Kevin Gee

Curriculum Vitae  |  LinkedIn Profile

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Dr. Kevin Gee is a Professor in the School of Education (School Organization & Educational Policy emphasis area) and Director of the School Policy, Research, and Action (SPARC) Center. He is also a Faculty Research Affiliate with the Center for Poverty & Inequality Research. He is currently a 2020-25 Chancellor’s Fellow. He was a recipient of the 2015 National Academy of Education (NAEd)/Spencer Postdoctoral Fellowship, a 2014 Young Scholars Program (YSP) award from the Foundation for Child Development (FCD) and a 2015-6 UC Davis Hellman Fellowship.

Dr. Gee situates one primary aim at the forefront of his research agenda—to generate rigorous and data-informed insights about students who are persistently underserved and overlooked in the broader educational policy landscape. In particular, he focuses on youth who face structural adversities and inequities in and out of school, including children who are vulnerable to chronic absenteeism, bullying, food insecurity, abuse, and neglect.

Importantly, he asks policy-relevant questions critical to understanding: (1) how structural adversities and inequities influence children’s academic and socioemotional wellbeing; and (2) how school policies, systems and practices can be reimagined to overcome societal and structural inequities so that students can thrive. Methodologically, he uses rigorous quantitative approaches, including Hierarchical Linear Modeling (HLM), longitudinal methods, and experimental and quasi-experimental designs. Given the interdisciplinary nature of his research, he grounds his work theoretically and empirically in education, human development, public policy, and child welfare.

Dr. Gee’s research appears in Early Childhood Research Quarterly, Pediatrics, Teachers College Record, Journal of Adolescent Health, Journal of Adolescence and the International Journal of Educational Development. His work has also been featured in The New York Times, Scientific American, Reuters and Education Week.

Dr. Gee hails from California and received his undergraduate degree from UC Berkeley and his Master’s degree from UC San Diego. He received his doctorate in Quantitative Policy Analysis in Education from Harvard University in 2010. From 2010-2012 he held a faculty appointment as Lecturer in Public Policy at Brown University and in 2012 he received the Outstanding Professor Award from the Brown University Undergraduate Council of Students.

Education

Ed.D., Harvard Graduate School of Education, Quantitative Policy Analysis in Education 2010

Ed.M., Harvard Graduate School of Education, International Education Policy 2006

M.P.I.A., University of California, San Diego, Pacific & International Affairs (cum laude) 2004

B.A., University of California, Berkeley, City & Regional Planning (magna cum laude) 1994

Research Areas & Current Projects

Studies in Educational Equity & Student Well Being

• Anti-AAPI Hate & Bullying Among Asian American Youth: The Role of Schools Contexts in Perpetration & Protection
• The Education of Abused and Neglected Children: Placement into and the Effects of Early Childhood Education
• Adolescent Peer Victimization and the Role of Supportive Adults and Peers in Schools: Examining Effects Within Racial/Ethnic Subgroups.(Co-PI: North Cooc, University of Texas, Austin)

Publications

Peer-Reviewed Journal Articles

Dove, M. S., Gee, K. A., & Tong, E. K. (2024). Flavored tobacco sales restrictions and youth e-cigarette behavior: impact by tobacco retailer density in diverse communities in California. Nicotine and Tobacco Research, 26(Supplement_2), S65-S72.

Gee, K. A., Cooc, N., Yu, P. (2024). Hate Speech Against Asian American Youth: Pre-Pandemic Trends and The Role of School Factors. Journal of Youth and Adolescence.

Gee, K. A., Gottfried, M. A., Freeman, J. A., & Kim, P. (2024). Explaining disparities in absenteeism between kindergarteners with and without disabilities: A decomposition approach. Early Childhood Research Quarterly, 67, 295-306.

Dove, M. S., Tong, E. K., & Gee, K. (2024). Co-use of tobacco products and cannabis is associated with absenteeism and lower grades in California high school students. The Journal of Pediatrics, 113935. [In Press]

Gee, K. A., Asmundson, V., & Vang, T. (2023). Educational impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic in the United States: Inequities by race, ethnicity, and socioeconomic status. Current Opinion in Psychology, 52, 101643.

