Current Courses

Professional Organizations

• American Educational Studies Association (AESA). 09/2015 - present. Position : Member.
• National Association for Multicultural Education (NAME). 03/2015 - present. Position : Member.
• National Association of Chicana and Chicano Studies (NACCS). 09/2014 - present. Position : Member.
• Mujeres Activas en Letras y Cambio Social (MALCS). 05/2008 - present. Position : Member.
• American Education Research Association (AERA). 09/2002 - present. Position : Member.

Teaching Philosophy

Courses I Teach

• ECS 2150 - Introduction to Multicultural Education
  History, concepts, and theoretical base for multicultural education. Models and strategies for teaching minority students as well as effective curriculum material. Creating a classroom climate for acceptance of differences--cultural, linguistic, genetic, disabling. Prerequisite to early childhood, elementary, and secondary teacher certification programs.
• ECS 5709/6709 - Family School Partnerships
  The course is designed as a service-learning course to acquaint learners with the necessary background for effective development and application of partnerships between families, schools and communities. Emphasis is on continuous partnership efforts and understandings of contexts and ethics when working with linguistically and culturally diverse families, schools and communities. Requires 37 hours of school/community-based service learning hours. Students enrolled in 6709 will be expected to meet a higher standard of performance and may be assigned additional assignments.
• ECS 5715/6715 - Urban Education
  Course is designed to enhance students' knowledge of urban schooling through the examination of historical, social, economic, political, and socio-cultural frameworks with an emphasis on issues of race and class as they have affected the distribution of equal educational opportunities in urban education. This course will examine pedagogies and programs that have demonstrated success with urban students and investigate the complexity and challenge of providing excellent education in urban schools. Students enrolled in 6715 will be expected to meet a higher standard of performance and may be assigned additional assignments.
• ECS 5960 - Undergraduate Research
  Independent in-depth project under direction of faculty. Includes field work.
• ECS 6600 - Intro. Critical/Cultural Studies in Education
  Examines the social, political, and economic context of schooling with an emphasis on historical and current problems, conflicts, and movements in education.
• ECS 6820/7820 - Juvenile (IN)Justice & Education
  The school-to-prison pipeline is an epidemic that is plaguing schools across the nation. A central aim of this graduate seminar is to critically examine the theoretical underpinnings that promote the school to prison pipeline and how it impacts young people’s lives both nationally and locally. In order to theoretically and conceptually understand why and how zero tolerance policies disproportionately target minoritized students, this seminar traces historical racial caste systems, and political and theoretical roots that provide the backdrop of such policies.
• ECS 6823/7823 - Immigration & Education
  The school-to-prison pipeline is an epidemic that is plaguing schools across the nation. A central aim of this graduate seminar is to critically examine the theoretical underpinnings that promote the school to prison pipeline and how it impacts young people’s lives both nationally and locally. In order to theoretically and conceptually understand why and how zero tolerance policies disproportionately target minoritized students, this seminar traces historical racial caste systems, and political and theoretical roots that provide the backdrop of such policies.
• ECS 6826/7826 - Youth & Action Research
  This graduate seminar offers an in-depth exploration of theoretical, methodological, and practical issues in the design and implementation of Youth Participatory Action Research (YPAR), and activist scholarship as well as the issues faced by researchers using this qualitative method. Through interdisciplinary scholarship as well as the issues faced by researchers using this qualitative method. Through interdisciplinary instruction the professor will engage the participants in readings across academic disciplines (i.e., sociology, cultural studies, gender studies, and anthropology) and simultaneously explore, reflect, and identify YPAR with youth and trouble methodological debates and research positions that frame youth and action research. In this capacity, the class discusses how youth (past and present) produce knowledge that informs what is popular culture, citizenship, art, politics, and identity while resisting mainstream representations that have constructed them as other (i.e., undocumented, gang member, teen mother, thief, drug dealer, terrorist, etc.). The course will be taught in the spirit of PAR, therefore learning will be a process of mutual exchange.
• ECS 6833/7833 - Latinxs & Education
  This course examines the socio-historical, cultural and political contexts that structure the educational experiences of Latin@s in the U.S.; particular attention will be given to issues of cultural identity and representation as they affect the education of Latin@s. The course begins with a critical look at how Latin@ students have been socially constructed and moves toward a greater understanding of the policy, political, social, and economic forces shaping Latin@s' education. Essential inquiries we will explore: How do cultural constructions of Latin@s (immigrants & natives, regardless of immigration status) shape educational policy, programs and teaching practices for Latin@ students? What views of citizenship and identity underlie various educational programs and the response of Latin@s to these programs? Latin@ communities have a long history of demonstrations, organizing and activism around education, and their organizing efforts have been met with vicious opposition from mainstream individuals and policymakers. Examining organizing efforts, as well as other less observable forms of resistance to assimiliationist educational policies, we will explore: How have cultural identities and claims to cultural and educational rights shaped Latin@s' educational engagement? What new directions in research and practice are needed? In addition, we will explore transnationalism, or the social processes through which immigrants link their countries of origin with their communities in the U.S., and implications for the education of Latin@s. How do transnational cultural frames shape Latin@ immigrants' views, expectations, and experiences of the U.S. educational system? How do Latin@s cultivate new practices of engagement and resistance in the educational system?

Student Projects

• Latinx families and school engagement for student success. Kelsey Cox. 09/2022 - 05/2025
• UROP: Navigating Funds of Identity through art and poetry. Siosaia Langi. 09/2016 - 05/2017

Small Group Teaching

• Teaching Seminar.  08/21/2023  -  12/15/2023

Former Students

• Eulogio Alejandre, https://ecs.utah.edu/student-profiles.php. Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.), Project Type: Dissertation. Role: Chair.
• Analis Carattini-Ruiz, Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.), Project Type: Dissertation. Role: Member.
• Ana C. Antunes, Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.), Project Type: Dissertation. Role: Chair.
• Hyesun Kim, Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.), Project Type: Dissertation. Role: Member.
• Barbara Kessel, Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.), Project Type: Dissertation. Role: Member.
• Jennyffer Morales, Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.), Project Type: Dissertation. Role: Member.
• Delila Omerbašić, Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.), Project Type: Dissertation. Role: Member.
• Trevor Warburton, Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.), Project Type: Dissertation. Role: Member.
• Juan Freire, Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.), Project Type: Other. Role: Member.