World Campus Education Doctorate Faculty Affiliates

Sophia L. Ángeles is an Assistant Professor of Multilingual Education. She earned her Ph.D. from the School of Education and Information Studies at the University of California, Los Angeles. Stemming from her experiences as a former educator working in multilingual and immigrant communities, Dr. Ángeles’ interrogates how and why language programs are designed in ways that translate into differential access to college and career readiness opportunities for high school newcomer youth. Her scholarship also accounts for how newcomer youth’s educational trajectories are shaped by immigration policies and their identities as minoritized youth.

Through analysis of the processes and consequences of dis/ability identification, Dr. Collins' program of research aims to identify and interrupt deficit discourses surrounding children who are positioned as struggling in school. Her research investigates the production of educational (in)equity at the intersections of literac(-ies), disability, and race. Her primary theoretical frames are sociocultural and sociocognitive theories of learning, Disability Studies and Disability Critical Race Theory (DisCrit), and positioning theory. She primarily employs narrative, discourse and textual forms of analysis.  

My specialties lie in literacy, school/community connection, rural schools, qualitative research, and teaching inquiry. A former fifth grade teacher, I am interested in advising students who share my interests in rural education, rural school/community connection, and elementary literacy. My two current projects are about the impact of post-COVID cyber charter enrollment on rural schools and the representation of rural people and places in children's literature. My dedication to equity, placed learning, and social justice stems from my own experience as a first generation college graduate and Pell Grant recipient who attended a K-12 rural school in Northern Appalachia.

As an interdisciplinary trained educational linguistics scholar and a qualitative researcher, she is committed to improving the education of language minority learners, particularly issues of educational equity and inclusion of immigrant students in K-16 contexts. Her critical applied linguistics work applies theoretical insights to educational problems and conceptual issues in the fields of language and literacy, TESOL, and multilingualism. Her primary areas of research include critical dialogic teaching, teachers’ advocacy work, the professional development and learning of teachers about equity-oriented pedagogy, and qualitative research methodologies.

I specialize in literature for children and adolescents.  My research interests include the development of critical consciousness, fairy-tale studies, and nonfiction literature for children and adolescents.

Dr. Ravinder Koul is a Professor of Education in the Department of Curriculum and Instruction. His undergraduate studies were in Physics, Chemistry, and Mathematics, followed by graduate studies in Physics. He taught physics and mathematics at the secondary school level before undertaking a Ph.D. in Curriculum and Instruction. His research focuses on cultural factors that influence the motivational outcomes of teachers and learners, as well as cultural factors affecting curriculum reform efforts and the efficacy of professional development for teachers. Currently, he teaches courses in research methods (CI 500: Multiple and Mixed Methods in Curriculum Inquiry) and curriculum design (CS 551: Curriculum Design: Theory and Practice).

While my teaching and research projects have included early elementary through college learners and practicing teachers, I taught high school English language arts in Kansas City, Missouri, before beginning my career in academia. My work focuses on teacher learning and identities; literacy, particularly writing, instruction; and critical, humanizing pedagogies and research methods that empower both students and teachers.

Andrea McCloskey was a mathematics teacher in middle and high schools. Her research focuses on classroom teaching practices and the cultural and political influences and impacts of those practices. She especially works with elementary school teachers these days, and her practice of improv theater is leading to new questions and ideas about ways we can be more connected, equitable, and integrated in our classrooms.

Dr. McDonald takes a design-based approach to research that focuses on both preservice and in-service science teacher learning of ambitious and equitable science teaching. He also engages in research around secondary students' learning with the support of data visualization and simulations to support epistemically authentic investigations.

I am a former high-school teacher and a faculty member in Social Studies Education. My scholarship revolves on history teaching and learning. I've published and conducted professional outreach in topics including historical content, media, technology, and the Holocaust, genocide, and human rights education. My specialization is history teaching, learning, and curriculum. Specific research topics have included world history, uses of the past in popular media and culture, and technology in history and society. I work with preservice and in-service social studies teachers, including professional learning outreach for Holocaust, genocide, and human rights education.

Dr. Patterson's research observes, measures and documents patterns of (in)equity in a variety of educational settings for the purpose of informing the envisioning of new, inclusive, justice-oriented learning environments where students and teachers thrive in the shared space. Though she holds an M.A. in Quantitative Research, Evaluation and Measurement, Patterson primarily employs qualitative research methods including critical discourse analysis. Her research takes an intersectional approach to understanding social phenomena and regularly takes up race as one of the identity markers of focus.

