Interpreter-mediated psychotherapy with refugees

Atiyeh, S., Attia, M., & Beckmann, J. (2023). Interpreter-mediated psychotherapy with refugees. Journal of Counseling Research and Practice, 8(1).

Michigan Middle School Students from Native Bay Mills Community Ojibwa, Sault Tribe, and Pokagon Band Tribal Communities Experience STEM Learning

Yarema, S., Chappelle, G., (2023) Michigan Middle School Students from Native Bay Mills Community Ojibwa, Sault Tribe, and Pokagon Band Tribal Communities Experience STEM Learning. Lessons, Innovation & New Knowledge in Science (LINKS). 75(3). 3-4. 

Keywords

STEM learning
Underserved

Photovoice Techniques and Art Therapy Approaches with Refugee and Immigrant Adolescents

Feen-Calligan, H., Grasser, L., Sniderman, D., & Nasser, S. (2023, April) Photovoice Techniques and Art Therapy Approaches with Refugee and Immigrant Adolescents. The Arts in Psychotherapy.

Keywords

Art therapy
Refugees
Photovoice

This paper describes a program informed by art therapy and Photovoice approaches and techniques aimed at helping new immigrant and refugee teens to navigate personal and cultural identities by reflecting on their experiences as new residents in the US. Photovoice is a photography and social action method that encourages participants to photograph aspects of their daily lives, reflect on their meaning and significance and galvanize necessary changes. The program began in February 2020 at the Arab-American National Museum (AANM), but was adapted for an online format and re-framed towards a reflection on the COVID-19 pandemic. Broad questions teens explored included: What is good? What is challenging? What is sustaining during challenging times? What needs to change? and What about your culture and background are you proud of and wish to share with other US residents? Highlights of the sessions demonstrate how art therapy interventions paralleled photography-assigned themes of self, home, and community and encouraged group interaction and mutual support. A virtual museum exhibition culminated the program and reached community leaders. 

Longitudinal Changes in Fat and Lean Mass: Comparisons between 3D-Infrared and Dual-Energy X-ray Absorptiometry Scans in Athletes

VanSumeren M, Weber S, Civelek J, Sabourin J, Smith-Hale V, Hew-Butler T. Longitudinal Changes in Fat and Lean Mass: Comparisons between 3D-Infrared and Dual-Energy X-ray Absorptiometry Scans in Athletes. Int J Exerc Sci. 2022, 15(4): 1587-1599. 

Keywords

Body composition
DXA scan

Our student-led research team demonstrated that a 3D infrared body scanner overestimated lean mass while underestimating body fat (%), compared with a dual energy x-ray absorptiometry (DXA) scanner, in a cohort of well-trained athletes. These results raise caution against comparing body composition variables obtained from different pieces of equipment.

Four Cases of Acute Kidney Injury Requiring Dialysis in Ultramarathoners

Pasternak A, Newkirk-Thompson C, Howard J, Onate J, Hew-Butler T. Four Cases of Acute Kidney Injury Requiring Dialysis in Ultramarathoners. Wilderness Environ Med 2023 in press.

Keywords

Kidney injury
Rhabdomyolysis
Ultramarathon

We detail four ultramarathoners who developed hyponatremia, rhabdomyolysis, and acute kidney injury who required (protracted) dialysis treatment after two hot marathon races. The potential contributions of global warming on renal health and disease requires more urgent investigation in athletes training and competing in the heat. 

Intersectionality in U.S. educational research: Visibilizing the historically excluded and under-recognized experiences of disabled girls of color

 Miller, A. L. (2023). Intersectionality in U.S. educational research: Visibilizing the historically excluded and under-recognized experiences of disabled girls of color. Educational Review special issue titled “A re-view of educational inequalities,” Advance online publication.

Keywords

Disabled girls of color
Educational research
Intersectionality
Redesigning schools
Youth perspectives
Intellectual and developmental disabilities

 The experiences of disabled girls of color have historically been ignored within and/or excluded from US educational research and thus, are often unheard and under-recognized. Few scholars use an intersectional lens to examine how inequities impact disabled girls of color. In this call to action to the research community, existing scholarship focused on their lived experiences is reviewed first. Next, the affordances of intersectionality as an axiological, methodological, and theoretical approach to educational research are discussed. As such, scholars, educators, and policymakers can use intersectionality to learn about the types of experiences disabled girls of color are having in school, including what is working and what is not working for them, from their perspectives. Therefore, intersectionality supports a deeper and more complex understanding of how schooling inequities impact students. Moreover, intersectionality supports engagement and transformation wherein scholars, educators, and policymakers act on the suggestions and solutions disabled girls of color bring forth for dismantling unjust educational systems to (re)imagine, (re)design, and (re)construct them. Finally, implications for research, practice, and policy are discussed. In sum, honoring the experiences and perspectives of disabled girls of color has the power to transform schooling.

