Specializing in educational and psychological assessments, Jamal
Abedi’s research focuses on testing for English language learners
and issues concerning the technical characteristics and
interpretations of these assessments. Abedi is the author of many
publications in the assessment of and accommodations for
English-language learners. He is on the advisory committees for
several major assessment organizations and advises a number
of states on testing for English learners and children with
disabilities.
After teaching middle school math for ten years, I decided to
pursue a PhD to get a fresh perspective on the issues I
observed every day in my classroom and thought that maybe I
could help develop remedies that would help other teachers, as
well.
Faculty ProfileEMPHASIS AREA: LLC. Educational Equity; English Language Arts Education; Gay and Lesbian Issues in Education; Minority/Underrepresented Students
Steven Athanases is a Professor in the School of Education at UC
Davis.
Principal Investigator, Teachers as Learners Project, James S.
McDonnell Foundation, New Teachers Learning Disciplined
Improvisation for Meaningful Talk in Diverse
Classrooms, 2018-2023.
Director of Research, Center for Shakespeare in Diverse
Classrooms, UC Davis, in partnership with Globe Education,
Shakespeare’s Globe, London (Patrick Spottisooode, Director).
2018-
Heidi Ballard is the Founder and Faculty Director of the Center
for Community and Citizen Science. You can find more information
about her past and current projects, and sign up for occasional
updates at the Center’s website.
PhD School of Education, University of California, Davis,
2018
Dissertation: Effective Teaching of Latinx Students in Hope
Valley.
Committee: Karen Watson-Gegeo (Chair), Danny Martinez, Allyson
Tintiangco-Cubales, Chris Faltis.
MA Applied Linguistics Department, University of Massachusetts,
Boston, 2009
B.S. W.P. Carey School of Business, Arizona State University,
1999
Certificates
2004 Teaching Credential, School of Education, Sonoma State
University, 2004
Before joining Wheelhouse, Ms. Cooper served as an independent
consultant and as longtime advisor on pre-K-to-14 education
issues for the leader of the California State Senate. In that
role, she shaped and shepherded the Pro Tem’s education agenda,
provided counsel on education budget matters, and led multi-year
campaigns to increase quality pre-kindergarten opportunities for
low-income children, reduce the number of high school dropouts,
and strengthen high school-post-secondary pathways.
Marcela Cuellar joined the School of Education in July 2014 as an
assistant professor in higher education & leadership. She
received her doctorate in Higher Education and Organizational
Change at the UCLA Graduate School of Education & Information
Studies. Her research examines access and equity in higher
education, Hispanic Serving Institutions (HSIs) and emerging
HSIs, and Latinx student success. More specifically, Dr.
Cati V. de los Ríos is an Assistant Professor in the School of
Education. She has taught in California and Massachusetts
public schools. Cati’s research explores the intersections
of adolescent bi/multilingual
literacies, translanguaging, ethnic studies, and
teacher education. Her scholarship draws from
ethnographic and participatory methodologies and is informed by
sociocultural, critical, and translingual orientations
of language and literacy.
Faculty ProfileEMPHASIS AREA: LLC, LMS. Media and culture; Development of non-cognitive social success skills, Comics & Graphic Novels, Interactive Narratives, Games
Darnel Degand joined the School of Education as an assistant
professor in July 2017. He 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 educational
media products and experiences.
Uyen Do is the Program Manager at the University of California,
Davis School of Education. Uyen has earned a
bachelor’s degree in Human Development and Psychology, master’s
degree in Education, as well as a Multiple-Subject Teaching
Credential from the University of California, Davis, and pursuing
her Ed.D. in Educational Leadership and Policy. She spent
five years in the classroom and over 15 years working with
administrators, teachers, students, in a variety of educational
settings including Expanded Learning Programs.
Faculty ProfileEMPHASIS AREA: LLC. Academic language; Academic literacy; English learners; Language development and socialization; First- and second-language writing
I research the relationship between students’ everyday uses of
language (English and Spanish) and their engagement in
school-based uses of language and literacy. Some schools identify
bilingual adolescents as “limited” in their English proficiency
even though they use sophisticated literacy repertoires outside
of school; other learners are deemed ”fluent” in English but
still struggle with the language and literacy demands
of their academic coursework.
My work focuses on how communities and regions produce and
disrupt disparities in youth well-being, with emphasis on
disparities associated with race/ethnicity, immigration,
socio-economic status and geographic location. My interest in
youth well-being situates my activity at the intersection of
educational reform, public health, youth development and
community development. I ground my work conceptually at the nexus
of theories of development in social ecological contexts,
critical human geographers’ analyses of space and place as
socially produced, and critical race theory.
