The College of Education - The University of Utah

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the U of U stadium from above with campus and the eastern mountains in the background — **Admissions**

the salt lake city skyline with capitol building — **Community Engagement**

side view of students in a lecture class — **Undergraduate Research**

Faculty member reviewing data on a laptop with students in their office — **Office of Research, Innovation, Scholarship & Entrepreneurship**

Introducing Dean Laanan

Beyond being Dean, Dr. Frankie Santos Laanan is also a professor in the Departments of Education, Culture, & Society as well as Educational Leadership & Policy. He believes in education as a tool for social good and is dedicated to advancing educational access.

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College of Education News

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Premier journal publishes interdisciplinary faculty/student research on sexual assault

Through the mentorship of College of Education Dean Frankie Santos Laanan and Educational Psychology Professor Jason Burrow-Sanchez, Honors College student Michael Molenaar has published research in the prize-winning, peer-reviewed Journal of American College Health. The journal provides information related to health and well-being in institutions of higher education. The faculty/student research team’s article, “The intersection of disabilities and the risk of sexual assault victimization among female college students,” was officially released on November 3, 2025
Erin Castro and team secure $8 million in funding for the Prison Education Action Research Lab (PEARL), the first research center of its kind in the nation

Dr. Erin L. Castro received an $8 million award from Ascendium Education Group to launch the first national center dedicated to prison education research and leadership housed in the College of Education at the University of Utah. Building upon more than a decade of groundbreaking research, the Prison Education Action Research Lab (PEARL) will continue to engage work that advances educational justice for people and communities impacted by incarceration. The Lab will serve as a vital resource in a rapidly growing field in need of the next generation of prison education researchers, leaders, and practitioners.
Lauren Barth-Cohen Named 2025 Presidential Scholar

Lauren Barth-Cohen, Associate Professor of Educational Psychology, has been named a 2025 U of U Presidential Scholar. Professor Barth-Cohen joins the ranks of three other CoEdu professors who have shared this honor over the past decade:
Sara Hatch Southwick: Eleven Years Supporting Students

This fall, veteran College of Education advisor Sara Hatch Southwick (left) moved into a new role in the Navigate U Hub. The hub unites the U's most community-centered disciplines, Education and Social Work, to focus on undergraduate advising and support in the areas of elementary and secondary education, social work, educational psychology, behavioral health, special education, and related fields. Hatch brings 11 years of advising experience to the hub.