Fountain House and the Clubhouse Movement

Pernice, F., D’Angelo, L., Dudek, K., Michon, A., Aquila, R. (2022). Fountain House and the Clubhouse Movement. In: Sowers, W.E., McQuistion, H.L., Ranz, J.M., Feldman, J.M., Runnels, P.S. (eds) Textbook of Community Psychiatry. Springer, Cham.

Prior to the 1960s, people suffering from a serious mental illness (SMI), such as schizophrenia, major depression, and other conditions, lived in state institutions and asylum wards. Although these asylums for the mentally ill evolved from a caring, therapeutic approach of the moral treatment, by the mid-twentieth century these institutions had become overcrowded, underfunded, and hardly reflective of the humane values upon which they were originally based. The story of Fountain House, a working recovery community known as a “clubhouse,” relates a different narrative concerning the treatment of mental illness. While society historically relegated people living with serious mental illness to the periphery, today Fountain House welcomes them on West 47th Street to find meaning in their lives and invited them to demonstrate their productive talents in the heart of New York City. As early allies in community psychiatry recognized the importance of not only providing physical and psychiatric care but also the social component of relationships and a place to belong Fountain House offers.

The Predictive Utility of Trauma Subtypes in the Assessment of Mental Health Outcomes for Persons Resettled as Refugees

Hinchey, L.M., Grasser, L. R., Saad, B., Gorski, K., Pernice, F., & Javanbakht, A. (2022). The Predictive Utility of Trauma Subtypes in the Assessment of Mental Health Outcomes for Persons Resettled as Refugees. Journal of Immigrant and Minority Health.

Authored by Francesca's doctoral student and Community Psychiatry students and faculty.

Dissemination and Implementation Research in Health: Translating Research to Practice

Lee, R.M., Eisman A.B., Gortmaker S.L. Health Dissemination and Implementation within Schools (in press). In Brownson R.C., Colditz G.A. & Proctor E.K. (Eds.), Dissemination and Implementation Research in Health: Translating Research to Practice. Third Edition. New York, NY: Oxford University Press.

Keywords

Implementation science
Schools

Aligning organizational priorities and system policies to support implementation scale-up of a tailored classroom-based physical activity Intervention in low-resource schools

Beemer L.R., Wassmann A., Eisman A.B., Rabut L., Templin T., Zernicke R.F., Malinoff L., Hasson R.E. Aligning organizational priorities and system policies to support implementation scale-up of a tailored classroom-based physical activity Intervention in low-resource schools. Journal of School Health.

Keywords

Implementation
Policy
Physical activity
Schools

A Novel Policy Alignment and Enhancement Process to Improve Sustainment of School-based Physical Activity Programming

Penelope E Friday, Lexie R Beemer, Diane Martindale, Amy Wassmann, Andria B Eisman, Thomas Templin, Ronald F Zernicke, Lynn Malinoff, Anna Schwartz, Tiwaloluwa A Ajibewa, Michele Marenus, Rebecca E Hasson (accepted). A Novel Policy Alignment and Enhancement Process to Improve Sustainment of School-based Physical Activity Programming. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health.

Keywords

Implementation science
Classroom-based physical activity interventions
Exploration
Preparation
Implementation
Sustainment framework

The purpose of the current study was twofold: (1) to evaluate the strength and comprehensiveness of district wellness policies in one central Michigan intermediate school district (ISD; 16 districts), and (2) to pilot a novel policy alignment and enhancement process in one district within the ISD to improve sustainment of district-wide physical activity (PA) programming. Policy evaluation and alignment were determined using WellSAT 3.0. The Exploration, Preparation, Implementation, Sustainment (EPIS) framework was used to guide a seven-step policy alignment and enhancement process. Initial evaluation of the PA policy for the ISD revealed a strength score of 19/100 (i.e., included weak and non-specific language) and 31/100 for comprehensiveness (i.e., mentioned few components of the Comprehensive School Physical Activity Program). For the pilot school district, initial strength scores were 19/100 and 38/100 for comprehensiveness (exploration). An alignment of the tailored PA policy with current practices resulted in a 100% increase in strength (score of 38/100), and 132% increase in comprehensiveness (score of 88/100; preparation). However, district administrators encountered barriers to adopting the tailored policy and subsequently integrated the PA requirements into their curriculum guide and school improvement plan (implementation and sustainment). Future research should examine the effectiveness of our EPIS-informed policy evaluation, alignment, and enhancement process to promote widespread increases in student PA. 