My research focuses on the design of learning environments that support children's spatial thinking and use of science practices, primarily in the domain of astronomy, across preschool through middle school. I also investigate how storybook narratives can be used to support science learning. My research includes both formal environments, such as classrooms, and informal environments, such as planetariums and museums.

I am a specialist in children's literature especially movable books made for and by children. I take a comparative media approach. I am also interested in gender studies, focusing on girls and girlhoods.

Jeanine Staples is a Professor of Literacy and Language with affiliations in both the African American Studies Department and Women’s, Gender, and Sexuality Studies Department at the Pennsylvania State University. She earned her bachelor's degree in English literature and Urban Education from Howard University, her master’s degree in Teaching and Curriculum from Harvard University, and her doctorate in Literacy and Language, with distinction, from the University of Pennsylvania.

Her research, practice, and advocacy areas center urban education, teacher preparation, adolescent and adult literacies, socioemotional evolutions, and thriving in schools and society. Dr. Staples is an expert in the study of white supremacist patriarchal ideology. She was appointed to the Africana Research Center (2013) and the Social Science Research Consortium (2014) at Penn State. She was named Senior Research Fellow at Columbia University School of Law’s Center for Intersectionality & Social Policy, and Senior Visiting Scholar at the University of Rhode Island’s Harrington School of Communications (2017). She was honored as the 2020 Mark Luchinsky Memorial Lecturer for social justice and is currently writing two books that are eagerly anticipated by the field, Extraordinary Pedagogies (Teachers College Press, 2024) and Extraordinary Literacies (Palgrave McMillian, 2025).

In 2015 she founded the Supreme Love Project (SLP), an emotional justice initiative that translates a part of her research program into praxis. SLP expounds upon Dr. Staples' trauma-informed theories and methodologies to actualize thriving among girls and women placed at risk in schools and society. To date, SLP content has been accessed, and celebrated, by 7.5 million people, worldwide.

Additionally, createing critical studies of sociocultural theories, methodologies, and practices in education through New Literacies Studies. As well as  researching program centers ways to identify and dismantle white supremacist patriarchal ideology in schools and society through teacher education and inquiries into the literate lives of Black girls and women.

My specialties lie in writing inside and outside of school; professional development; wellness and emotions of teachers. I study literacies as reflective and transformative resources for living with agency and authenticity. My work in the school context has focused on (a) the teaching of writing and related reflective and transformative practices, and (b) experiences of teachers using those practices in professional development. I also extend the same themes and questions to all kinds of spaces where people live and grow; these have included summer camps, writing groups, families, faith communities, workplaces, and therapeutic settings.

My research focuses on the nature of mathematical processes and understanding in technology-mediated environments and mathematical understanding for teaching with technology that supports all students’ engagement in mathematical processes and their growth in mathematical understanding.

My focus in on student learning of mathematical processes in math with an extension to processes in other STEM areas and connection to curriculum, technology, and professional development to support systemic change in teaching practice with the goal of supporting student learning.

My research and practice focus on designing and implementing professional learning opportunities for K-5 teachers as they learn to support children’s equitable sensemaking in science. The research is qualitative in nature and takes place in school–university–community partnerships alongside educators, children, and families. I have current funding to connect preservice elementary teachers at Penn State to schools in locations that serve students from historically marginalized groups.

I primarily study the finances of colleges and universities, with a special interest in net tuition revenue. This research is motivated by a desire to promote student access and success, because high net prices hinder the ability of students, especially lower-income students, to enter and complete higher education without taking on unreasonable levels of debt. My work most heavily intersects with professionals in the area of enrollment management, institutional research, and finance/budgeting.

I am an expert on qualitative research methods and case study methodology with my research focusing on race and social equity in urban communities and schools.

I have pursued three broad areas of research in the sociology of education that include urban education, education policy and social context, and comparative race and ethnicity. My academic work focuses on how the successful organization of urban educational systems shapes the engagement and achievement of diverse student populations. While we know that many of these students fail in school, we know little about those who succeed. My research therefore unearths the complex processes in the school and out-of- school settings that lead to student engagement and success.

Erica Frankenberg (Ed.D., Harvard University) is a professor of education and demography in the College of Education at the Pennsylvania State University. Her research interests focus on racial desegregation and inequality in K-12 schools, and the connections between school segregation and other metropolitan policies. At Penn State, Dr. Frankenberg teaches classes on education policy and politics.

My research interests include educator career pathways )preparation, placement, retention, attrition, and mobility), educator working conditions, and district leadership.

I study school reform, past and present. I specialize in the history of education, but I also study current education policy trends.  My areas of interest include school districts, academic standards, curriculum history, and equal educational opportunity and equity.

My research, which focuses on online education, examines how predominantly residential institutions can create engagement opportunities and affinity-building activities for their online students. My background and early career history are in student affairs and student leadership, and I have interest in topics related to the student experience both residentially and online.

My focuses are aimed toward policies and practices in higher education, including private higher education globally. Also internationalization of higher education, including student mobility and partnerships. And quality assurance and accreditation as well.

I specialize in educational leadership, teacher leadership, comparative and international education, global studies, intercultural communication.

I am a qualitative researcher, studying ways that students can have a voice in decision making practice in schools. Relatedly, I study the role of fostering civic engagement in youth. These themes are grounded in themes of educational policy, politics and reform.

My research focuses on college access and college success of historically underserved and underrepresented student populations. Another strand of my work focuses on program evaluation.

I focus in higher education policy, college admissions, financial aid accreditation, financial aid, and institutions. As well as Higher Education policy, Higher Education assessment/evaluation, and Higher Education faculty.

My research examines the barriers students face on the way to and through college and how federal, state, and college policies can be designed to reduce these barriers, particularly for racially minorities and low-income students. I also focus in higher education policy, college admissions, and financial aid.

I focus in school and district level leadership practices, including equitable leadership & socially just school culture, teacher and administrative leadership practices, planned change for school improvement, and evaluation of programs and practices.

My hope is that scholarly practitioners also pursuing a Letter of Eligibility online in EDLDR will be able to complete their doctoral requirements as part of the college DEd. As advisor of the field experience for LOE interns I would be their advisor so it make make sense for me to guide these students through a practicum…or connect them with the EDLDR and/or CoE faculty who match their scholarly interests. I study effective and equitable leadership practice & distribution of leadership practice, and planned change for school improvement &school culture.

I research scaffolding and problem-based learning at the middle, high school, and university levels. Some research methods I use include quantitative, qualitative, mixed methods, and meta-analysis.

My primary area of interest is teacher preparation. Specifically, I am interested in preparing teachers to successfully include and support the learning and participation of students with disabilities in general education classrooms. Additionally, I am interested in the intersection of disability and other diverse identity markers and exploring how to prepare teachers to create inclusive classrooms and provide equitable learning opportunities for all students.

Dr. Frank's current research interests include school-based prevention, positive behavior supports, innovative statistical and experimental methods to validate evidence-based interventions, social-emotional learning, and mindfulness-based interventions.

Dr. Henry documents incarceration's social determinants and health disparities among criminalized populations, focusing on trauma, mental health, and substance use disorders. She uses both qualitative and quantitative methods, including in-depth interviews, latent class analysis and structural equation modeling. Her work has documented pathways into incarceration and the role that patterns of trauma exposure play in criminalization, including placement in solitary confinement.

My research focuses on academic interventions for students with learning differences, including learning disabilities, ADHD, autism, and 2e students. The majority of my work centers around upper-elementary and middle school, however I also extend to lower elementary and high school academics. I am most interested in the role of language (reading and writing) to learn math. 

My research focuses on academic (e.g., math and literacy) interventions for students with exceptionalities, with emphasis on students with specific learning disabilities. I evaluate ways to support math instruction within a MTSS system for upper elementary, middle, and high school students. I am passionate about how reading and writing support mathematics learning.

I focus on academic instruction and instruction for students with disabilities or learning difficulties. My interest include how we use language to learn mathematics (reading, writing, speaking), math interventions, and multi-tiered systems of support.

ChanMin Kim researches various designs for improving equity through education. She has extensive research and experiences with K-12 teachers but also with innovations such as artificial intelligence and gamified simulations. She is a former special education teacher who programmed digital games for her students with a wide spectrum of special needs to learn mathematics.

