Research and Creative Showcase

This newsletter, like spring itself, was a little late in coming this year. But as the sun finally makes an appearance in CNY, I am reminded how much I love the beauty of this area and all it has to offer.

Similarly, my biannual sampling of SOE scholarship and creative work is also a great reminder about the richness of the intellectual work of our SOE colleagues, who continue to make us all proud to make this place our academic home.

By again organizing the newsletter by our SOE Signatures, I couldn’t help but notice the balance of scholarship across all three areas, which is great to see. Collectively, we continue to advance and refine our Signatures through our scholarship.

I also took note of the number of doctoral students and alums who are coauthoring with their faculty mentors. In all these ways, I am excited to see the ways we are thriving as a community of scholars.

Beth A. Ferri, ADR

Moon-Heum Cho and colleagues published “Usability of a Mobile App for Suicide Risk Awareness in South Korea” in Digital Health. Using a mixed method study, Cho and colleagues explored the potential of a mobile app for enhancing suicide risk awareness among young adults in South Korea. Cho also coauthored “Teacher Self-regulation and Self-efficacy in Reggio Emilia-inspired Schools in South Korea” in the Journal of Early Childhood Teacher Education.

Alan Foley and Micah Fialka-Feldman coauthored “Accessing Community: Speaking With and Through Mobile Technology” in the Canadian Journal of Disability Studies. Using participatory research, Foley and Fialka-Feldman explore the impact of mobile technology, particularly speech-to-text tools, on enhancing social inclusion and communication for people with intellectual disability.

Tiffany Koszalka and colleagues published “Enhancing Pre-service Teachers’ Reflective Thinking Skills Through Generative AI-assisted Digital Storytelling Creation: A Three-dimensional Framework Analysis” in Computers & Education. Using a three-dimensional framework, Koszalka and colleagues explore how generative AI tools can support reflective thinking skills while using digital storytelling.

Peter Rugano G’16, Joanna Masingila, Leonard Kamau G’14, Paul Makumba G’23, and Hillary Omoze G’22 published “Using Video Case Studies to Provide Prospective Secondary Teachers in Kenya Opportunities to Notice and Reflect on Pedagogical Practices” in Teaching Education to evaluate the effectiveness of using video case studies with prospective teachers in Kenya.

Qiu Wang coauthored “Profiles of Media Use Purpose in Informal Digital Learning of English and Their Association with Vocabulary Knowledge” in Computer Assisted Language Learning, in which Wang and colleagues use a hierarchical regression analysis to examine the effects of the quantity and quality of informal digital experiences on vocabulary development for learners who are learning English as a foreign language.

David DeAngelis published “Music Education in Charter Schools: A Scoping Review” in Update: Applications of Research in Music Education, in which he synthesizes research on music education in charter schools, finding that they offer fewer music courses and that their music teachers were more likely to be certified through alternative pathways.

Sharon Dotger and colleagues published “Global Lesson Study Policy, Practice, and Research for Advancing Teacher and Student Learning in STEM” in Frontiers in Education, in which they review research on the global impact of Lesson Study as a professional development approach for teacher education, particularly in STEM education.

Hillary Bermudez G’25 and Duane Graysay published, “Supporting Students in Exploring, Developing, and Formalizing Mathematical Arguments” in PRIMUS. They present and illustrate a three-step process to support student learning and progression in reasoning, developing, and formalizing mathematical arguments.

Tiffany Koszalka and Garmondyu Whorway G’25 published “Development and Validation of a Learner Interactions Behavioral Observation Checklist (BOC)” in the American Journal of Distance Education. To address the limitations of self-report in collecting data on classroom interactions, they developed and tested an observation protocol to help collect data on three types of learner interaction during instruction.

Qiu Wang coauthored “Mindfulness-Based Programming for Students and Teachers in Public School Settings: Present Findings and Future Directions” in ECNU Review of Education. After reviewing the extant literature on school-based mindfulness programming on student learning and student and teacher wellbeing, the authors call for more rigorous study designs to advance the science in this area.