Activism and Resistance from the Trenches: Crisscrossing Comparison and Undocumented Migrant Experiences in China and the United States

Rodriguez, S., Bennett, C.*, Yu, M.*, & Acree, J. (2023). Activism and Resistance from the Trenches: Crisscrossing Comparison and Undocumented Migrant Experiences in China and the United States. Comparative Education Review, 67(1).
 * equal authorship as 2nd author

Keywords

Activism
Immigration
Comparative and international education

 This article explores critical ways that migrant groups engage in diverse forms of resistance. In this comparative case study, we draw on our longitudinal ethnographic research on migrant groups, particularly those that are characterized as undocumented, with a focus on the ways in which they engage in activism and resistance in China and the United States, respectively. We aim to expand the literature about comparison by asking: how is comparison understood differently through the lens of crisscrossing, and what productive insights can be uncovered through this theoretically informed approach? What implications might crisscrossing have for studying grassroots level resistance from migrants across borders?

Creating through COVID: Virtual art therapy for youth resettled as refugees

 Feen-Calligan, H., Grasser, L. R., Smigels, J., McCabe, N., Kremer, B., Al-Zuwayyin, A., Yusif, I., Alesawy, N., Alnouri, J., & Javanbakht, A. (2023, in press). Creating through COVID: Virtual art therapy for youth resettled as refugees. Art Therapy, 40 (1).

Keywords

Stress
Trauma
Refugees
Youth
Psychopathology
COVID-19
Virtual art therapy

Art therapy reduces trauma-related psychopathology in refugee youth. Given the added stress of COVID-19 on traumatized refugee populations, we adapted art therapy for refugee youth and their families in the virtual space. We describe program development, implementation and experientials, and clinical recommendations illustrated through two cases. Observations and feedback support art therapy as a tool to address socioemotional functioning in families who resettle as refugees and foster positive emotions, sense of self and community, confer stress coping skills, and enhance resilience. In light of the persistence of the pandemic, the unprecedented number of global refugees, and their unique needs for mental health services, virtual art therapy can expand accessibility and reach of beneficial methods to address trauma in refugee groups.

Grappling with the tensions: Cultivating justice-oriented praxis through collaborative autoethnographic poetry

Miller, A. L., Stinson, C., & Timberlake, M. T. (2023). Grappling with the tensions: Cultivating justice-oriented praxis through collaborative autoethnographic poetry. In D. I. Hernandez-Saca, C. Kramarczuk Voulgarides, & H. Pearson (Eds.), Understanding the boundaries between disability studies and special education through consilience, self-study, and radical love (pp. 235-259). Lexington Books.

Keywords

Cultural historical activity theory
Critical pedagogy
Collaborative autoethnography

Closing the gap between classroom-based physical activity intervention adoption and use in low-resource schools

Hasson R.E., Beemer L.R., Eisman A.B., Friday P. Closing the gap between classroom-based physical activity intervention adoption and use in low-resource schools. Human Kinetics.

Keywords

Health disparities
Physical activity
Implementation science

Advancing transformative STEM learning: Converging perspectives from education, social science, mathematics, and engineering

Elliott, R. L., Loh, C. G., Psenka, C. G., Lewis, J. M., Kim, K. Haapalau, K. R., Neal, D., & Okudan Kremer, G.E. (2022). Advancing transformative STEM learning: Converging perspectives from education, social science, mathematics, and engineering. Journal of Integrated Design and Process Science, 26(1), 1–22. 

Keywords

STEM education
STEM framework

Society faces emerging challenges that require re-envisioning what it means to know and use science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) and who are STEM scientists. We advocate for a transdisciplinary framework for participatory STEM learning based on the culmination of the authors’ designing and complemented by reviews of extant works in youth STEM learning and engagement. Data literacy, geospatial reasoning, and community science are cornerstones in our framework because of their power to leverage and integrate the four STEM disciplines. Youth with their families are authors and designers in community problem-solving using data literacy and geospatial reasoning through participatory community science to question, analyze, and design solutions empowered by their lived experiences. Through partnerships with community organizations, families, youth, and STEM practitioners, we discuss how to develop and use tools and methods to design and build better spaces for youths’ communities. Our aim is for more authentic, inclusive, and empowering learning opportunities that broaden youths’ STEM participation. 

What remains? A longitudinal study of the effects of curated field experiences for preservice mathematics teachers

 Lewis, J. M. & Nazelli, C. (2022). What remains? A longitudinal study of the effects of curated field experiences for preservice mathematics teachers. Proceedings of the 12th Congress of the European Society for Research in Mathematics Education.

Keywords

Teacher preparation
Preservice teachers
Elementary school teachers

This paper examines the long-term effects of a teacher education program that prepares preservice elementary mathematics teachers to work specifically in Detroit schools. The study was designed to better understand the degree of alignment between the program’s curated field experiences and the work graduates currently do as teachers; the aspects of program design that contributed or detracted from graduates’ understanding of culturally relevant practice in mathematics classes; and the reasons for graduates’ retention in high-poverty schools over time.

Dis-citizenship: Claiming disability rights and taking on inequity to promote shared prosperity

Ressa, T. W. (May 2022). Dis-citizenship: Claiming disability rights and taking on inequity to promote shared prosperity. In N. Berman & R. Monteleone (Eds.) Disability and social justice in Kenya: Scholars, policymakers, and activists in conversation (pp. 137-160). University of Michigan Press. 