My primary focuses lie in assessment and measurement, data analysis, statistics.

The focus of my research is to develop, evaluate, and disseminate programs to support students with or at risk for emotional/behavior disorders (EBD) across academic, behavioral, and social domains. My research draws upon a behavior analytic framework to create positive, function-based interventions for students, primarily in middle/high school settings. Currently, our research team is developing and evaluating a program to help middle-school students begin and remain engaged in academic tasks.

I study in critical digital literacy. In particular, I study how students learn from texts and other resources, particularly in online contexts, and the higher-order reasoning processes (e.g., critique, evaluation) involved. I am also interested in how students integrate and write synthetically, based on information presented across texts.

My work is focused on examining students' critical reasoning skills in digital contexts. I am interested in questions exploring how students determine the trustworthiness of online information and how students synthesize information from multiple texts when writing. I use a variety of methods in my work including surveys, think-alouds, and interviews, log data of students' online interactions (e.g., clicks), and analyses of students' writing.

I'm interested in advising research that enables educators and administrators learn how students experience their courses and what they can do to make those experiences more equitable, engaging, and supportive of student success. Relevant topics could include learning strategies, motivation, and belonging. Approaches to the research can include quantitative, qualitative, and mixed methods.

My current research interests include literacy instruction for individuals who use augmentative and alternative communication (AAC), the development of vocational opportunities for individuals with severe disabilities and complex communication needs, and the effective use of web-based instructional materials to support pre-service and in-service instruction for special education and communication professionals in the area of AAC.

My research focuses around school level change through multi-tiered systems of support (MTSS). The MTSS systems concentrate on social, emotional, and behavioral adjustment in students. My practice also focuses on effective teacher education practices.

Dr. Riccomini focuses his research on effective instructional approaches, strategies, and assessments for students with dyscalculia, low achievers, and/or students with learning disabilities in mathematics. As well as Inclusive practices for students with disabilities in the area of mathematics.

Guided by principles from cognitive science, the science of learning, and learner characteristics, Dr. Riccomini’s research is dedicated to developing and validating innovative teaching strategies and pedagogical approaches to enhance math instruction within inclusive settings.  With a wealth of experience spanning three decades, Dr. Riccomini actively partners with mathematics educators to co-create compelling and highly efficient instructional activities aimed at enhancing outcomes for students of all backgrounds. Dr. Riccomini can be reached at [email protected] and followed on X @pjr146.

Rayne A. Sperling is an educational psychologist. Her research examines the measurement and promotion of learners' self-regulation including their motivation, metacognition, and strategic processing. Her work also addresses effective instructional manipulations, in both traditional and technology-rich environments, that are designed to promote learners' self-regulation, comprehension, decision making, and problem solving. Much of her work addresses issues of objective-based student assessment, construct measurement, and evaluation. She is currently the Editor of the Journal of Experimental Education.

My research includes examining effective strategies for inclusive STEAM education for students with disabilities and improving school/classroom climates for students, families, and teachers. Specifically, my STEAM scholarship focuses on supporting inquiry-based STEAM instruction and using research and evidence-based interventions and practices. My school/classroom scholarship emphasizes student/classroom motivation, using Hip-Hop in the classroom, and supporting student/teacher relationships across educational settings.

I conduct survey design (quant), along with qualitative processes (content analysis). I also look at workplace bullying as a social justice issue.

Dr. Campbell's research interests include examining non-formal and informal learning that occurs within folk schools and residential learning centers, promoting the development and application of critical qualitative research methodologies (particularly Participatory Action Research and Indigenous Inquiry,) and understanding Indigenous Knowledge Systems (IKS) in regard to revitalization and research efforts.

Dr. Candce Claar is an Assistant Teaching Professor of Education within the Workforce Education and Development Program at The Pennsylvania State University. Candace holds an Ed.D. in Educational Leadership from Shippensburg University/Millersville University.

Dr. Claar consults, teaches, and conducts research in the areas of leadership development and Career and Technical Education teacher education. Dr. Claar’s current research interests include teacher leadership and early career educators.

Prior to joining the College of Education faculty, her experience included career and technical education instruction, educational administration, curriculum/instruction, cooperative education, and teacher preparation administration.

My research is focused on technology tools to support learning. I am currently developing a writing-to-learn browser-based tool that you could use in your professional setting.