Bong Gee Jang and colleagues published “It’s Not Just About Skills: Adopting a Motivation‐Informed Approach to Instruction with Adolescents” in the Journal of Adolescent & Adult Literacy. In the current debates about how to best teach literacy, Jang and colleagues remind us of the importance of attending to principles of motivation in the context of adolescent literacy instruction. Jang and colleagues also published a chapter “Reading Motivation: Embracing Multiple Perspectives” in Reading for Pleasure: International Perspectives, in which they examine over a decade of research on reading motivation and provide suggestions for policy, practice, and further research on the topic.

Sultan Kilinc and Nikkia Borowski G’20 published “Preschool Educators’ Perspectives and Experiences Implementing Dual Language Bilingual Education for Emergent Multilinguals with Disabilities” in Exceptional Children. Using sociocultural theory and boundary crossing (as theoretical frameworks), they explored the experiences and perspectives of dual language bilingual educators who were teaching young emergent multilingual students with disabilities in one urban school in Arizona.

Yanhong Liu and colleagues published “Enhancing Educational Equity and Sustainability: A Fuzzy-based Framework for Optimal School Site Selection” in the International Journal of Digital Earth. Employing multi-criteria decision analysis, GIS mapping, and Fuzzy Analytic Hierarchy Process, they propose a robust framework for making scientifically informed school site selection decisions to promote equity and sustainable development. Liu and colleagues also published “Psychological Well‐Being and Distress Among College Students: The Mediating Role of Resilience as a Dynamic Process” in the Journal of Counseling & Development. Based on a sample of 5,670 college students, Liu and University colleagues in Lab THRIVE examine the mediating effects of resilience, as well as physical exercise, sleep quality, sense of belonging, and friendship on student distress and well-being.

Kellin Cavanaugh G’22 and Melissa Luke coauthored “The Female‐Responsive Mentoring Model: A Constructivist Grounded Theory” in Counselor Education and Supervision. Using constructivist grounded theory and feminist standpoint theory, Cavanaugh and Luke explored mentoring experiences across their academic careers.

Peitao Zhu G’20, Qu Wang, Melissa Luke, Yanhong Liu, and colleagues conducted the study “Item Response Theory Analysis and Measurement Invariance Testing of the Cultural Humility and Enactment Scale” in Measurement and Evaluation in Counseling and Development, in which they explore the reliability and validity of a tool to examine levels of cultural humility and the effectiveness of the counseling relationship with culturally diverse clients.

Sara Jo Soldovieri ’18, G’19, G’25 and Beth Myers published “‘Nothing Separate’: Understanding Why Students with Intellectual Disabilities Choose Inclusive Post Secondary Education” in the British Journal of Learning Disabilities, in which they analyze college applications of students with intellectual disabilities to better learn about what they were looking for in a post-secondary educational program.

Christy Ashby and George Theoharis, along with colleagues in the Maxwell School, published “Salience in Email Recruitment” in the Journal of Behavioral Public Administration. Using a randomized controlled trial to examine whether the format of an email was more effective in recruiting for a teacher training program designed for diverse, underrepresented students. [Spoiler alert: the official University letter beat out the splashy brochure.]

Michael Gill and colleague published, “Not Your Grandma’s Pickles. (Oh. No. Wait. They Actually Are.(Kinda.))” in Food, Culture & Society, in which they look at fermentation—as process, art, and metaphor—to explore fermentation as a life force that has been used to preserve food, to sustain health and heal illness, to diversify our microbiota, and more.

• At the One University Awards ceremony, Ben Dotger received the 2025 Chancellor’s Citation for Faculty Excellence and Scholarly Distinction and Craig Tucker received the Enduring Values Award.
• Melissa Luke received the Thomas Hohenshil National Publication Award from the American Counseling Association.
• Kahyen Shin, a doctoral student in CHS, received the Best Practices in Research, Student Award from the American Counseling Association.
• Qiu Wang was awarded the Excellence in Graduate Education Faculty Recognition Award from the SU Graduate School.
• Julie Harnett ’18, G’19 and Amanda Kingston were among 27 standout TAs recognized at an April Graduate School Ceremony.
• Moon-Heum Cho has been appointed the inaugural Faculty Director of Research in the Center for Online and Digital Learning.
• Alonzo Turner has been awarded a 2025 Association for Spiritual, Ethical, and Religious Values in Counseling (ASERVIC) Research Award.
• Jing Lei and Tom Bull were elected to schools boards in Jamesville-DeWitt Central School District and Baldwinsville Central School District, respectively.