Keywords

Access
Disability
Inclusion 

Informed by data from Kenyan and international organizations and complemented by disabled people’s experiences, I employ auto-ethnographic study guided by the critical disability studies framework and political economy model to analyze the interaction of new transportation modes and disability to understand the locus of disabled Kenyans in society. I conclude that investments in inaccessible transportation modes exclude disabled citizens from the Kenyan fabric and predispose them to be second-class citizens. I stress the need to attend to disability within a broader equity model.

Self, Reality, Knowledge and Theory: Is Social Constructionism Antithetical to Sport and Exercise Psychology Research?

Martin, J. (2022). Self, Reality, Knowledge and Theory: Is Social Constructionism Antithetical to Sport and Exercise Psychology Research? Psychology, 13(8), 1-55.

Keywords

Philosophy of science
Positivism
Postmodern

Sport and exercise psychology researchers produce research to help athletes, exercisers, coaches, and parents. This research, both qualitative and quantitative, is predicated on an implicit and at times explicit endorsement of a mind and an agentic self. For a discipline such as psychology, it cannot be over-stated that a belief in a mind, as well as all of the thoughts and feelings that are mind based, is critical. An agentic self is a person who has the ability to act independently, make choices, demonstrate free will, is conscious, and self-aware. Unfortunately, social constructionists often minimize the mind or outright disavow a mind and, by extension, an agentic self that can understand reality. In the current paper I provide an historical and philosophical overview and critique of social constructionism to sport and exercise psychology researchers and its mind-minimizing/denying philosophy. I also highlight research that clearly demonstrates primacy of the mind (i.e., practical adequacy, conscious causation, the cognitive niche, and theory of mind). Researchers should consider if conducting research grounded in a philosophy of science that denies and/or minimizes an agentic self and supports moral relativism, is a defensible position.

Culture and emotion in Paralympic athletes

Martin, J. Snapp, S., Loetzner, F. , Dehghan, F., Bastos, T., & Prokesova. (2022). Culture and emotion in Paralympic athletes. Acta Universitatis Carolinae – Kinanthropologic, 2, xx-xx. 

Keywords

Culture
Emotion
Paralympics

Athletes with physical disabilities

Beasely, V., & Martin, J. (2022). Athletes with physical disabilities. In D. Tod., K. Hodge., & V. Krane (Eds.) Routledge Handbook of Applied Sport Psychology (2nd Ed). (pp. xxx-xxx). New York, NY: Routledge Publishing.

Keywords

Paralympics
Disability sport
Psychology

The Psychology of Talent

Martin, J., & Eva Prokaseva. (2022). The Psychology of Talent. In N. Dehghansai, R. Pinder, & J. Baker (Eds.), The Training and Development of Para-Sport Athletes. (pp. xxx-xxx). London, UK: Routledge Press. 

Keywords

Disability sport
Personality
Psychology

Inspiration Porn and Disability Sport

 Martin, J., (2022). Inspiration Porn and Disability Sport. In D. Goodwin & M. Connolly (Eds.), Reflexivity and Change in Adaptive Physical Activity: Overcoming Hubris. (pp. xxx-xxx). London, UK: Routledge Press. Disability, Sport and Physical Activity Cultures Series.

Keywords

Disability
Sport
Exercise

“It’s going to go in one ear and out the other”: Black girls talk back to administrator perceptions of justice-oriented school discipline

 Edwards, E. B. (2022, in press). “It’s going to go in one ear and out the other”: Black girls talk back to administrator perceptions of justice-oriented school discipline. The Urban Review. 

Keywords

Black girls
Urban education
School administrators

This study offers the results of a Black feminist project in humanization designed to understand administrators' role in interrupting the over-disciplining of Black girls in urban public schools. Carried out with 5 Black girls on probation and 5 Black urban school leaders, the findings suggest that the approaches the administrators used to uplift social justice were not as useful to Black girls' educational experiences as they were assumed to be. In discussion, the paper attributes the disconnection between intent and reception to the competing demands administrators are subject to in a racialized neoliberal educational context.

Transformative Leadership Theory: Critical, Comprehensive, and Activist, in The Palgrave Handbook of Educational Leadership and Management Discourse

Shields, C. M. (2022), Transformative Leadership Theory: Critical, Comprehensive, and Activist, in The Palgrave Handbook of Educational Leadership and Management Discourse, English, F. (Ed.), p. 207-224.

Keywords

Transformative leadership discourse

MYTime: A Mindfulness and Yoga Program to Promote Health Outcomes in Parents of Children With Autism Spectrum Disorder

Ketcheson, L. R., Wengrovius, C. M., Staples, K. L., & Miodrag, N. (2022). MYTime: A Mindfulness and Yoga Program to Promote Health Outcomes in Parents of Children With Autism Spectrum Disorder. Global advances in health and medicine, 11, 2164957X221110154.