My research focus is on adult education, online and distance education; education in Africa and the African Renaissance; power dynamics in negotiation over educational policy; unveiling issues inherent in the promise of modernity, and working towards de-colonializing, de-bordering, de-peripherizing, and de-centering the world; higher education policy and administration; system transfer; international development; global and social justice; and, related topics. Currently, I am engaged in reconstructing and articulating African ancestral wisdom in theorizing/theory, which I term as Cosmo-uBuntu.

Focus is on adult online and distance education, education in Africa, power dynamics in negotiation over educational policy, and global and social justice. Currently engaged in articulating uBuntu as a philosophy of justice and Cosmo-uBuntu  as theorizing/theory of justice.

Dr. Diehl is an editor at The American Journal of Distance Education and co-editor of the Handbook of Distance Education.  His research includes history, systems, teaching, research and design in Distance Education and online learning, and emerging technologies. Dr. Diehl has been a consultant in corporate, government, Healthcare, non-profit, and educational sectors.

I study learning within and across informal settings (i.e. museums, libraries, etc.) and interest-driven learning, from skateboarding to video games. I am also interested in the creative potential of artificial intelligence, especially towards imagining alternative futures, especially in terms of social, racial, and climate justice.

I began my work in adult education as an adult basic educator in working-class, Latinx communities in Chicago. I am interested in and continue to research forms of adult, popular, and lifelong education and learning that address the social justice issues facing poor and working-class people. I research education and learning within and by social justice movements as well as social theory that informs and emerges from the education and learning within these movements.

ChanMin Kim researches various designs for improving equity through education. She has extensive research and experiences with K-12 teachers but also with innovations such as artificial intelligence and gamified simulations. She is a former special education teacher who programmed digital games for her students with a wide spectrum of special needs to learn mathematics.

My focus in on research on the design of learner-centered, technology-enhanced learning environments. Additionally, research on instructional design and technology.

My research (primarily qualitative) examines adult education, particularly literacies (adult literacy, family literacy or two-generation programming, digital literacy, health literacy), adult basic education, English as a Second Language programming for immigrants & refugees, education in prisons, comparative and international adult education, and participatory approaches to education and research. I'm fluent in Spanish and have conducted research in the USA, El Salvador, Belize, Ireland, Ghana, and Tanzania. My work is guided by a concern for families and adult learners who experience social exclusion based on gender, social class, race/ethnicity, geographic location (especially rural), language, and other types of social inequality.

My research employs critical and sociocultural theories to examine literacies (adult, family, digital, health), adult basic education, rural adult education, and community-based adult education. In particular, my research explores the "wider benefits" of adult education (e.g., psychosocial benefits) and how adult education reproduces and/or alleviates inequities rooted in race/ethnicity, class, gender, and immigration status. I have conducted research with community-based organizations and programs in the US, El Salvador, Ireland, Ghana, and Tanzania, as well as several state prisons in Pennsylvania.

My interests focus around Organization Development/Change Management and Talent Development. I am keenly interested in facilitating organizational change and also helping individuals develop their potential in organizational settings. Much of my work centers around succession planning, employee training and development, and related fields such as human resource management.

My interests are in organizational change, talent management, Human Resource Management and Development, talent development, talent acquisition, training, employee development, and so forth.

My research focuses on examining knowledge sharing, interaction, and shared practices within formal and informal online communities and spaces. I use a variety of qualitative and quantitative methods including discourse analysis and social network analysis. More recently I have been exploring the application of AI, machine learning, and learning analytics to support teaching and learning in the online formal classroom.

I consult, teach and conduct research in the areas of career and technical teacher education, training and development, workplace learning and performance, and experiential learning and teaching. My research has been published widely in scholarly research journals and books and I hold extensive credentials across education and training.

Heather engages in design-based research related to a) learning in informal institutions (museums, gardens, nature centers, science centers, makerspaces, and libraries), b) families learning together, c) the role of mobile technologies to support learning, and d) how curriculum can be designed to support knowledge and cultural practices moving from one setting to another (such as youths' homes to K-12 school classrooms or community settings to classrooms).  She has engaged in research-to-practice projects that support science education, engineering education, outdoor education, and arts education. Heather normally employs interpretive qualitative analyses from ethnography, video-based methods from interaction analysis, or mixed methods in intervention studies.