Kim, G. M., Cooc, N., Gee, K. A., & Louie, V. (2023). Humanizing Asian Americans in educational research. Race Ethnicity and Education. 1-21.

Dove, M. A., Gee, K. A., Tong, E. K. (2023). Flavored tobacco sales restrictions and e-cigarette use among high school students in California. Nicotine and Tobacco Research. 25(1):127-134.

Gee, K. A., Thompson, H. R., Sliwa, S. A., Madsen, K. A. (2022). BMI and accuracy of child’s weight perception. Pediatrics. 150(6).

Gee, K. A., Haghighat, M. D., Vang, T. M., Cooc, N. (2021). In the aftermath of school victimization: Links between authoritative school climate and adolescents’ perceptions of the negative effects of bullying victimization. Journal of Youth and Adolescence. 51: 1273-1286.

Gee, K. A., Beno, C., Lindstrom, L., Lind, J., Gau, J., Post, C. (2021). Promoting college and career readiness among underserved adolescents: A mixed methods pilot study. Journal of Adolescence. 90: 79-90.

Gee, K. A., (2020). Predictors of special education receipt among child welfare-involved youth. Children and Youth Services Review. 114. 

Kim, C., Lieng, M., Rylee, T., Gee, K. A., Marcin, J., Melnikow, J. (2020). School-based telemedicine interventions for asthma: A systematic review. Academic Pediatrics. 20(7). 893–901.

Lindstrom, L., Beno, C., Lind, J., Gee, K. A., Hirano, K. (2020). Career and college readiness for underserved youth: Educator and youth perspectives. Youth and Society.  November 2020.

Gee, K. A., Beno, C., Lindstrom, L., Lind, J., Post, C., Hirano, K. (2020). Enhancing college and career readiness programs for underserved adolescents. Journal of Youth Development. 15(6). 222-251.

Kim, C., Gee, K. A., Byrd, R. (2019). Excessive absenteeism due to asthma in California schoolchildren. Academic Pediatrics. 20(7). 950-957.

Gee, K. A., (2019). Maltreatment profiles of child welfare-involved children in special education: Classification and behavioral consequences. Exceptional Children. 86(3): 237-254.

Gee, K. A. & Asim, M. (2019). Parenting while food insecure: Links between adult food insecurity, parenting aggravation and children’s behaviors. Journal of Family Issues. 40(11): 1462-1485.

Gee, K. A. & Cooc, N. (2019). Will I be victimized at school today? How schools influence the victimization experiences of Asian American teenagers. Asian American Journal of Psychology. 10(4), 316–325.
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Gee, K. A. (2018). Leveraging the public school system to combat adolescent obesity: The limits of Arkansas’s statewide policy initiative. Journal of Adolescent Health. 63(5): 561-567.
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Gee, K. A. (2018). Minding the Gaps in Absenteeism: Disparities in Absenteeism by Race/Ethnicity, Poverty and Disability. Journal of Education for Students Placed at Risk. 23(1-2): 204-208.
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Gee, K. A. (2017). Growing Up with A Food Insecure Adult: The Cognitive Consequences of Recurrent Versus Transitory Food Insecurity Across the Early Elementary Years. Journal of Family Issues. 39(8): 2437-2460.