Keywords

Yoga
Autism
Caregivers 

Supporting the need for the motor domain to be included in the definition of autism spectrum disorder: A response to Bishop et al.'s critique of Bhat (2021)

Ketcheson, L. R., Pitchford, E. A., Staples, K. L., MacDonald, M., & Ulrich, D. A. (2022). Supporting the need for the motor domain to be included in the definition of autism spectrum disorder: A response to Bishop et al.'s critique of Bhat (2021). Autism Research: Official Journal of the International Society for Autism Research.

Keywords

Autism
Diagnosis
Motor 

Tensions as opportunities for transformation: Applying DisCrit Resistance to early childhood teacher education programs

Love, H. R., & Hancock, C. L. (2022). Tensions as opportunities for transformation: Applying DisCrit Resistance to early childhood personnel preparation programs. Contemporary Issues in Early Childhood. Special issue: Re-imagining pre-service early childhood education and care: Critical discourses and new directions. Advance online publication.

Efforts to “professionalize” early childhood through professional standards, licensure require- ments, and standardized assessments have aimed to support effective practice and rectify the pay inequities experienced by early educators. However, such initiatives can inadvertently reinforce hegemonic developmentalism and have largely served to advance white, able-bodied norms and narrow views of teaching and learning. Teacher educators endeavoring to combat racism and ableism, therefore, can encounter several tensions that result from trying to apply critical perspectives while preparing pre-service teachers for graduation and certification in the current personnel preparation landscape. In this article, the authors employ Disability Critical Race Theory (DisCrit) Resistance to explore these tensions and offer potential ways they can serve as key opportunities for supporting equity. They discuss how teacher educators can enact DisCrit Curriculum, Pedagogy, and Solidarity to diversify the knowledge(s) that are represented in content; center and affirm the identities and gifts of multiply marginalized teachers of color; and disrupt power hierarchies.
 

When Sophie thinks she can’t

Crawford-McKinney, K., & Özgün-Koca, S. A. (2022). When Sophie thinks she can’t. Special Issue on Global Perspectives in STEM. Worlds of Words Reviews, 14(2).

Keywords

Children's literature
Mathematics
STEM

Engaging students with mathematics and children’s literature. Mathematics Teacher: Learning and Teaching Pre-K–12

Crawford-McKinney, K. & Özgün-Koca, S. A. (2022). Engaging students with mathematics and children’s literature. Mathematics Teacher: Learning and Teaching Pre-K–12.

Keywords

Children's literature
Mathematics

Power of Yet: The Integration of the Culturally Responsive Literature with the Productive Struggle in Mathematics

Crawford-McKinney, K., Özgün-Koca, S. A., & Rebar, K. (2022). Power of Yet: The Integration of the Culturally Responsive Literature with the Productive Struggle in Mathematics. Michigan Reading Journal 54(2) 50-56.

Keywords

Children's literature
Mathematics
Power of yet

We used a children's book with three groups of students (ages 6-9) to foster mathematical engagement through read alouds. We share lessons learned from this experience as we integrate children’s literature with mathematics through the lens of Power of Yet. 

Reconceptualizing education grounded in the multimodal discourses of girls of color labeled with significant cognitive disabilities

Miller, A. L. (2022). Reconceptualizing education grounded in the multimodal discourses of girls of color labeled with significant cognitive disabilities. Special section titled “Diversity, equity, and inclusion.” Research and Practice for Persons with Severe Disabilities, 47(3), 158-175.

Keywords

Girls of color labeled with significant cognitive disabilities
Multimodal discourses
Disability critical race theory (DisCrit)
Critical discourse theory
Reimagining education

The experiences of girls of color labeled with significant cognitive disabilities in middle school and high school have historically been excluded from educational research. This study sought to better understand how girls of color labeled with significant cognitive disabilities navigated multimodal discourses and classroom practices as well as how they were impacted by them. Using Disability Critical Race Theory and critical discourse theory, six students were focal participants and eight educators were secondary participants. Multiple case studies were used with primary (i.e., observations, audio/video recordings) and secondary (i.e., interviews, focus groups) data sources. Findings revealed how focal participants showed their discursive resourcefulness, despite absent communication supports and prioritization of oral/aural communication. Students also repositioned themselves in response to marginalization through talk and actions. Implications for research and practice are discussed. This study underscores the necessity of centering the experiences of girls of color labeled with significant cognitive disabilities in educational research to improve their school experiences.

Perspectives of college students labeled with intellectual disability on the moving in and through phases of transition

Miller, A. L., & Chun, M. (2022). Perspectives of college students labeled with intellectual disability on the moving in and through phases of transition. Disability Studies Quarterly, 42(1).