Betsey Friedmann is a research fellow at Wheelhouse and the
California Education Lab. She received her Ph.D. in Education
with an emphasis in School Organization and Educational Policy
from the University of California, Davis. Her research focuses on
issues related to college access and success, including financial
aid and transfer pathways from community colleges.
Quentin Graeber joined the UC Davis School of Education in June
2019 as Associate Director of Development. After graduating
from University of the Pacific in 2008, Quentin served in many
capacities across the university from Disability Service to
Alumni Relations. In his final position as Assistant Director of
Annual Giving on the Stockton campus, he cultivated
university-wide support from alumni and friends of the
university. In addition to his work with higher education
fundraising, Quentin has experience in alumni and
volunteer management and event planning.
Eva Guralnick joined the UC Davis School of Education in June
2015 as the Director of Marketing and Communications. As the
chief marketing officer for the School she manages all branding
and outreach efforts.
Sarah Harlan joined the UC Davis School of Education in August
2015 as Associate Director of Annual and Special Funds. With a
career focused on higher education, she most recently served as
Assistant Director of Alumni and Volunteer Services at the
University of Southern Indiana. In that role, she managed
operations of the office and developed opportunities for alumni,
parents, students, and volunteers to remain connected and
involved with the University.
Cassandra Hart is an associate professor of education policy. She
evaluates the effects of school, state and national education
programs, policies, and practices on overall student achievement,
and on the equality of student outcomes. Hart’s work has focused
on school choice programs, school accountability
policies, and effects on students of exposure to
demographically similar teachers. She is also interested in the
effects of virtual schooling on student outcomes, both in K-12
and post-secondary settings.
Jennifer Higgs is an Assistant Professor of Learning and Mind
Sciences and Language, Literacy, and Culture. Her research
focuses on digital tool use that supports learning and teaching,
adolescents’ digital literacies, and teacher education in the
language arts. Using mixed methods and sociocultural theories of
learning, Dr. Higgs investigates practices around digital tools
as well as improvement of digital tool practices. What
fundamentally drives her work is a desire to learn how the
possibilities afforded by new cultural tools can support
robust and socially just learning.
Margarita Jimenez-Silva is an associate professor and director of
teacher education at the School of Education in University of
California, Davis. Her research focuses on preparing and
supporting teachers to work with culturally and linguistically
diverse learners, especially in addressing emergent bilinguals’
linguistic and academic content development. More specifically,
her research strands include teacher education pedagogy and
curriculum, educational policy, and family/community engagement.
Akemi Joe earned a bachelor’s degree in Psychology from UC
Davis in 2014. She brings with her an extensive knowledge of the
campus from her previous work at the School of Education Student
Services, Office of the Chancellor and Provost, and Design and
Construction Management.
Michal Kurlaender investigates students’ educational pathways, in
particular K-12 and postsecondary alignment, and access to and
success in postsecondary schooling. She has expertise on
alternative pathways to college and college readiness at both
community colleges and four-year colleges and universities. In
addition to working with national data, Kurlaender works closely
with administrative data from all three of California’s public
higher education sectors–the University of California, the
California State University and the California Community College
systems.
Anna Lawrence comes to Wheelhouse with over 18 years of
experience with nonprofits and government agencies. Prior to
coming to UC Davis, Anna was an Assistant Program Director for
AmeriCorps National Civilian Community Corps. There, she did
outreach and developed service-learning projects in four states
and supported leadership development programming for 18-24 year
olds. She has worked in event production, foster care, youth
mentoring, education, grantmaking, and was an AmeriCorps
volunteer, as well. Anna obtained her M.A.
Robin Martin joined the UC Davis School of Education in 2016 as
the Director of Educational Research and Evaluation. Having
served in both K-12 policy organizations and public school
districts, Robin brings over 13 years of practiced experience in
education policy, research, assessment, and program
implementation and evaluation.
Faculty ProfileEMPHASIS AREA: LLC. Adolescent Language and Literacy; English Education; Linguistic Anthropology of Education; Sociocultural Approaches to Learning; Discourse Analysis; Black and Latina/o Youth Interactions; Ethnography
Francisco (Paco) Martorell joined the School as an assistant
professor in July 2014. Martorell completed his PhD in economics
at UC Berkeley. Prior to joining the School, he was an Economist
at the RAND Corporation and was a professor at the Pardee RAND
Graduate School since 2006. He has broad research interests in
both higher education and K-12 policy. Current projects cover
areas including developmental education in colleges, the effects
of grade retention, the returns to for-profit colleges, the
impacts of school facility investments, and community college
tuition subsidies.