Gottfried, M. A., Gee, K. A. (2017). Identifying the Determinants of Chronic Absenteeism: A Bioecological Systems Approach. Teachers College Record. 119(7).
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Gee, K. A. (2015). School-Based Body Mass Index Screening and Parental Notification in Late Adolescence: Evidence from Arkansas’s Act 1220. Journal of Adolescent Health. 57(3): 270-276.
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Gee, K. A. (2015). Achieving Gender Equality in Learning Outcomes: Evidence from A Non-formal Education Program in Bangladesh. International Journal of Educational Development. 40: 207-216.
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Gee, K. A., & Cho, R. (2014). The Effects of Single-Sex versus Coeducational Schooling on Adolescent Peer Victimization and Perpetration. Journal of Adolescence. 37(8): 1237-1251.
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Abe, Y., Gee, K. A. (2014). Sensitivity Analyses for Clustered Data: An Illustration from a Large-Scale Clustered Randomized Controlled Trial in Education. Evaluation and Program Planning. 47: 26-34.
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Cooc, N., Gee, K. A. (2014). National Trends in School Victimization Among Asian American Adolescents. Journal of Adolescence. 37 (6): 839–849.
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Gee., K. A. (2014). Multilevel Growth Modeling: An Introductory Approach to Analyzing Longitudinal Data for Evaluators. American Journal of Evaluation. 35(4): 543-561.
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Gee, K. A., & Wong, K. K. (2012). A Cross National Examination of Inquiry and Its Relationship to Student Performance in Science: Evidence from the Program for International Student Assessment (PISA) 2006. International Journal of Educational Research, 53(0), 303–318.

Gee, K. A. (2011). The Sent-down Youth of China: The Role of Family Origin in the Risk of Departure to and Return from the Countryside. History of the Family. 16(3): 190-203.

Gee, K. A. (2010). Reducing Child Labour through Conditional Cash Transfers: Evidence from Nicaragua’s Red de Protección Social. Development Policy Review. 28(6): 735-756.

Book Chapters

Gee, K. A. (2021). The consequences of food insecurity for children with disabilities in the early elementary school years. In B.H. Fiese & A.D. Johnson (Eds.), Food Insecurity in Families with Children (pp. 33-54). Springer Nature.

Gee, K. A. (2019). Variation in chronic absenteeism: The role of children, classrooms and schools. In M. Gottfried and E. Hutt (Eds.), Absent from School: Understanding and Addressing Student Absenteeism. (pp. 35-52). Cambridge, MA: Harvard Education Press.

Gee, K. A., Mahmud, T., Saleh Ahmed, K., Pearce, E. (2016). Improving Educational Achievement for Marginalized Children in Rural Bangladesh via Non-Formal Education. In D. Sharpes (Ed.), Handbook on Comparative and International Studies in Education. Charlotte, NC: Information Age Publishing

Policy Briefs & Reports

Gee, K.A., Cooc, N., Hang, S., Jost, G. (2024). Bullying of California’s Asian American & Pacific Islander Youth. School Policy, Action, and Research Center (SPARC) Report, UC Davis.

Gee, K. A., Asmundson, V., Vang, T. (2023). Educational Inequities Related to Race and Socioeconomic Status Deepened by the COVID-19 Pandemic. UC Davis Center for Poverty Research Policy Brief. 12(4).

McNeely, C., Chang, H., Gee, K. A. (2023). Disparities in Unexcused Absences Across California Schools. Policy Analysis for California Education (PACE) Policy Brief, Stanford University, Palo Alto, California.

Gee, K. A. (2022). Household food insecurity associated with decline in attentional focus of young children with disabilities. UC Davis Center for Poverty Research Policy Brief. 10(9).

Chang, H.N., Gee, K.A., Hennessy, B., Alexandro, D, Gopalakrishnan, A. (2021). Chronic absence patterns and prediction: Insights from Connecticut. Attendance Works.

Gee, K. A., Murdoch, C., Vang, T., Cuahuey, Q., & Prim, J. (2020). Multi-tiered system of supports to address childhood trauma: Evidence and implications. Policy Analysis for California Education (PACE) Policy Brief, Stanford University, Palo Alto, California.

Cottingham, B., Gallagher, A., Gee, K., Myung, J., Gong, A., Kimner, H., Witte, J., & Hough, H. (2020, July). Supporting learning in the COVID-19 context: Research to guide distance and blended instruction. Policy Analysis for California Education (PACE) Policy Brief, Stanford University, Palo Alto, California.

Myung, J., Gallagher, A., Cottingham, B., Gong, A., Kimner, H., Witte, J., Gee, K., & Hough, H. (2020, July). Supporting learning in the COVID-19 context: Research to guide distance and blended instruction [Report]. Policy Analysis for California Education.