Keywords

Postsecondary education
Emerging adulthood
Student perspective
Intellectual disability

An increasing number of students labeled with intellectual disability are attending colleges and universities. Yet, their perspectives are underrepresented in the research. Grounded in Disability Studies in Education and Schlossberg's Transition Theory, this study reports on the transitional experiences of two emerging adults labeled with intellectual disability at a large public university with a particular focus on how the participants conceptualized their support systems during the moving in and through stages of transition to university. Three themes are discussed: supports the students brought with them to the university, reciprocal supports with peer mentors, and university-provided supports. As such, the findings contribute to and expand existing scholarship dedicated to the experiences of emerging adults labeled with intellectual disability at postsecondary institutions. Aligning with the research question and blended theoretical framing, implications for practice and research are discussed.

Performing color-evasiveness: A DisCrit analysis of educators’ discourse in the U.S.

Wilt, C. L., Annamma, S. A., Wilmot, J. M., Nyegenye, S. N., Miller, A. L., & Jackson, E. J. (2022). Performing color-evasiveness: A DisCrit analysis of educators’ discourse in the U.S. Teaching and Teacher Education, Advance online publication.

Keywords

DisCrit
Discourse
White educators
Color-blindness
Color-evasive racism

This study explores how an ideology of color-evasive racism (i.e., color evasiveness; Annamma et al., 2017) imbued white educators' discourse surrounding intersectional inequities in schools for Girls of Color in the U.S. Our analysis of interview and focus group data addresses a gap in educational research identifying color-evasive racism in discourse by in-service educators, specifically for white educators making sense of inequities in schools. We draw from Bonilla-Silva's (2018) application of color-blindness to discourse to identify three specific discursive frames that white educators employ, namely 1) centering self, 2) claiming white racial innocence, and 3) employing progressive notions, and the discursive tools within each. This focus on white educators' discourse expands understandings of how color-evasivene racism is employed, (re)producing intersectional inequities in education. Given that each of these educators was nominated because of their strengths working with Girls of Color, we believe this paper's significance captures the complexities of teaching in a system of white supremacy and identifies underlying ideologies animating discourse that can be disrupted through a Disability Critical Race Theory (DisCrit) lens.

Starting a dialogue in difficult times: Intersectionality and education work

Robert, S. A., Yu, M., Sauerbronn, F. and Özkazanç-Pan, B. (2022). Starting a dialogue in difficult times: Intersectionality and education work. Gender, Work, & Organization.

Keywords

Intersectionality
Education Work
Teaching

A Mixed Methods Investigation of Implementation Determinants for a School-Based Universal Prevention Intervention

Eisman A.B., Palinkas L.A., Brown S., Lundahl L., Kilbourne A.M. A Mixed Methods Investigation of Implementation Determinants for a School-Based Universal Prevention Intervention. Implementation Research and Practice.

Keywords

Prevention
Substance use
Adolescence
School health
Implementation science
Mixed methods

Abstract:

Background: Effective implementation of evidence-based prevention interventions in schools is vital to reducing the burden of drug use and its consequences. Universal prevention interventions often fail to achieve desired public health outcomes due to poor implementation. One central reason for suboptimal implementation is the limited fit between the intervention and the setting. Research is needed to increase our understanding of how intervention characteristics and context influence intervention implementation in schools to design implementation strategies that will address barriers and improve public health impact.  

Methods: Using a convergent mixed methods design we examined qualitative and quantitative data on implementation determinants for an evidence-based health curriculum, the Michigan Model for Health^TM (MMH) from the perspective of health teachers delivering the curriculum in high schools across the state. We examined data strands independently and integrated them by investigating data alignment, expansion, and divergence.  

Results: We identified three mixed methods domains: 1) Acceptability, 2) Intervention-context fit, and 3) Adaptability. We found alignment across data strands as teachers reporting low acceptability also reported low fidelity. The fit between student needs and the curriculum predicted fidelity (expansion). Teachers mentioned instances of poor intervention-context fit (discordance), including when meeting the needs of trauma-exposed youth and keeping updated on youth drug use trends. Teachers reported high adaptability (concordance) but also instances when adaptation was challenging (discordance). 

Conclusions: This investigation advances implementation research by deepening our understanding of implementation determinants for an evidence-based universal prevention intervention in schools. This will support designing effective implementation strategies to address barriers and advance the public health impact of interventions that address important risk and protective factors for all youth. 

Advancing Rapid Adaptation for Urgent Public Health Crises: Using Implementation Science to Facilitate Effective and Efficient Responses

Eisman A.B., Kim B., Salloum R.G., Shuman C.J., Glasgow R.E. (accepted). Advancing Rapid Adaptation for Urgent Public Health Crises: Using Implementation Science to Facilitate Effective and Efficient Responses. Frontiers in Public Health.