University of California, Davis, CA
Ph.D. Education (Language, Literacy and Culture), Jun 2015
University of Kansas, KS
National Consortium for Teaching about Asia Summer study tour in
China, Jun 2010
• NCTA Summer institute for alumni designed to facilitate
teaching and learning about East Asia in the K-12 curriculum via
participation in a variety of hands-on experiences in Asia.
Dr. Carlas McCauley joined the School of Education as
Director of Research and Partnerships/Executive Director of REEd
on November 18, 2019. McCauley comes to UC Davis from WestEd,
where he had served as the Director of the Center on School
Turnaround since 2014. In his role at WestEd, McCauley directed a
large federally funded center that advises state and local
education agencies on promoting equity and improving educational
outcomes for students.
I direct the Center for Community and Citizen Science at the
UC Davis School of Education. Our mission is to
help scientists, communities, and citizens collaborate on
science to address environmental problems as a part of civic
life. Learn more and sign up for our mailing list here.
Faculty ProfileEMPHASIS AREA: LMS. Translational research on education and special education; Academic development for children with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD)
There are seven million exceptional children with special needs
in our American school system, such as children with autism
spectrum development. They have the right to appropriate and
comparable educational opportunities. Truly meeting the needs
of these children requires a commitment to integrating advances
in educational science, neuroscience, and social policy.
Education is all a matter of building bridges.
—Ralph Ellison, author of Invisible Man
Center for Applied Policy in Education (CAP-Ed)
Christina E. Murdoch serves as Executive Director of the Center
for Applied Policy in Education within the UC Davis School of
Education. In this role, Christina develops and directs
professional learning programs for school district
superintendents, principals and teachers including the following:
• Superintendents’ Executive Leadership Forum (SELF)
Renee Newton joined REEd in 2001, where she directed a statewide
health access program administered through the Healthy Start
Field Office. She was named director of the Center for Community
School Partnerships (CCSP) in 2005 where she led a
multidisciplinary team in support of school and community
partnerships.
Faculty ProfileEMPHASIS AREA: SCI/AG. Science Education, Groupwork, Race and Schooling, Social Emotional Intelligence, Social Justice Education, Literacy in Science
Alexis Patterson Williams, Ph.D., joined the School of Education
in July 2015 as an Assistant Professor in science education. She
is currently a CAMPOS Faculty
Scholar and is excited to work with her cohort to develop a
research center that focuses on increasing the participation of
women of color in STEM related fields.
Faculty ProfileEMPHASIS AREA: SOEP. Latina/o and Native American identity formations in P-20 systems; Transition to college for students of color in K-12, Access
Sherrie Reed serves as Executive Director
for California Education Lab. In this role,
Sherrie is managing and directing the research efforts of
numerous federal and foundation grants and supporting the
faculty Principal Investigators. These projects represent
unprecedented collaboration among the primary public
education segments in the state of California, including formal
partnership between the University of California, Davis and the
California Department of Education, and collaboration with the
California State University Chancellor’s Off
Office hours: Winter and Spring Quarters 2020 — By Appointment
Only
Gloria M. Rodriguez’s current research explores notions
of educational investment that reflect efforts to build
upon community strengths in order to address community
needs within and beyond educational settings. Dr. Rodriguez
also engages in research that focuses on the political
economic conditions and educational trajectories of
Chicana/o-Latina/o communities, other communities of color,
and low-income populations in the U.S.
Shaima Shafii joined the School of Education as the
Development and External Relations Assistant on January 16,
2018. She is responsible for a wide range of
coordinative and administrative duties, as well as working with
the marketing and communications team at the School of Education.
Nicole Sparapani is an assistant professor in the School of
Education and faculty member at the UC Davis MIND Institute. Her
research interests center around the development and evaluation
of effective educational practices for students with Autism
Spectrum Disorder (ASD). Dr. Sparapani practiced as a certified
speech-language pathologist on an interdisciplinary team serving
preschool children with ASD for several years before pursuing her
Ph.D. in Communication Science and Disorders at Florida State
University and postdoctoral training at Arizona State University.
