with high expectations and approach teaching with the belief that every student can learn when given adequate support. I co-authored two manuscripts concerning teaching and advising. One addresses the importance of teaching writing in graduate school and the other discusses finding voice through the dissertation process.
I actively participate in service to the campus, profession and community. I serve on committees focused on improving educational experiences and supporting pre-tenure faculty. Over the past three semesters, I have worked with the technology committee chair to secure university funding for the creation of a technologically advanced flexible learning space in the Benerd School of Education. In collaboration with a tenured member of the faculty, I facilitated a pre-tenure group that met monthly to provide members accountability. I also serve on the university General Education Committee and was chair during the 2012-2013 academic year as the General Education Program prepared for program review. Starting the fall of 2013, I begin a two year term as the chair of the Benerd School of Education’s Faculty Council. My service to the field has involved reviewing manuscripts for national conferences and journals as well as assisting with the Emerging Scholars Pre-Conference Workshop and Local Guest Educators Initiative for Division J of the American Educational Research Association. Service to the community reflects my research and, conversely, my research frequently leads to serving the organizations involved in my work. For example, I assisted in creating college access mentoring programs for homeless youth based upon research with two nonprofit organizations in Los Angeles. For six years I worked with a summer bridge program organized by the Pullias Center. In 2011, I created a summer program (COVE) with Lincoln High School and a parent support group. The past three summers I served as program director of COVE. The five-week program provides up to 60 students the opportunity to learn about the college application process as well as getting information about how to navigate the transition between high school and college. Service to the community naturally builds upon my research on expanding social networks of underserved and marginalized students.