Gee, K. A., Murdoch, T., Vang, T., Cuahuey, Q., & Prim, J. (2020). Multi-tiered system of supports to address childhood trauma: Evidence and implications. Policy Analysis for California Education (PACE) Policy Brief, Stanford University, Palo Alto, California.

Gee, K. A. (2020). Students with disabilities and differentiated assistance. Policy Analysis for California Education (PACE) Policy Brief, Stanford University, Palo Alto, California.

Gee, K. A., Beno, C., Witte, J. (2020). Students with disabilities in the CORE districts: Characteristics, outcomes and transitions. Policy Analysis for California Education (PACE) Policy Brief, Stanford University, Palo Alto, California.

Gee, K. A. & Kim, C. (2019). Chronic absence in California: What new dashboard data reveals about school performance. Policy Analysis for California Education (PACE) Policy Brief, Stanford University, Palo Alto, California.

Gee, K. A., Asim, M. (2018). Parenting aggravation associated with food insecurity impacts children’s behavior and development. UC Davis Center for Poverty Research Policy Brief. 7(5).

Gee, K. A. (2016). Individual needs assessment. In J. Miller, W. Welch, and B. McGill. (Authors). The Pacific Region: A Report Identifying and Addressing the Region’s Educational Needs (pp. B-3-B-6). US Department of Education, Office of Elementary and Secondary Education: Washington DC.

Gee, K. A., Krausen, K. (2015). Safety Linked to Reduced Truancy in High-poverty Schools. UC Davis Center for Poverty Research Policy Brief. 3(8)

Abe, Y., Thomas, V., Sinicrope, C., & Gee, K. A. (2012). Effects of the Pacific CHILD Professional Development Program. Washington, DC: National Center for Education Evaluation and Regional Assistance, Institute of Education Sciences, U.S. Department of Education.

Sanchez, R., Gee, K. A., Bos, J., Moorthy, S., Sinicrope, C. (2009). Evaluation of Jump into Reading for Meaning (JUMP!). Pacific Resources for Education and Learning. Honolulu: HI.

Encyclopedia Entries

Lindstrom L., Lind, J., Gee K. A. (2020). Transitions Into Employment. In S. Hupp and J. Jewell (Eds.), Encyclopedia of Child and Adolescent Development. Hoboken, NJ: Wiley-Blackwell.

Gee, K. A. (2011). Oxford Bibliographies Online (OBO): The Economics of Education. Oxford University Press.

Journal Editorials

Gee, K. A. (2017). Statewide Policies on Competitive School Foods and Beverages: Broadening the Scope of School-Based Antiobesity Efforts. Journal of Adolescent Health. 60(5): 479-480.

Media & Public Dissemination

Schooling in the COVID-19 Pandemic Era

The Conversation: Are America’s Schools Safe for Asian Americans? [April 19, 2021]

UC Davis Live: Coronavirus Edition — Covid’s Impact on Education [February 25, 2021]

Education Week: Preparing for the Second Half of the School Year and Beyond [December 4, 2020]

Chronicle of Higher Education: Teaching Newsletter [April 16, 2020]

School Health & Childhood Obesity

Media related to publication: Gee, K.A. (2015) School-based body mass index screening and parental notification in late adolescence: Evidence from Arkansas’s Act 1220. Journal of Adolescent Health. 57(3): 270-276.

National Public Radio (NPR): Arkansas led the nation sending letters from school about obesity. Did it help? [April 9, 2024]

New York Times: ‘Body’ Report Cards Aren’t Influencing Arkansas Teenagers [August 10, 2015]

New York Times: Should Schools Give Students ‘Body’ Report Cards? [September 1, 2015]

New York Times: Tools for Tailored Learning May Expose Students’ Personal Details [August 30, 2015]

Scientific American: Fact of Fiction?: “Fat Letters” Help Kids Lose Weight [August 19, 2015]

Education Week: Body Mass Index Reports Have No Effect on Student Health [August, 14, 2015]

