Darnel Degand
Assistant Professor
Darnel Degand joined the School of Education as an assistant professor in July 2017. He has a multimodal interdisciplinary research agenda that investigates how varying notions and manifestations of progress and academic achievement can exist in a wide range of milieus (e.g., collaborative, competitive, unjust, virtual). Dr. Degand studies the various ways media and society influence the development of social success skills by exploring the social processes that exist within media production environments and media consumption experiences. His research also involves the design and development of formal, nonformal, and informal educational media products and experiences. He was a plenary speaker at the 2020 California Association of African-American Superintendents and Administrators Conference and a keynote speaker at the 2024 International Graphic Novel and Comics Conference.
Before joining UC Davis, Professor Degand amassed nearly two decades of professional experience as an interactive media producer. A sampling of his resume includes roles as a multimedia designer at the City University of New York’s Queensborough Community College, as a game designer/developer for Sesame Workshop and as a technical development manager for an online advertising firm acquired by Amazon.
Research Interests
Social Success, Comics & Graphic Novels, Games, Interactive Narratives, Educational Technology & Media, Culturally Relevant Media Production
Education
Ed.D. (2013) Teachers College Columbia University
Instructional Technology & Media
M.S. (2002) New York University
Digital Imaging & Design
B.S.E. (2000) University of Pennsylvania
Mechanical Engineering & Applied Mechanics
Publications
Journal Articles
Peñaloza, A. & Degand, D. (Accepted). Yo Me Llamo Cumbia: A Multimodal Autoethnographic Analysis on the Re-Presentation of Cumbia Cultural Identity. Multimodality & Society.
Degand, D. & Grier, A. (In Press). ‘WAIT! Isn’t cartooning supposed to be fun?!’: Little Barbara Brandon’s earliest lessons. Studies in Comics.
Degand, D. (2024). ‘Black lines on white paper’: How comic artist Barbara Brandon-Croft draws on Where [She’s] Coming From. Journal of Graphic Novels and Comics, 15(3), 451-473. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1080/21504857.2023.2282063
Degand, D. (2024). “The Last Word” from The Source: André LeRoy Davis’ contributions to Hip Hop and comics. Journal of Graphic Novels and Comics, 15(2), 317-342. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1080/21504857.2023.2225593
Degand, D. (2022). An arts-based inquiry-inspired rubric for assessing college students’ comic essays. Multimodality & Society, 2(4), 386-409. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1177/26349795221124811
Degand, D. (2022). Comics, emceeing, and graffiti: A graphic narrative about the relationship between hip-hop culture and comics culture. Studies in Comics, 12(2), 239-248. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1386/stic_00064_3
Degand, D. (2022). Un-silenced Pasts Present in Afrofutures: The Potential of Arts-Based Inquiry and Critical Race Theory. Journal of Futures Studies. 26(3), 7–23. DOI: http://doi.org/10.6531/JFS.202203_26(3).0002
Degand, D. (2022). Traditions, graffiti, identities, and the future: An interview with comic artist Dawud Osaze Kamau Anyabwile, Journal of Graphic Novels and Comics, 13(5) 783-799. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1080/21504857.2021.1999293
Degand, D. (2022). Golden legacy versus trivialising tropes: An examination of The Saga of TOUSSAINT L’OUVERTURE and the Birth of Haiti, Journal of Graphic Novels and Comics, 13(2), 255-269. DOI: http://doi.org/10.1080/21504857.2021.1880952
Degand, D. (2020). Introducing critical race media literacy in an undergraduate education course about technology and arts-based inquiry. International Journal of Multicultural Education, 22(3), 96-117, DOI: http://doi.org/10.18251/ijme.v22i3.2461
Degand, D. (2020). Brotherman, parents, & legacies: Recognizing the contributions of African American independent comic book writers and artists. The Comics Grid: Journal of Comics Scholarship, 10(1), 1-21, DOI: http://doi.org/10.16995/cg.203
Degand, D. (2019). Stereotypes vs. strategies for digital media artists: The case for culturally relevant media production, Theory Into Practice, 58(4), 368-376, DOI: http://doi.org/10.1080/00405841.2019.1626617
Degand, D. (2015). A phenomenological multi-case study about social success skills, aspirations, and related media experiences. The Qualitative Report, 20(6), 872-900. https://doi.org/10.46743/2160-3715/2015.2168
Additional Publications
Degand, D. (Accepted). From Phenomenology to Portraiture. Bloomsbury Encyclopedia for Social Justice in Education. Bloomsbury Publishing
Degand, D. (2022). “I don’t fit in anywhere”: Undergraduates’ experiences with avatars and games in an Education course. In 2022 Games + Learning + Society Conference Proceedings. https://escholarship.org/uc/item/97k3s1kw
Degand, D. (2021). Tackling Stereotypes: Portrayals of Black NFL athletes on The CW’s The Game and HBO’s Ballers. In Brackett, L. (Eds), Working While Black: Essays on Television Portrayals of African American Professionals (pp. 70-79). North Carolina: McFarland Press. https://mcfarlandbooks.com/product/working-while-black/
Degand, D. (2017, March 1). Black Women Doctors in the World of Comics. Comics, Race, and Society series. African American Intellectual Historical Society. https://www.aaihs.org/black-women-doctors-in-the-world-of-comics/
Degand, D. (2013). Social success skills: Black male high school students’ perspectives on society and their media experiences (Doctoral dissertation). Teachers College, Columbia University.
