Research Spotlight

Advancing Pathways toward Equity and eXcellence with Educators of Multilingual Learners (APEX)

The APEX project partners with high need school districts and is designed for K-12 educators who teach multilingual learners. Its goals are to increase Utah K-12 educators’ knowledge and skills for effectively teaching multilingual learners and promoting literacy; and develop program curricula, research, and practice briefs on evidence-based strategies for pre- and in-service educators of MLs, paraprofessionals, parents, non-certified or licensed personnel in ways that link local to national efforts.

Dr. Verónica E. Valdez

Dr. Leticia Alvarez Gutiérrez

Dr. Wenyang Sun

In collaboration with the Department of Ethnic Studies, College of Education faculty have examined how math education policies and curricula were used in late 19th and early 20th century American Indian Boarding Schools to promote federal assimilationist goals and enforce capitalist notions of land and nature. Based in archival methods, CoE faculty are currently expanding this research by centering American Indian students' experiences with math through analysis of oral histories and historical documents such as letters, school newspapers, and other documents related to students’ schoolwork.

Dr. José Francisco Gutiérrez

Dr. Kehaulani Vaughn

Dr. Charles Sepulveda (Ethnic Studies)

With the support and collaboration of the Department of Workforce Services, CoE faculty are developing a leadership training series to support Afghan refugees. The process includes a thorough community needs assessment, developing curriculum, and delivery of the training series, as well as post-program support of Afghan Refugee Community Based Organizations.

Dr. Leticia Alvarez Gutiérrez

Higher Education in Prison Landscape Project

What postsecondary educational opportunities are available to incarcerated people? Through research and onsite co-learning opportunities, CoE faculty address pressing issues facing incarcerated students and practitioners in the field.

Dr. Erin L. Castro

Communities That Care in Higher Education

CoE faculty are working to extend a state prevention system called Communities That Care (CTC) to the U of U campus by assessing risk and protective factors, implementing interventions, developing evaluation strategies, and working toward sustainable approaches that support healthy student development.

Dr. Paula Smith

(Re)Classifying State Higher Education Governance: Examining How Policy Oversight Responsibilities Influence Postsecondary Attainment

CoE faculty explore the ways in which policy oversight responsibilities of state governing agencies may influence higher education attainment, as well as the experiences of higher education officials in navigating these realities.

Dr. Paul Rubin

Museum Collections for Learning Through Inquiry (McFLI)

By harnessing the power of narrative, gaming, art, science, youth knowledge and a collection of digitized assets, these digitized museum collections will be innovative tools that aim to transform the depth and impact of informal STEM learning. Analysis of involved participants will offer new knowledge about how STEM education centers can leverage the digitized collections and research.

Dr. Lynne Zumo

Conjoint Behavioral Teleconsultation

Offering teleconsultation to improve access to much-needed services for those facing logistical constraints related to location and disability, especially for students who may rely on in-school care services. This research team has developed and evaluated a technology-based CBC model that allows students to receive consistent services when in-person education is not possible.

Dr. Aaron Fischer

(Re)Classifying State Higher Education Governance: Examining How Policy Oversight Responsibilities Influence Postsecondary Attainment

When economic and multicultural factors impact counseling center policies, what happens to treatment outcomes? CoE faculty aim to collect data from patients and providers to illuminate multi-level factors related to class bias.

Dr. Jeremy Coleman

In collaboration with the Utah Education Policy Center and local school districts, CoE faculty are identifying outcomes related to educational placement, exclusionary discipline practices, and academic outcomes under a framework called School-wide Positive Behavioral Interventions and Supports (PBIS).

Dr. Kathleen Strickland-Cohen

Systems Change for Inclusive Education, a National Collaborative Effort for students with Extensive Support Needs (SCIENCE-ESN)

With support from the U.S. Department of Education and in collaboration with the University of Arizona, CoE faculty are developing a doctoral program to train scholars for future faculty positions with expertise and emphasis on students with the most extensive support needs.

Dr. Matt Jameson

Dr. Sondra Stegenga

Utah Collaborative for Equitable STEM Teaching

CoE faculty are collaboratively developing and integrating three-dimensional instructional practices with an aim to build a network of mentors and stakeholders that will support and sustain scholars from undergraduate and MEd licensure years, all the way through student teaching and beyond. The research emphasizes STEM within the context of environmental social justice, a lens which speaks to incoming undergraduate teachers’ own lived experiences.

Dr. Holly Godsey