Undergraduate Research
As an undergraduate in the College of Education, you'll be advancing education and educational practices through evidence-based research. Join our internationally recognized faculty as a team member on research projects that transform our understanding of students and learning.
Observational and Assessment-based Analysis of Competency and Effectiveness of Introductory Physics Courses
Faculty Mentor: Lauren Barth-Cohen
Using the University Innovation Fellows Program to Improve Teacher Retention in Utah
Faculty Mentor: Mary D. Burbank
Middle school student-generated ideas about mathematics: Definitions and utility
Faculty Mentor: Tracie Dobie
The Impacts of Behavioral Management Training Programs on the Frequency of Externalizing Behaviors and Academic Productivity in a General Education Setting
Faculty Mentor: Aaron Fischer
Preliminary Examination of Tiered Mental Health Services at School Settings
Faculty Mentor: Aaron Fischer
Supporting the Entire System: Mindfulness-based Practice and Social-emotional Learning for Educators to Reduce Burnout
Faculty Mentor: Aaron Fischer
Mathematical Reservations: the colonial psychology of mathematics education and its role in federal assimilation policies
Faculty Mentor: José Gutiérrez
History and Purpose of Black Education at the Turn of the 20th Century
Faculty Mentor: Alexander Hyres
Young Readers' Interactions with Storybook Apps
Faculty Mentor: Lauren Liang
The Need for Progressive Pedagogical Frameworks and Social Justice Perspectives in Engineering Education
Faculty Mentor: Laurence Parker
How a New Neighborhood Library Affects Reading of Low-Income Young Children
Faculty Mentor: Seung-Hee Claire Son
English Learning Preschoolers' Understanding of Story Structure
Faculty Mentor: Seung-Hee Claire Son
Faculty Mentors
Dr. Leticia Alvarez Gutierrez
Research Interests: Activism as Social Justice Practice in Educational Spaces | Youth Development and Youth Programs | Critical Multicultural Education, Family-School-Community Partnerships | Participatory Action Research | Teacher Education and Praxis
Student Project Highlight: Siosaia Langi, Navigating Funds of Identity through Art & Poetry
Dr. Lauren Barth-Cohen
Research Interests: STEM Education | Teacher Education | Preservice Teachers | Mathematics Education | Climate Change Education | Cognition Science Education | Precollegiate Education -- Science or Mathematics
Student Project Highlight: Abigail Mcwhirter, Supporting Elementary Teachers’ Enactment of Equitable Mathematics and Science Instruction
Dr. Cynthia Benally
Research Interests: Underrepresented Students and Communities | Teacher Education | Native American History | Native Americans | Indigenous Epistemologies | Critical Indigenous Research | American Indian Education Policy
Student Project Highlight: Luke Kim and Mary Smith, Mathematical Reservations
Professor Mary D. Burbank
Research Interests: Inclusion and Montessori Education | Family Partnerships for PK Education | Accreditation and Licensure | Educator Professional Development | Supervision and Mentoring
Student Project Highlight: Tessa Cahoon, The main role of public education in the United States: An exploratory study based upon responses of teachers during the Covid-19 pandemic
Dr. Erin Castro
Research Interests: Education in Prison | Pathways to Higher Education | Criminal Histories in College Admissions | Educational Equity and Access | Pell Grants in Prison
Student Project Highlight: Alessandra Cipriani-Detres, The Fight for Diversity: Marketing diversity in higher education and its misleading Impacts on incoming students at the University of Utah
Dr. Tracy Dobie
Research Interests: Mathematics Education | Educational Equity | Motivation | Elementary Education | Teacher Education | Professional Development | Preservice Teachers | Classroom Belonging and Engagement | Identity
Student Project Highlight: Alyssa Lee, Middle school student-generated ideas about mathematics: Definitions and utility
Dr. Aaron Fischer
Research Interests: School Psychology | Pediatric Psychology | Applied Behavior Analysis | Technology in Psychology
Student Project Highlight: Mickenzie Fleming, Evaluating the efficacy of asynchronous and synchronous problem-solving teleconsultation with teachers who serve rural students with disabilities
Dr. Jose Francisco Gutierrez
Research Interests: Math Education | Teacher Education | History | Critical Theory
Student Project Highlight: Luke Kim and Mary Smith, Mathematical Reservations
Dr. Alex Hyres
Research Interests: African American Experience | Student and Teacher Activism | the American High School | Curriculum and Pedagogy
Student Project Highlight: Callie Avondet, The history & purpose of Black education at the turn of the 20thcentury
Dr. Sharlene A. Kiuhara
Research Interests: High Incidence Disabilities, Language Development, Metacognition, Writing, Self-Regulation, Learning Disabled Education | Self-Regulated Strategy Development | Critical Thinking and Writing | Elementary and Secondary Education | Teaching and Curriculum Development | Professional Development | English as a Second Language
Student Project Highlight: Katherine Mynar, The Impact of the Covid-19 Pandemic on Teachers: A Case Study
Dr. Lauren Liang
Research Interests: Children’s and Young Adult Literature | Reading | Literacy | Education | Comprehension | Social-Emotional Learning
Student Project Highlight: Whitney Blanchard, Cassidy Lamm, Halle Mitchell, Lilly Schlenker, Soccer Literature for Youth
Dr. Laurence Parker
Research Interests: Race and Racism | Educational Policy and Leadership | Society and Education | Neoliberalism | Politics of Education
Student Project Highlight: Ariel Flores Menia, Working Identity and Critical Race Theory: The Latino Student Experience in Schools of Business
Dr. Paula Smith
Research Interests: Structural Design | Substance Use Prevention | Mental Health Prevention and Support
Student Project Highlight:
Dr. Seung-Hee Claire Son
Research Interests: Early Literacy and Language Development and Intervention | Reading Engagement and Motivation | Multimedia Literacy | Home and Community Literacy | Early Childhood Education
Student Project Highlight: J-Y Yoon, STEM Vocabulary Learning with Multimedia
Dr. David Stroupe
Research Interests: Science Practice Communities | Beginning Teachers | Teacher Preparation Programs
Student Project Highlight:
Dr. Connor Warner
Research Interests: Preservice Teacher Programs and Pedagogies | P-12 English Language Arts and Social Studies | Contemporary Representations of Indigenous Peoples
Student Project Highlight: