Literacy Faculty & Staff
Janine Certo
Ph.D., Virginia Commonwealth University
certo@msu.edu
Janine Certo is an assistant professor of language and literacy in the Department of Teacher Education. Her interests include writing instruction, genre theory and pedagogy, poetic language theory and instruction, and arts-based literacy education. Drawing on multiple methods, including poetic inquiry, her research spans a number of areas including literacy and language, creative writing, humanities and aesthetic philosophy, and teacher education. Most recently, she is investigating teachers' knowledge, craft and dispositions with regard to reading, writing and teaching poetry and preadolescents' poetry genre knowledge and development.
Ph.D., Virginia Commonwealth University
certo@msu.edu
Janine Certo is an assistant professor of language and literacy in the Department of Teacher Education. Her interests include writing instruction, genre theory and pedagogy, poetic language theory and instruction, and arts-based literacy education. Drawing on multiple methods, including poetic inquiry, her research spans a number of areas including literacy and language, creative writing, humanities and aesthetic philosophy, and teacher education. Most recently, she is investigating teachers' knowledge, craft and dispositions with regard to reading, writing and teaching poetry and preadolescents' poetry genre knowledge and development.
Nell Duke
Ed.D., Harvard University
nkduke@msu.edu
Nell Duke is a professor of teacher education and educational psychology and co-director of the Literacy Achievement Research Center (LARC). She studies literacy development of young children, particularly those living in poverty. Her specific areas of expertise include the development of informational literacies in young children, comprehension development and instruction in early schooling, and issues of equity in literacy education. She is also interested in efforts to improve the quality of research training in doctoral programs of education.
Ed.D., Harvard University
nkduke@msu.edu
Nell Duke is a professor of teacher education and educational psychology and co-director of the Literacy Achievement Research Center (LARC). She studies literacy development of young children, particularly those living in poverty. Her specific areas of expertise include the development of informational literacies in young children, comprehension development and instruction in early schooling, and issues of equity in literacy education. She is also interested in efforts to improve the quality of research training in doctoral programs of education.
Patricia Edwards
Ph.D., University of Wisconsin-Madison
edwards6@msu.edu
Patricia Edwards is a professor of teacher education, the first African American of the Literacy Research Association (formerly the National Reading Conference), and the 2010-2011 President of the International Reading Association. She has developed two nationally acclaimed family literacy programs: Parents as Partners in Reading and Talking Your Way to Literacy. Her research focuses on issues related to families and children: engaging hard to reach families, developing a scope and sequence of parent involvement, compiling different types of demographic family profiles, parent involvement and teacher thinking, parent involvement in the reading/writing process, parent support of children’s oral preparation for literacy, portfolio instructional conversations with parents during regularly scheduled parent-teacher conferences, and parents’ stories of literacy and teachers’ reactions to these stories. Her current research focuses on a broader question—how does the world read? During her graduate student days at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, she became curious about this question. Therefore, when she became the newly elected Vice-President of the International Reading Association (IRA) in May 2008, she immediately thought that she would return to this question of interest. In addition, I was motivated to ask this question because the International Reading Association has councils and affiliates in more than 100 countries and one of our popular slogans is “We teach the world to read.”
Ph.D., University of Wisconsin-Madison
edwards6@msu.edu
Patricia Edwards is a professor of teacher education, the first African American of the Literacy Research Association (formerly the National Reading Conference), and the 2010-2011 President of the International Reading Association. She has developed two nationally acclaimed family literacy programs: Parents as Partners in Reading and Talking Your Way to Literacy. Her research focuses on issues related to families and children: engaging hard to reach families, developing a scope and sequence of parent involvement, compiling different types of demographic family profiles, parent involvement and teacher thinking, parent involvement in the reading/writing process, parent support of children’s oral preparation for literacy, portfolio instructional conversations with parents during regularly scheduled parent-teacher conferences, and parents’ stories of literacy and teachers’ reactions to these stories. Her current research focuses on a broader question—how does the world read? During her graduate student days at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, she became curious about this question. Therefore, when she became the newly elected Vice-President of the International Reading Association (IRA) in May 2008, she immediately thought that she would return to this question of interest. In addition, I was motivated to ask this question because the International Reading Association has councils and affiliates in more than 100 countries and one of our popular slogans is “We teach the world to read.”
Carol Sue Englert
Ph.D., Indiana University
carolsue@msu.edu
Carol Sue Englert is a professor of special education. Her research interests include literacy instruction for students at risk for school failure with a specific focus on the examination of discourse in literacy events. Her more recent work involves a collaborative research project with special education teachers to design, implement, and integrate a literacy curriculum emphasizing the role of oral and written language in a discourse community.
Ph.D., Indiana University
carolsue@msu.edu
Carol Sue Englert is a professor of special education. Her research interests include literacy instruction for students at risk for school failure with a specific focus on the examination of discourse in literacy events. Her more recent work involves a collaborative research project with special education teachers to design, implement, and integrate a literacy curriculum emphasizing the role of oral and written language in a discourse community.
Susan Florio-Ruane
Ed.D., Harvard University
susanfr@msu.edu
Susan Florio-Ruane is a professor of teacher education and a winner of the Distinguished Faculty Award at Michigan State University. Her research interests include the preparation of elementary literacy teachers to work in urban classrooms and the social and historical role of culture, literacy and autobiography in educational research and practice. She is co- senior editor of the Journal of Literacy Research and also served in a senior editorial role for the Anthropology and Education Quarterly. Her paper, “The Social Organization of Classes and Schools,” won the Division K Research in Teacher Education Award of the American Educational Research Association. Her book, Teacher Education and the Cultural Imagination, won the National Reading Conference’s Outstanding Book Award. She is co-editor of the forthcoming book, Standing for Literacy: Teaching in a Time of Reform. Dr. Florio-Ruane is also a senior researcher in the MSU Literacy Achievement Research Center (LARC).
Ed.D., Harvard University
susanfr@msu.edu
Susan Florio-Ruane is a professor of teacher education and a winner of the Distinguished Faculty Award at Michigan State University. Her research interests include the preparation of elementary literacy teachers to work in urban classrooms and the social and historical role of culture, literacy and autobiography in educational research and practice. She is co- senior editor of the Journal of Literacy Research and also served in a senior editorial role for the Anthropology and Education Quarterly. Her paper, “The Social Organization of Classes and Schools,” won the Division K Research in Teacher Education Award of the American Educational Research Association. Her book, Teacher Education and the Cultural Imagination, won the National Reading Conference’s Outstanding Book Award. She is co-editor of the forthcoming book, Standing for Literacy: Teaching in a Time of Reform. Dr. Florio-Ruane is also a senior researcher in the MSU Literacy Achievement Research Center (LARC).
Doug Hartman
Ph.D., University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign
dhartman@msu.edu
Douglas Hartman is a professor of literacy and technology with appointments in Teacher Education and Educational Psychology. He serves as co-director of the Literacy Achievement Research Center (LARC) and coordinator of the Literacy Studies program. His research interests focus on new literacies, adolescent literacy, and the history of literacy.
Ph.D., University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign
dhartman@msu.edu
Douglas Hartman is a professor of literacy and technology with appointments in Teacher Education and Educational Psychology. He serves as co-director of the Literacy Achievement Research Center (LARC) and coordinator of the Literacy Studies program. His research interests focus on new literacies, adolescent literacy, and the history of literacy.
Paul Kurf
Ph.D., Michigan State University
kurf@msu.edu
Paul Kurf is a Specialist-Advisor in Teacher Education, Program Advisor for the MALIT and MATC and instructor in the MATC. His research and professional interests include professional preparation, organizational and administrative behavior, distance learning, collegial support networks as well as disability and equity issues in employment, K-12, and higher education. He is particularly interested in the cultural aspects of disability and difference and the factors that contribute to success among older students seeking advanced degrees.
Ph.D., Michigan State University
kurf@msu.edu
Paul Kurf is a Specialist-Advisor in Teacher Education, Program Advisor for the MALIT and MATC and instructor in the MATC. His research and professional interests include professional preparation, organizational and administrative behavior, distance learning, collegial support networks as well as disability and equity issues in employment, K-12, and higher education. He is particularly interested in the cultural aspects of disability and difference and the factors that contribute to success among older students seeking advanced degrees.
Troy Mariage
Ph.D., Michigan State University
mariaget@msu.edu
Troy Mariage is an associate professor of special education. His research interests are in the areas of literacy instruction for students with mild disabilities in elementary classrooms. He has conducted work in early reading instruction, writing instruction, and cognitive strategy instruction that leads to self-regulated learning. More recently, he has extended his work by seeking to understand how to create schools as learning organizations that create the capacity for continuous learning and improvement. Currently, he is conducting a study to explore how teachers can provide concurrent academic and social support for students with significant learning and behavioral difficulties.
Ph.D., Michigan State University
mariaget@msu.edu
Troy Mariage is an associate professor of special education. His research interests are in the areas of literacy instruction for students with mild disabilities in elementary classrooms. He has conducted work in early reading instruction, writing instruction, and cognitive strategy instruction that leads to self-regulated learning. More recently, he has extended his work by seeking to understand how to create schools as learning organizations that create the capacity for continuous learning and improvement. Currently, he is conducting a study to explore how teachers can provide concurrent academic and social support for students with significant learning and behavioral difficulties.
Cheryl Rosaen
Ph.D., Michigan State University
crosaen@msu.edu
Cheryl Rosaen is a professor of teacher education and Co-PI for the MSU Literacy Achievement Research Center (LARC). In schools associated with MSU's teacher preparation program, she engages in collaborative teaching and research in language arts and meaningful uses of technology. She conducts research on how pre-service teachers learn to teach language arts and their uses of technology in MSU's teacher education program.
Ph.D., Michigan State University
crosaen@msu.edu
Cheryl Rosaen is a professor of teacher education and Co-PI for the MSU Literacy Achievement Research Center (LARC). In schools associated with MSU's teacher preparation program, she engages in collaborative teaching and research in language arts and meaningful uses of technology. She conducts research on how pre-service teachers learn to teach language arts and their uses of technology in MSU's teacher education program.
Cheryl Rosaen
Ph.D., Michigan State University
crosaen@msu.edu
Cheryl Rosaen is a professor of teacher education and Co-PI for the MSU Literacy Achievement Research Center (LARC). In schools associated with MSU's teacher preparation program, she engages in collaborative teaching and research in language arts and meaningful uses of technology. She conducts research on how pre-service teachers learn to teach language arts and their uses of technology in MSU's teacher education program.
Ph.D., Michigan State University
crosaen@msu.edu
Cheryl Rosaen is a professor of teacher education and Co-PI for the MSU Literacy Achievement Research Center (LARC). In schools associated with MSU's teacher preparation program, she engages in collaborative teaching and research in language arts and meaningful uses of technology. She conducts research on how pre-service teachers learn to teach language arts and their uses of technology in MSU's teacher education program.
Rand Spiro
Ph.D., Pennsylvania State University
rspiro@msu.edu
Rand Spiro is a professor of educational psychology. His research areas are knowledge acquisition in complex domains, hypermedia learning environments, multimedia case-based methods in professional education, biomedical cognition, and constructive processes in text comprehension and recall. Much of his research is concerned with the question, “How should learning proceed so that tendencies toward conceptual oversimplification are counteracted and a wide range of future applications of knowledge are supported?” The objective is the validation of basic theoretical principles and related instructional practices that will allow students to master the complex concepts they encounter and to transfer that knowledge from formal schooling to real-world cases - learning for flexibly adaptive use, rather than for imitative reproduction. A central part of the research program involves the development and testing of theory-based hypermedia learning environments designed to promote cognitive flexibility.
Ph.D., Pennsylvania State University
rspiro@msu.edu
Rand Spiro is a professor of educational psychology. His research areas are knowledge acquisition in complex domains, hypermedia learning environments, multimedia case-based methods in professional education, biomedical cognition, and constructive processes in text comprehension and recall. Much of his research is concerned with the question, “How should learning proceed so that tendencies toward conceptual oversimplification are counteracted and a wide range of future applications of knowledge are supported?” The objective is the validation of basic theoretical principles and related instructional practices that will allow students to master the complex concepts they encounter and to transfer that knowledge from formal schooling to real-world cases - learning for flexibly adaptive use, rather than for imitative reproduction. A central part of the research program involves the development and testing of theory-based hypermedia learning environments designed to promote cognitive flexibility.
Randi Stanulis
Ph.D., Michigan State University
randis@msu.edu
Randi Stanulis is an associate professor in the Department of Teacher Education. Her teaching and research interests focus on teacher learning, from the perspective of novices learning to teach, and from experienced teachers learning about their own practice while mentoring others. As director of teacher induction, she is particularly interested in developing university-school partnerships in teacher induction within high poverty settings. As a result of participation in the reform initiative, Teachers for a New Era, she has led the development and research on a new MSU-based induction program. She also currently serves as coordinator of the Master of Arts in Teaching and Curriculum (MATC) program.
Ph.D., Michigan State University
randis@msu.edu
Randi Stanulis is an associate professor in the Department of Teacher Education. Her teaching and research interests focus on teacher learning, from the perspective of novices learning to teach, and from experienced teachers learning about their own practice while mentoring others. As director of teacher induction, she is particularly interested in developing university-school partnerships in teacher induction within high poverty settings. As a result of participation in the reform initiative, Teachers for a New Era, she has led the development and research on a new MSU-based induction program. She also currently serves as coordinator of the Master of Arts in Teaching and Curriculum (MATC) program.
Gary Troia
Ph.D., University of Maryland
gtroia@msu.edu
Gary Troia is an associate professor of special education. His research interests include the connections between oral language and literacy in typical and atypical learners, writing assessment and instruction, and teacher professional development in literacy. His recent work involves examining alignment between states' content standards and assessment frameworks in writing and how alignment between these influences writing outcomes and enables students to meet postsecondary writing expectations. He also is examining predictors of writing quality within a multi-level linguistic framework to help researchers and educators develop better measurement tools for writing.
Ph.D., University of Maryland
gtroia@msu.edu
Gary Troia is an associate professor of special education. His research interests include the connections between oral language and literacy in typical and atypical learners, writing assessment and instruction, and teacher professional development in literacy. His recent work involves examining alignment between states' content standards and assessment frameworks in writing and how alignment between these influences writing outcomes and enables students to meet postsecondary writing expectations. He also is examining predictors of writing quality within a multi-level linguistic framework to help researchers and educators develop better measurement tools for writing.
