Research

Overview

New grants

Nathaniel von der Embse

#^Chan, M., Izumi, J., & von der Embse, N.P. (2024-2025). Co-PI: Chum, Mei-ki (Maggie), Utah State University, Co-PI: Jared Izumi, Chapman University. Unveiling Rater Bias in Social-Emotional and Behavioral Screening with Cognitive Interviews. ($19,947.00). Society for the Study of School Psychology Early Career Research Award. Role: Project Mentor. 

^von der Embse, N.P., Christensen, K., & Kilgus, S. (2024-2027). Utilizing discrete event simulation to improve the use of research and inform school mental health services. ($1,000,000). William T Grant Foundation. Role: Principal Investigator.
      
^von der Embse, N.P., Eklund. K., Anthony, J., Kilgus, S., & Fox, L. (2024-2028; Scored: 1.57). Development and validation of an Emotional and Behavioral Assessment System for Early Childhood Populations. ($1,999,000). US Department of Education, Institute of Education Sciences, Measurement competition. Role: Principal Investigator.   

Kilgus, S.P., von der Embse, N.P., Bruhn, A., Dowdy, E., Garbacz, A., Eklund, K., Furlong, M., Dart, E., & Suldo, S. (2023-2028). Mental Health Evaluation, Training, Research, and Innovation Center for Schools (METRICS). ($10,399,000). Office of Elementary and Secondary Education: Safe & Supportive Schools: Mental Health Personnel Technical Assistance Center. Role: Co-Principal Investigator.

Mandie Dunn received a grant of $20,000 from The USF Office of Research and Innovation for "Challenges Faced and Supports Needed: Sustaining Teachers and Their Teaching Following a Miscarriage" through April 2025. 

This study uses questionnaire and in-depth interviews with K-12 teachers across the United States who taught following a miscarriage. The study identifies challenges teachers face and supports that teachers found helpful. 

Marie Byrd serves as a co-pi on a $2,600,000 U. S. Department of Education Grant entitled "Bill of Writes Storytellers. Florida Center for Partnerships in Arts Integrated Teaching" with Dr. Denise Davis Cotton as PI through September 30, 2026. 

The Bill of Writes Storytellers project reframes teaching and learning. This project serves as the keystone for a national partnership network. The BOWS will engage 12 teaching artists, 24 classroom teachers, 4 research mentors, and 20 Community Hub members, which include school leaders, community stakeholders, parents, students, and teachers, with a direct impact on 4,000 students across 12 schools in the United States. 

Bill Campbell received a research donation of $6,000 from Legion Athletics in 2023.
Bill Campbell Received a research donation of $10,000 from Renaissance Periodization in 2024. Bill Campbell received a research donation of $6,000 from Legion Athletics in 2024.

Research donations from Legion Athletics were intended to be used at the researcher's direction to support all research related expenses. Research donations from Renaissance Periodization were intended to be used at the researcher's direction to support all research related expenses.

Terry Osborn: 2023-2027, Principal Investigator, Project Parasol: ESOL Paraprofessional to Teacher Pipeline. National Professional Development Program, Office of English Language Acquisition, U.S. Department of Education. Amount awarded: $2,061,703.

The initiative, titled “Project Parasol: English Speakers of Other Languages Paraprofessional to Teacher Pipeline,” will increase the number of highly qualified bilingual teachers in the district, which serves more than 52,000 students across 65 schools, by providing paraprofessionals with a viable pathway to a postsecondary education.  

Ye Shen, 2024-2026; AERA-NSF Research Grant. Role: Principal Investigator (PI). $35,00; American Educational Research Association and National Science Foundation; The Unique and Overlapping Contributions of Neurobiological Reading and Math Networks to Academic Achievement

Ye Shen, 2024-2026; Language Learning Early Career Research Grant. Role: PI. $10,000; Language Learning Journal; Unraveling the Influence of Chinese Character Writing versus Pinyin Typing on Word Reading for Chinese Heritage Language Learners

Dukes III, L.L. Principal investigator. UMatter: An inclusive postsecondary education program for students with intellectual disability at USF. Funded: $1,500,000 / 3 years. Florida Center for Students with Unique Abilities / State of Florida. 2024-2027.

Madaus, J., Dukes III, L.L., Faggella-Luby, M., & Gelbar, N. Co-Principal Investigator, Planning grant: Strategic Partnerships for Inclusive Disability Education and Research (SPIDER) Center. Funded: $317,000 / year

The SPIDER Center mission is to provide a holistic research framework, offering professional development on ethical research practices, and providing personalized technical assistance. Additionally, the Center will serve as a resource hub, equip international stakeholders with research tools, and promote knowledge dissemination through professional literature and interdisciplinary collaboration.

The Eileen Hoffman Hafer UMatter Program at USF empowers students with intellectual disabilities through a fully integrated college experience that promotes academic achievement, personal growth, social engagement, and career readiness. The program provides access to coursework, internships, campus life, and employment opportunities, helping students develop skills and networks for competitive employment and meaningful community participation.

Bo Pei receive a grant of $32,000 from the Learning Engineering Virtual Institute (LEVI), in a subcontract from University of Florida for "ALTER-Math : AI-augmented Learning by Teaching to Enhance and Renovate Math Learning" from 12/01/2023 to 07/31/2024.

This project is about creating effective and scalable AI-augmented teachable agents using large language models (LLMs) and state-of-the-art AI technologies. These innovative teachable agents are grounded within a learning-by-teaching (LT) framework, transforming students’ roles from passive learners to proactive teachers. These teachable agents are further orchestrated with multiple learning sciences strategies to engage, motivate, and facilitate students’ math learning.