Vikaros, L. & Degand, D. (2010). Moral development through social narratives and game design. In K. Schrier & D. Gibson (Eds), Ethics and Game Design: Teaching Values through Play (pp. 197-215). Hershey, PA & New York, NY: Information Science Reference. https://www.igi-global.com/chapter/moral-development-through-social-narratives/41320
Creative Works
Exhibits
Still … Racism in America: A Retrospective in
Cartoons. (January 24 – April 21,
2024).
UC Davis Design Museum, Davis, California
Contributions: Co-Curator
Illustrations/Designs
From Phenomenology to
Portraiture. (Accepted).
Bloomsbury Encyclopedia for Social Justice in
Education.
Contributions: Illustrated Portraits
‘WAIT! Isn’t cartooning supposed to be fun?!’: Little Barbara
Brandon’s earliest lessons. (In Press)
Studies in Comics
Contributions: Comic Illustrations
Still … Racism in America: A Retrospective in
Cartoons. (January 24 – April 21,
2024).
UC Davis Design Museum, Davis, California
Contributions: Designer of exhibit’s
main exterior panels
An arts-based inquiry-inspired rubric for assessing college
students’ comic essays. (December 2022)
Multimodality & Society, 2(4), 386-409
Contributions: Comic Illustrations
Comics, emceeing, and graffiti: A graphic narrative about the
relationship between hip-hop culture and comics
culture. (November 2022)
Studies in Comics, 12(2), 239-248
Contributions: Comic Illustrations
Un-silenced pasts present in Afrofutures:
The Potential of Arts-Based
Inquiry and Critical Race Theory. (March 2022)
Journal of Futures Studies, 26(3), 7-23
Contributions: Comic Illustrations
Courses Taught
University of California, Davis
Research on Response to Culturally Diverse Literature
Culturally Relevant Media Experiences & Teaching
American Society, Media, & Perspectives on Social Success
Learning in the Digital Age
Teachers College Columbia University
Advanced Theory & Programming of Interactive Media
Vaughn College of Aeronautics and Technology
Design, Drawing, & Aesthetics
3D Animation with 3DStudio Max
Intermediate Adobe Photoshop
Introduction to 3DStudio Max
Introduction to Adobe Photoshop
Introduction to Flash
Funded Research
Governor’s Office of Planning & Research – California Education Learning Lab. Improving Retention in Engineering: E-Games for Active Training in Engineering Design. 2019-2022. (Co-PI, with collaborators: PI Angelique Louie (UC Davis), Co-PI Jennifer Choi (UC Davis), Co-PI Joshua McCoy (UC Davis), Co-PI Will Davis (American River College), and Co-PI Hong-Yue (Ray) Tang (CSU Sacramento). [Amount: $500,000]
Hellman Foundation. Challenging Deficit Discourses in Multimodal Arts-Based Education with Counter-Stories from Media Industry Professionals. 2021-2022. [Amount: $15,000]
University of California, Davis School of Education - Dean’s Research Excellence Award. The Social Success Mediation Framework Project: Identifying Skills and Traits that Enable Disadvantaged Individuals to Succeed. 2018-2020. [Amount: $5,000]
Professional Academic Affiliations
American Educational Research Association (AERA)
National Art Education Association (NAEA)
Professional Experience
SIZMEK (DG/MEDIAMIND/UNICAST), New York, NY
(01/2014 –
05/2017) Technical Development Manager / Project Manager
(03/2012 –
12/2013) Scrum Master / Team Lead
(06/2009 –
03/2012) Senior Flash Engineer
SESAME WORKSHOP, New York, NY
(02/2008 – 03/2009) Flash Game Developer
CITY UNIVERSITY OF NEW YORK, QUEENSBOROUGH COMMUNITY COLLEGE, Bayside, NY
(05/2005 – 02/2008) Multimedia Designer / Higher Education Assistant
INSTITUTE FOR SCHOOLS OF THE FUTURE, New York, NY
(10/2003 – 03/2006) Consultant
BERLIN PRODUCTIONS, White Plains, NY
(03/2004 – 02/2005) Creative Director, Multimedia
NEW YORK UNIVERSITY MEDICAL CENTER, New York, NY
(02/2003 – 08/2003) Graphic Design Consultant
AMC COMPUTER CORPORATION, New York, NY
(10/2000 – 05/2001) Creative Director / Application Specialist
MOBERG RESEARCH, Moberg Multimedia, Ambler, PA
(05/1999 – 12/1999) 3D Artist
AVNI PRODUCTIONS, New York, NY
(06/1999 – 12/2010) President / Multimedia Developer