SOE Research Highlights at 2025 AERA Annual Meeting SOE Faculty, Students, and Staff to Present
American University's School of Education had a significant representation among the 2,500 sessions that took place at the American Educational Research Association's (AERA) 2025 Annual Meeting in Denver April 23-27, with the theme "Research, Remedy, and Repair: Toward Just Education Renewal." SOE faculty, students, staff, and alumni chaired conversations, received awards, and presented the work that is so important to them and the future of education. Join us next year in Los Angeles from April 8-12, 2026.
Presentations from SOE faculty included (view the entire program here):
Wednesday, April 23
8:00 a.m. through Sunday at 3:00 p.m.
Dr. Lauren M. Shea, "Empowering Minds with STEM Digital Read-Alouds, " and Dr. Gayle Warmbrodt, "Mitigating Harm in Education For Our First Children," at the Virtual Posters Exhibit Hall, Virtual Poster Hall
9:00-10:30 a.m.
Loris Nadene Adams, "Waking up to Sisterhood: Creating Community for Girls of Color in Boarding Schools" at the Colorado Convention Center, Floor: Meeting Room Level, Room 711
10:50 a.m.-12:20 p.m.
Dr. Golnar Abedin, "A Holistic Approach to Healing: Mindfulness and Trauma-Informed Education" at the The Colorado Convention Center, Floor: Ballroom Level, Four Seasons Ballroom 1
Dr. Amaarah N. DeCuir and Dr. Ambereen Khan-Baker, "Muslim Womens' Doctoral Journeys in Education Research," where Khan-Baker presents the paper "Creating my own Sister’s Area: Experiencing and Researching Anti-Muslim Racism as a Muslim Woman and Mother" at The Colorado Convention Center, Floor: Meeting Room Level, Room 610
2:30-4:00 p.m.
Dr. Amaarah N. DeCuir, "BIPOC Women in Leadership: Pathways, Politics, and Power," at The Colorado Convention Center, Floor: Meeting Room Level, Room 403
Dr. Ambereen Khan-Baker, "Navigating Faith, Identity, and Education: A MusCrit Exploration Across Academic Spheres," at the Colorado Convention Center, Floor: Meeting Room Level, Room 710
Thursday, April 24
8:00-9:30 a.m.
Dr. Antonio L. Ellis and Dr. Toks S. Fashola, "Interrogating Special Education Policy and Practice," at The Colorado Convention Center, Floor: Terrace Level, Bluebird Ballroom Room 3E
Dr. Sarah Irvine Belson and Dr. Danielle Gervais Sodani, "Balancing transformation in Research-Practice Partnerships: The need for intentional goal setting for researchers" at The Colorado Convention Center, Floor: Meeting Room Level, Room 303
9:50-11:20 a.m.
Dr. Rodney Hopson, "Taking the Baton: Advancing A. Wade Boykin’s Cultural Asset-Based Vision for Just Educational Renewal," at The Colorado Convention Center, Floor: Ballroom Level, Mile High Ballroom 4EF (R)
1:45-3:15 p.m.
Dr. Martinique A. Sealy, "Sociopolitical Consciousness and Identity Formation for Subject Area Teachers," at The Colorado Convention Center, Floor: Ballroom Level, Four Seasons Ballroom 4
5:25-6:55 p.m.
Dr. Antonio L. Ellis, "Toward Family Engagement: Reimagining Parental Involvement," at The Colorado Convention Center, Floor: Ballroom Level, Four Seasons Ballroom 2-3
Dr. Sarah Irvine Belson and Anne Murphy Karabell, "Context matters: Effects of school-level factors on the reading trajectories of students with disabilities" at The Colorado Convention Center, Floor: Ballroom Level, Four Seasons Ballroom 2-3
Cynthia Miller-Idriss, "Polarization, Violence, and Remedy in Schools and Society," at the Colorado Convention Center, Floor: Ballroom Level, Mile High Ballroom 4AB
7:15 p.m.
Dr. Robert Shand was part of a team that received the Short Policy Report award for authoring “The Costs of Conflict: The Fiscal Impact of Culturally Divisive Conflict on Public Schools in the United States.” His co-authors were John Rogers (UCLA), Rachel White (U of Texas at Austin), and Joseph Kahne (UC Riverside). The report found, “In total, the cost of conflict for the nation’s public schools in 2023-24 was approximately $3.2 billion.”
Friday, April 25
8:00-9:30 a.m.
Dr. Antonio L. Ellis, "Equity, Ethics, and Care in Leadership for School Improvement," at The Colorado Convention Center, Floor: Meeting Room Level, Room 402
Dr. Rodney K. Hopson, "e-Lightening Ed-Talk Session 10," at The Colorado Convention Center, Floor: Exhibit Hall Level, Exhibit Hall F - Stage 2
Dr. Sung Ryung Lyu, "Enhancing Learning for Emergent Bilingual Children through Translanguaging Pedagogies: A Systematic Literature Review from 2010-2023," at The Colorado Convention Center, Floor: Terrace Level, Bluebird Ballroom Room 2E
Dr. Eugene Pringle, "Leading and Leveraging Social Justice: Leadership Preparation at Historically Black Colleges and Universities as Social Action," at The Colorado Convention Center, Floor: Exhibit Hall Level, Exhibit Hall F - Poster Session
1:30-3:00 p.m.
Dr. Toks S. Fashola, "Quantitative Research Shapes Educational Policy and Practice: Are You In?—Sylvia Johnson Table," at The Colorado Convention Center, Floor: Ballroom Level, Mile High Ballroom 2A and 3A
Dr. Rodney K. Hopson, "The 28th Conversations with Senior Scholars on Advancing Research and Professional Development Related to Black Education," at The Colorado Convention Center, Floor: Ballroom Level, Mile High Ballroom 2A and 3A
3:20-4:50 p.m.
Dr. Amaarah N. DeCuir, "Intentional Circles of Exchange: Knowledge Sharing and Building to Mobilize Social Justice Work Towards Just Educational/Renewal," at The Colorado Convention Center, Floor: Meeting Room Level, Room 605
Jess Edwards, Ihsan Hawkins, Zaki Hawkins, Dr. Brian McGowan, Dr. Martinique A. Sealy, and Dr. Shari E. Watkins, "'In Spite of:' Advancing Racial Equity for Black Postsecondary STEM Students in the U.S. Northeast," in The Colorado Convention Center, Floor: Meeting Room Level, Room 102
4:30-6:00 p.m.
SOE Reception at AERA 2025 - Join the SOE community at the Hilton Garden Inn Denver Union Station's restaurant Woodie Fisher Kitchen & Bar for light appetizers and beer and wine at 1999 Chestnut Pl, Denver, Colorado.
7:30-8:30 p.m.
Dr. Corbin M. Campbell and Dr. Brian McGowan hosted the reception "Equity-Based Teaching In Higher Education: The Levers that Institutions Can Use for Scaling Improvement" at the Hyatt Regency Denver, Mineral Hall G, Floor 3
Saturday, April 26
8:00-9:30 a.m.
Dr. Antonio L. Ellis chaired "Family, Finances, and Future Planning: Navigating Disability Support and Transition in a Changing World," at The Colorado Convention Center, Floor: Ballroom Level, Four Seasons Ballroom 1
9:50-11:20 a.m.
Dr. Robert Shand, "Curriculum Implementation Change Framework: Investigating a Tool for Analyzing Variability in Curriculum Implementation," at The Colorado Convention Center, Floor: Ballroom Level, Four Seasons Ballroom 2-3
11:40 a.m.-1:10 p.m.
Dr. Antonio L. Ellis, "Same-Race Teacher Effects on Third Grade Literacy Scores in Mississippi," at The Colorado Convention Center, Floor: Ballroom Level, Four Seasons Ballroom 1
Dr. Toks S. Fashola, Dr. Andrea Guiden-Pittman, and Dr. William Nathaniel Thomas, "Having Our Say: Elevating Teacher Voice in Educational Research," at The Colorado Convention Center, Floor: Ballroom Level, Four Seasons Ballroom 1
Dr. kecia hayes, "Same-Race Teacher Effects on Third Grade Literacy Scores in Mississippi," at The Colorado Convention Center, Floor: Ballroom Level, Four Seasons Ballroom 1
Dr. Ocheze Joseph, Dr. Eugene Pringle, Dr. Jasmine Rogers, and Keyana Janai Terry, "Examining Pre-Service Teacher's Training in the Sociolinguistic Dynamics of Teaching Black Students through the Science of Reading," at The Colorado Convention Center, Floor: Ballroom Level, Four Seasons Ballroom 1
Dr. Brian McGowan chaired "Black Identity Among Undergraduate STEM Students in the Mid-Atlantic Region: A Systematic Literature Review," at The Colorado Convention Center, Floor: Ballroom Level, Four Seasons Ballroom 4
Brianna Nargiso Newton, "From Pencils to Purpose: Exploring Journaling as an Antiracist Instructional Tool to Foster Psychological Safety and Belonging for Black and Brown Students in Title I ELA Classrooms."
1:30-3:00 p.m.
Jess Edwards, Ihsan Hawkins, Zaki Hawkins, Dr. Brian McGowan, Dr. Martinique A. Sealy, and Dr. Shari E. Watkins, "Black Identity Among Undergraduate STEM Students in the Mid-Atlantic Region: A Systematic Literature Review," at The Colorado Convention Center, Floor: Ballroom Level, Four Seasons Ballroom 4
Dr. Antonio L. Ellis receives an Outstanding Book Award (Honorable Mention) by the Society of Professors of Education for "Critical Literacy and Its Impact on Black Boys' Reading Readiness," at the Hyatt Regency Denver at Colorado Convention Center, Level 3, Centennial Ballroom D
Katherine J. Blaesing, Cassandra Denise Edwards, Jonelle Gordon, Dr. Cheryl C. Holcomb-McCoy, and Dr. Moya Malcolm, "Advancing Antiracist and Social Justice Practice in School Counseling," at The Colorado Convention Center, Floor: Meeting Room Level, Room 108
Dr. Rodney K. Hopson, Dr. Brian McGowan, and Dr. Kenjus Watson, "The Subject (is still) at Large: Regenerating Theory and Practices in Black 'Male' Educational Research," at The Colorado Convention Center, Floor: Ballroom Level, Mile High Ballroom 1AB
Dr. Randi Stone, "Sensemaking and Culturally Responsive Practice: Navigating Literacy Policy Together," at The Colorado Convention Center, Floor: Ballroom Level, Four Seasons Ballroom 1
Alexes M. Terry, "Centering the ME in Mentoring: Examining Learner-Centered Approaches on Black Resident Teachers in Urban Schools," at The Colorado Convention Center, Floor: Ballroom Level, Four Seasons Ballroom 2-3
Dr. Kenjus T. Watson, "Push/Pull Paper Presentation on the Potential Promise of Repairs," at The Colorado Convention Center, Floor: Ballroom Level, Mile High Ballroom 1AB
3:20-4:50 p.m.
Julia Savoca Gibson, "Initial examination of how virtual global collaboration shapes the identity of adolescent learners in the U.S.," at The Colorado Convention Center, Floor: Ballroom Level, Four Seasons Ballroom 1
5:10-6:40 p.m.
Dr. Andrea Guiden-Pittman, "The Politics of Crossing State Lines to Secure a Teaching Position," at The Colorado Convention Center, Floor: Terrace Level, Bluebird Ballroom Room 3E
Sunday, April 27
8:00-9:30 a.m.
Dr. Amaarah N. DeCuir, "Representations of Africa and Arabia in British Children's Literature 1840 – 1910," at The Colorado Convention Center, Floor: Terrace Level, Bluebird Ballroom Room 2B
9:50-11:20 a.m.
Dr. Sung Ryung Lyu, "Transcending Borders: The Journey of Three Transnational Early Childhood Teacher Educators in Implementing Border Pedagogy," at The Colorado Convention Center, Floor: Terrace Level, Bluebird Ballroom Room 2D
11:40 a.m.-1:10 p.m.
Dr. Corbin M. Campbell, "Reconceptualizing Organizational Policies and Structures: A Policy Playbook for Systemic Levers that Support Equity-Based Teaching," at The Colorado Convention Center, Floor: Terrace Level, Bluebird Ballroom Room 2G
Rachel Cason, " Toward a Humanizing Math Feedback Protocol: A CPAR Study with Black Women Math Educators in a DC Charter School," at the Corado Convention Center, Floor: Ballroom Level, Mile High Ballroom 2A and 3A.
1:30-3:00 p.m.
Dr. Antonio L. Ellis, "Commemorating 45 Years of Music Education: How Mr. Linard H. McCloud Transform Lives through High School Band Participation," at The Colorado Convention Center, Floor: Ballroom Level, Four Seasons Ballroom 1
Dr. Toks S. Fashola, "Anti-Blackness in K-12 Education: In Pursuit of Equity," at The Colorado Convention Center, Floor: Meeting Room Level, Room 303
View the entire program here.
The AERA Annual Meeting is the largest gathering of scholars in the field of education research, with typically 13,000 of its 24,000 members in attendance. It is an event to showcase groundbreaking, innovative studies in a diverse array of areas: from early education through higher education, from digital learning to second language literacy. Ideas and data are presented and discussed that will shape tomorrow’s education practices and policies, and where to connect with leading thinkers from the U.S. and around the world.