Dr. Lisa Sullivan brings a range of skills and experience to her
work in Teacher Education. Lisa worked as a classroom teacher in
East Los Angeles and in Northern California before obtaining her
doctorate from UC Davis in Learning and Mind Sciences. She has
worked extensively with both classroom teachers and higher
education faculty to improve teaching and learning. Lisa
has conducted over twenty program evaluations for K-12 and
university based education initiatives. She has expertise in the
area of special education, having worked on a national
implementation grant to support general education teachers to
implement best practices for students with autism. Lisa has also
taught both credential and Masters students at UC Davis,
Sacramento State University and Loyola Marymount University. Her
dissertation research examined the role of attention in learning
and school readiness for preschool children. Her main area
of interest is in working with educators to translate research
into practice that will improve outcomes for all students.
Education
Ph.D. in Learning and Mind Sciences, University of
California, Davis, 2010
M.A. in Educational Psychology, University of California,
Davis, 2006
B.A. in Psychology, Phi Beta Kappa, cum laude, University of
California, Irvine, 1986
Publications and Working Papers
Franzone, E., Kucharczyk, S., Sullivan, L., & Szidon, K.
(2012). Facilitating the use of evidence based practices in
classrooms: The national professional development center model
for implementation. In Mundy, P. & Mastergeorge, A. (Eds),
Autism for Educators, Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage
Publications.
Sullivan, L. (2010). Joint attention: Interactions with word
learning and school readiness. Dissertation Abstracts
International: Section B: The Sciences and Engineering, Volume
71(11-A), pp.3902.
Abedi, J., Kao, J.C., Leon, S., Mastergeorge, A., Sullivan,
L., Herman, J., & Pope, R. (2010). Accessibility of segmented
reading comprehension passages for students with disabilities.
Applied Measurement in Education, 23 (2), 168-186.
Mundy, P., Sullivan, L., & Mastergeorge, A. (2009). A
parallel and distributed-processing model of joint attention,
social cognition and autism. Autism Research, 2(1),
2-21.
Abedi, K., Kao, J., Leon, J., Sullivan, L., Herman, J., Pope,
R., Nambiar, V., & Mastergeorge, A. (2008). Exploring factors
that affect accessibility of reading comprehension assessments
for students with disabilities: A study of segmented text
(Report No. 746), 80pp. Los Angeles: National Center for Research
on Evaluation, Standards, and Student Testing (CRESST).
Manuscript Currently Under Review
Sullivan, L., Mundy, P., & Mastergeorge, A. Joint
Attention, Social Behavior and School Readiness in Preschool
Children.
Agricultural Education; Agri-food system literacy;
Service-learning; Secondary Education; Science Education;
Technology in Science; Technology in teaching and learning
Faculty ProfileEMPHASIS AREA: LLC. Early literacy; English learners; Bilingualism and bilingual education; Educational television and multimedia; Language acquisition
Early Literacy; English Learners; Bilingualism and Bilingual
Education; Educational Television and Multimedia; Language
Acquisition; Literacy development; Quantitative methods;
Sociolinguistics and psycholinguistics.
Faculty ProfileEMPHASIS AREA: LMS. Test validity analysis; The use of assessment as an educational reform lever; Grading; Evaluation of educational programs
Megan Welsh joined the School in July 2014 as an assistant
professor in educational assessment and measurement. Since 2008,
she was an assistant professor at the University of Connecticut.
Her primary areas of research include test validity analysis, the
use of assessment as an educational reform lever, grading, and
evaluation of educational programs.
Faculty ProfileEMPHASIS AREA: LMS, MTH. Collaborative learning; Learning and cognition; Mathematics education; Technology in mathematics; Technology in science; Technology in teaching and learning
Tobin White studies the use of technology in teaching and
learning mathematics. He has a particular interest in using
mobile computing to support novel approaches to engaging learners
with STEM content and practices. Using a design-based research
approach, he develops collaborative problem-solving tools and
activities in order to investigate intersections between
conceptual and social dimensions of learning. A former high
school mathematics teacher himself, he has also worked for more
than a decade in teacher preparation.
Maisha T. Winn’s research spans a wide variety of understudied
settings including her earlier work on the literate practices
extant in bookstores and community organizations in the African
American community to her most recent work in settings where
adolescent girls are incarcerated.
With over fifteen years of professional experience, Winn has
worked and consulted with foundations, cities, and non-profits
including Casey Family Programs, Annie E. Casey, W.K. Kellogg
Foundation, City of Newark (NJ), City of Madison (WI), St. HOPE,
MLK Community Resources Collaborative, and Race to Equity.
His expertise includes youth programs/education, civic and
community engagement, strategic partnerships, race and equity,
and community based participatory research.
