Doctoral Student Directory

Education

Ph.D., in Education: Language, Literacy, and Culture, May 2025. University of California, Davis.

M.A. in Applied Linguistics: TESOL, May 2020. Michigan State University.

B.A. in English Language and Literature, June 2015. Universidad Nacional de La Plata, Argentina.

Research Experience

Lead Researcher, R&D Team, Blossom Project
Transcendent Endeavors, New York City, N.Y. (Jul 2024 – present)

Mariana (she/her) is a third-year doctoral student in the School Organization and Educational Policy track with a designated emphasis in Feminist Theory and Research. Before coming to UC Davis, Mariana studied Education Studies and Public Health at UC San Diego and conducted education research under the mentorship of Dr. Frances Contreras. Currently, Mariana is a member of Dr. Natalia Caporale’s Equity in STEM Education lab.

Background

Horacio Corona Lira was born in Las Tortugas, Michoacán, Mexico, and raised in Lindsay, California. He is the first in his family to attend and graduate from college, receiving a bachelor’s degree in psychology with minors in education and Chicano studies from the University of California at Berkeley. He attributes much of his success to the work ethic instilled in him by his parents and his campesino upbringing. Horacio has over 10 years of professional experience in student affairs, student equity, and leadership in higher education.

Background

In June 2018, Garth was elected as the first African American to serve as the Yolo County Superintendent of Schools.

Teresita Martinez is a first-year Ph.D. student in the School Organization and Education Policy program and a graduate student researcher in the California Education Lab and the Wheelhouse: The Center for Community College Leadership and Research at the University of California, Davis.

Research Interests

Environmental Science Education; Place-based Education; Citizen Science; Participatory Action Research; Formal and Informal Learning Environments; Traditional Ecological Knowledge; Rural Community Development; Environmental Justice

Anna holds a Bachelor’s in Environmental Science from the University of Arizona. In 2019, she completed her Master’s in Language Teaching from the Universidad Pedagógica y Tecnológica de Colombia in Tunja, Colombia. Her work in Colombia has focused on educational equity for women and girls in rural areas, as well as gender and academic writing in the public university space. As the former editorial assistant of Enletawa Journal, Anna sought to make academic journals more inclusive of voices historically silenced in academia. Currently, she is in the Ph.D.

EDUCATIONAL HISTORY

Bachelor of Arts, University of California, Merced, 2022

GPA: 3.97, Major: Sociology, Minors: Natural Sciences Education and Psychology

RESEARCH INTERESTS/AREAS OF EXPERTISE

Science Education, Educational Equity, Gender, Race, & Ethnicity, Formative Assessment Tools

EXPERIENCE

PROFESSIONAL EXPIERENCE

Middle School Math Tutor, CalTeach - Fall 2021

Jaime (he/him/él) is a fourth-year Ph.D. Candidate at UC Davis studying School Organization and Educational Policy. As a first-generation, low-income, bilingual Latino from rural California, Jaime’s journey through the education system inspired his research interests in centering racial equity to analyze college affordability, access, and success for historically excluded populations, with an emphasis on bridging research to actionable policy to drive systemic change.

Education

Ph.D. in Learning and Mind Sciences, UC Davis School of Education, in progress

M.A. in Community Mental Health, CIIS Department of Counseling Psychology, in progress

M.A. in Educational Leadership, Mills College School of Education, 2015

B.A. in Music with Highest Distinction, UC Berkeley, 2007

Academic Publications

Thomas Murphy, C., & Martin, L. (Revise & resubmit). Tinkering with pedagogical concepts: Making use of parallels between professional learning and student learning.