Keywords

Rapid
Adaptation
Iterative
Public Health Crisis
Costs
Implementation 

Responding rapidly to emerging public health crises is vital to reducing their escalation, spread, and impact on population health. These responses, however, are challenging and disparate processes for researchers and practitioners. Researchers often develop new interventions that take significant time and resources, with little exportability. In contrast, community-serving systems are often poorly equipped to properly adopt new interventions or adapt existing ones in a data-driven way during crises’ onset and escalation. This results in significant delays in deploying evidence-based interventions (EBIs) with notable public health consequences.  

This prolonged timeline for EBI development and implementation results in significant morbidity and mortality that is costly and preventable. As public health emergencies have demonstrated (e.g., COVID-19 pandemic), the negative consequences often exacerbate existing health disparities. Implementation science has the potential to bridge the extant gap between research and practice, and enhance equity in rapid public health responses, but is underutilized. For the field to have a greater “real-world” impact, it needs to be more rapid, iterative, participatory, and work within the timeframes of community-serving systems.  

This paper focuses on rapid adaptation as a developing implementation science area to facilitate system responses during public health crises. We highlight frameworks to guide rapid adaptation for optimizing existing EBIs when responding to urgent public health issues. We also explore the economic implications of rapid adaptation. Resource limitations are frequently a central reason for implementation failure; thus, we consider the economic impacts of rapid adaptation. Finally, we provide examples and propose directions for future research and application. 

Michigan Model for Health Learning to Enhance and Adapt for Prevention: protocol for a pilot randomized trial comparing Enhanced Replicating Effective Programs versus standard implementation to deliver an evidence-based drug use prevention curriculum

Eisman A.B., Palinkas L.A., Koffkey C., Herrenkohl T.I., Abbasi U., Fridline J., Lundahl L., Kilbourne A.M. (Accepted) Michigan Model for Health Learning to Enhance and Adapt for Prevention (Mi-LEAP): protocol for a pilot randomized trial comparing Enhanced Replicating Effective Programs versus standard implementation to deliver an evidence-based drug use prevention curriculum. Pilot and Feasibility Studies.

Keywords

Implementation science
Prevention
Substance use
Adolescents

Background: School-based drug use prevention programs have demonstrated notable potential to reduce the onset and escalation of drug use, including among youth at risk of poor outcomes such as those exposed to trauma. Researchers have found a robust relationship between intervention fidelity and participant (i.e., student) outcomes. Effective implementation of evidence-based interventions, such as the Michigan Model for HealthTM (MMH), is critical to achieving desired public health objectives. Yet, a persistent gap remains in what we know works and how to effectively translate these findings into routine practice. The objective of this study is to design and test a multi-component implementation strategy to tailor MMH to meet population needs (i.e., students exposed to trauma), improve the population-context fit to enhance fidelity and effectiveness. 

Methods: Using a 2-group, mixed-method randomized controlled trial design, this study will compare standard implementation versus Enhanced Replicating Effective Programs (REP) to deliver MMH. REP is a theoretically-based implementation strategy that promotes evidence-based intervention (EBI) fidelity through a combination of EBI curriculum packaging, training, and as-needed technical assistance and is consistent with standard MMH implementation. Enhanced REP will tailor the intervention and training to integrate trauma-informed approaches and deploy customized implementation support (i.e., Facilitation). The research will address the following specific aims: 1) Design and test an implementation strategy (Enhanced REP) to deliver the MMH versus standard implementation and evaluate feasibility, acceptability, and appropriateness using mixed methods, 2) Estimate the costs and cost-effectiveness of Enhanced REP to deliver MMH versus standard implementation.

Discussion: This research will design and test a multi-component implementation strategy focused on enhancing the fit between the intervention and population needs while maintaining fidelity to MMH core functions. We focus on the feasibility of deploying the implementation strategy bundle and costing methods and preliminary information on cost input distributions. The substantive focus on youth at heightened risk of drug use and its consequences due to trauma exposure is significant because of the public health impact of prevention. Pilot studies of implementation strategies are underutilized and can provide vital information on designing and testing effective strategies by addressing potential design and methods uncertainties and the effects of the implementation strategy on implementation and student outcomes.

Cultivating Professional Identity in Design: Empathy, Creativity, Collaboration, and Seven More Cross-Disciplinary Skills

Tracey, M.W., & Baaki, J. (2022). Cultivating Professional Identity in Design: Empathy, Creativity, Collaboration, and Seven More Cross-Disciplinary Skills (1st ed.). Routledge.

Keywords

Design
Professional Identity Development 

Cultivating Professional Identity in Design is a nuanced, comprehensive companion for designers across disciplines honing their identities, self-perception, personal strengths, and essential attributes. Designers’ identities, whether rooted in education, workforce training, digital technology, arts and graphics, built environment, or other fields, are always evolving, influenced by any combination of current mindset, concrete responsibilities, team dynamics, and more. Applicable to designers of all contexts, this inspiring yet rigorous book guides practitioners and students to progress with ten key traits: empathy, uncertainty, creativity, ethics, diversity/equity/inclusion, reflection, learning, communication, collaboration, and decision-making.