Reuters: Screening Teens for Obesity May Not Help Them Lose Weight  [July 3, 2015]

Arkansas Times: Report: Student Weight Checks Having Little Impact in Arkansas [August 10, 2015]

TakePart: ‘Fat Report Cards’ Are Totally Ineffective at Combating Obesity [August 10, 2015]

The Michael Smerconish Program, Sirius XM Politics of the United States (POTUS)  [August 17, 2015]

Knowledge@Wharton, Sirius XM Business Radio [August 20, 2015]

Children at Risk, Growing Up in America: 90.1 FM KPFT, Houston: Body report cards? [September 28, 2015]

Commentary on School Health

U.S. News and World Report: A study of New York City students finds that being label fat doesn’t spur weight loss 
[March 14, 2016]

CBS News: Do obesity “report cards” help kids slim down?
[March 15, 2016]

School Bullying & Victimization

Children at Risk, Growing Up in America: 90.1 FM KPFT, Houston: Bullying [November 30, 2015]

AsAm News: New Study Brings Asian Americans into Conversation About Teenage Bullying in Schools [April 6, 2019]

School Truancy & Absenteeism

LAist: School Absences Show LAUSD Students Still Need More Support [August 17, 2023]

EdSource: Disparities in ‘unexcused’ absences deepen education inequities [April 18, 2023]

EdWeek: 3 Signs That Schools Are Sending the Wrong Message About Attendance [March 24, 2023]

EdWeek: Some Students Are Less Likely to Have Absences Excused. Why That Matters for Schools [March 23, 2023]

New York Times: An App Helps Teachers Track Student Attendance   [January 23, 2016]

National Education Policy Center (NEPC), University of Colorado, Boulder: Safety Linked to Reduced Truancy in High-Poverty Schools [June 17, 2015]

Sacramento Bee: Truancy the norm at some Sacramento area high schools [April 30, 2016]

International Education

Davis Enterprise, Futurity.org: Grassroots Schools Educate Hard-to-Reach Kids [May 3, 2013]

The Education of Foster Youth

Education Week: School Changes Can Help Keep Students in Class, Out of Foster System [April 6, 2019]

Grants, Honors & Awards

UC Davis Humanities and Social Sciences Stimulating Exceptional and Essential Discovery (SEED) Funding Program
Principal Investigator
How Asian American and Pacific Islander Youth Confront Bullying: Insights from the Community Cultural Wealth Model, 2024

AAPI Data Grant
Co-Investigator with Dr. North Cooc (UT Austin)
How School Climate Influences the Bullying Experiences of California’s AAPI Youth, 2023

Tobacco-Related Disease Research Program, University of California Research Grants Program Office
Research Team Member supporting Principal Investigator, Dr. Melanie Dove (UC Davis Health)
Impact of flavored tobacco sales restrictions on youth e-cigarette use in California (T33KT6684), 2023-2026

Outstanding Faculty Award, Asian Pacific American UC-Systemwide Alliance (APASA), UC Davis Chapter, 2023 

Distinguished Visiting Scholar, Advanced Research Collaborative (ARC), The Graduate Center, City University of New York (CUNY) Spring 2022

Chancellor’s Fellowship 2020-21

National Academy of Education (NAEd)/Spencer Postdoctoral Fellowship 2015

Foundation for Child Development (FCD) Young Scholars Program Award 2014-2017

UC Davis Hellman Fellowship 2015-6

Spencer Foundation Small Research Grant (Education and Social Opportunity)

Outstanding Professor Award, Brown University 2012

Teaching

Graduate

• EDU 236: Application of Hierarchical Linear Models in Education Research (Ph.D.)
• EDU 200: Educational Research Design (Ph.D., MA)
• EDU 280C: Inquiry and Practice: Research Design and Application for Educational Leaders (Ed.D.) 
• EDU 281A and C: Inquiry and Practice: Problem Based Learning 1 & 3 (Ed.D.)

Undergraduate

• EDU 120: Social & Philosophical Foundations of Education (Upper Division Undergraduate)