Though it details a complete journey from start to finish, this book acknowledges the varying paths of designers’ roles and is structured for a flexible, highly iterative reading experience. Segments can be read individually or out of order and revisited for new insights. Specific takeaways, activities, and reflection exercises are intended to work across settings and levels of experience.

Empathy and Empathic Design for Meaningful Deliverables

Tracey, M.W. & Baaki, J. (2022). Empathy and Empathic Design for Meaningful Deliverables. Educational Technology Research and Development, DOI: 10.1007/s11423-022-10146-4

Keywords

Instructional Design
Empathic Design
Authentic Projects

With the challenges of a global pandemic, political and social unrest, and the consequences these issues bring, there is a universal call for empathy as we attempt to maneuver through this tumultuous time. For designers, this includes employing empathy and empathic design as they grapple with how to design instructional interventions for learners. Empathy is the first stage in the design thinking process, now a popular buzz word in design research and practice. It suggests that empathy results in a design that meets the audience needs. But how do we know if this is true? We teach empathy for action as a means for design students to act by producing a meaningful design deliverable. Over 15-weeks, we measured designer empathy and empathic design with 31 graduate students while they participated in authentic design projects. Results indicate that 75% of the instances of empathy were students showing sensitivity to the end-learners’ experiences and situations, 52% were directed toward identifying with end-learners’ thoughts and feelings. We provide the framework for what we believe is needed to bridge the connection of empathy, empathic design and meaningful designed deliverables.

Empowerment from what? Teacher ‘citizenship talk’ practices for migrant children in China

Yiu, L. & Yu, M. (2022). Empowerment from what? Teacher ‘citizenship talk’ practices for migrant children in China. Comparative Education.

Keywords

Empowerment
Critical Pedagogy
Teacher Practice

Drawing on two multi-site ethnographic projects in Beijing and Shanghai, we explore how teachers in both public schools and schools for migrant children have responded to state policies that restrict educational opportunities for migrant students. We argue the importance of political context in re-conceptualising empowerment by raising the question ‘empowerment from what?’ By making explicit what is normalised, we problematise the ways in which the predominant definition of empowerment has marginalised and trivialised the experiences of educators who are also engaging in powerful acts of empowerment in China. Importantly, this study sheds light on the ways in which Chinese teachers use ‘citizenship talk’ practices to engage in empowerment processes for migrant students. We contend that the value of this piece lies in pushing critical scholars to think more deeply about empowerment as socio-cultural transformation and advancing the field by generating debate on how context matters.
 

Rapid cycle adaptation of a classroom-based program to promote equity in access to youth physical activity

Hasson R.E., Eisman A.B., Wassman A., Martin S., Pugh P., Robinson L., Zernicke R., Rabaut L. (accepted) Rapid cycle adaptation of a classroom-based program to promote equity in access to youth physical activity. Translational Behavioral Medicine.

Non-Partner Polysubstance Use and Trait Mindfulness

Galano M.M., Stein S.F., Hart N., Ramirez J.I., Cunningham R.M., Walton M. A., Eisman A.B., Ngo Q.M. (accepted) Non-Partner Polysubstance Use and Trait Mindfulness, Psychology of Violence.

Keywords

Violence perpetration
Polysubstance use
Emerging adults
Mindfulness

Objective: Violence is a leading cause of death among individuals ages 18-25, with alcohol misuse consistently linked with violence perpetration. However, the association between polysubstance use and violence perpetration is less clear, despite the frequency of use of alcohol with other drugs. Additionally, protective factors such as mindfulness that may reduce violence perpetration among emerging adults have been understudied. This cross-sectional study examined the association between substance use, trait mindfulness, and violence perpetration outside of romantic relationships, utilizing a compensatory model of resilience. Methods: Data were drawn from a sample of 665 emerging adults ages 18-25, recruited from an urban Emergency Department (68% male). Participants self-administered a computer survey that assessed non-partner violence perpetration (NPV), alcohol use, marijuana use, prescription drug misuse, and trait mindfulness. Fifteen percent reported non-partner violence perpetration over the past six months. Results: Multivariate logistic regression tested associations between violence perpetration, substance use, trait mindfulness, and demographic characteristics. Results showed that alcohol use alone (OR= 3.04), prescription opioid use alone (OR = 3.58), alcohol and marijuana use (OR = 3.75), and use of all three substances (OR= 7.78) were positively associated with violence perpetration. Post-hoc contrasts demonstrated that polysubstance use significantly increased risk over single substance use. Trait mindfulness (OR= 0.97) was negatively associated with violence perpetration after controlling for substance use. Conclusions: Findings suggest that polysubstance use may increase risk for violence. Interventions that address polysubstance use, potentially including mindfulness, could reduce non-partner violence perpetration among emerging adults and requires further study.