Bo Pei received a grant of $3,000 from the NSF I-Corps at the University of South Florida, for "TutoringGPT: Elevating Equitable and Personalized Experiences in Online Learning" from 3/26/24 to 9/30/22024.

Bo Pei received a grant of $3,000 from the NSF I-Corps at the University of South Florida, for "Eq-Math: Advancing Equitable and Personalized Math Learning Experience" through January 2025.

The ALTER-Math is creating effective and scalable AI-augmented teachable agents using large language models (LLMs) and state-of-the-art AI technologies. These innovative teachable agents are grounded within a learning-by-teaching (LT) framework, transforming students’ roles from passive learners to proactive teachers. These teachable agents are further orchestrated with multiple learning sciences strategies to engage, motivate, and facilitate students’ math learning.

The Project TutoringGPT is primarily built as a personalized tutor for each student, aiming to transform the often-unstructured learning processes into an intuitive system centered around learning-relevant queries. By converting natural language queries into analytical instructions, it enables automatic and transparent retrieval and analysis of data within LMSs to provide students with more personalized, responsive, and effective educational experiences. 

The Project Eq-Math aims to promote equal math learning opportunity by leveraging innovations in artificial intelligence (AI) to create a virtual, interactive learning environment that offers personalized guidance and feedback tailored to students' cultural and academic backgrounds. This project integrates various AI models and data visualization strategies into a unified platform to enhance the learning experience, support equitable math education, and ultimately cultivate a diverse, innovative, and socially conscious workforce.

Haley Ault (PI) received a grant of $4,500 from the Association for Assessment and Research in Counseling for "A Mixed-Method Analysis of School Counselors Supporting the Reentry of Youth in the Juvenile Justice System."

The award titled, "A Mixed-Method Analysis of School Counselors Supporting the Reentry of Youth in the Juvenile Justice System," was awarded through AARC's Sponsored Scholarship program. Dr. Ault and Co-PI Dr. Alex Cammarano (University of North Carolina at Greensboro) will conduct an exploratory qualitative analysis of school counselors' experiences with supporting youth in the juvenile justice system. These findings will be used to adapt a previously implemented training intervention on school reentry to include specific applications for juvenile justice youth. The purpose of the study is to examine the effectiveness of the newly revised training intervention on school counselors' self-efficacy, competence, and bias in working with this population.

Lisa Lopez received a contract of $150,000 from the Early Learning Coalition of Miami-Dade/ Monroe for "Developing a dual language learning multi-session course for Early Childhood Educators" through April 30, 2025.

Lisa Lopez received a grant of $546,262 from the Institute of Education Sciences for "Exploring Heterogeneity Among the U.S. Latino Dual Language Learner
Head Start Population: A Secondary Data Analysis" through July 31, 2024.

Dr. Lopez is working in partnership with the Early Learning Coalition of Miami-Dade/ Monroe to develop a professional development course centered on the key concepts of her book (co-authored with Mariela Páez), "Teaching Dual Language Learners: What Early Childhood Educators Need to Know". The course will be distributed online to early childhood teachers through the Early Learning Coalition's Professional Development Institute. 

Dr. López received funding from IES to conduct secondary data analysis of a dataset collected with grant funding from the Administration of Children and Families. Data was analyzed using latent profile analysis and latent transition analysis to determine the heterogeneity of Spanish-English bilingual learners who attended Head Start programs in South and Central counties within Florida and the home and school characteristics related to the differing profiles. Profiles include academic and social-emotional outcomes at the end of preschool and longitudinally through the end of kindergarten. 

Molly Hamm-Rodríguez received a grant of $39,720 from the U.S. Department of State (Co-PI, Dina Martinez Tyson) for “Strengthening U.S.-Dominican Republic Academic Partnerships: Collaborative Capacity Building to Address Global Challenges through Interdisciplinary Education and Research” through June 30, 2026.

This grant strengthens academic partnerships between USF and institutions of higher education in the Dominican Republic, focusing on capacity building to address global challenges through interdisciplinary education and research. The project focuses on building a long-term collaborative plan for (1) global virtual exchange, (2) joint research, (3) student/faculty mobility, and (4) capacity building and training organized around a mutually agreed upon global challenge (e.g., migration, climate change, social inequality, human rights).

Molly Hamm-Rodríguez received an internal award of $14,962 from the USF College of Public Health (Co-PIs, Dina Martinez Tyson, Kiran Jayaram) for “Building New Partnerships and Community Engaged Research Capacity in the Dominican Republic” through November 2025.

This award facilitates Community Engaged Research (CEnR) in the Dominican Republic by building new research collaborations with universities, grassroots organizations, and non-governmental organizations; delivering a workshop in CEnR methods; and conducting a community assessment to enhance research capacity among participating university students.

Molly Hamm-Rodríguez received a grant of $10,000 from the City University of New York (CUNY) Dominican Studies Institute for “Legacies of Educational Activism and Current Educational Conditions for Dominican Students in Tampa and Orlando” through June 2025.

This research fellowship supports the efforts of the Dominican Studies Institute to document the educational achievements and socio-economic conditions of the Dominican population in the U.S., extending its archive to geographic regions of increased importance in the United States, such as Tampa and Orlando, through archival research and oral histories. 

Molly Hamm-Rodríguez received a grant of $2,000 from the David C. Anchin Center for the Advancement of Teaching and Bank of America (with Lauren Braunstein, Vanessa Vega) for “Culturally and Linguistically Sustaining Pedagogies for Bilingual Program Teachers in Hillsborough County” through April 2024.

This grant facilitated collaboration with the World Languages Department at Hillsborough County Public Schools (HCPS) to provide in-service professional development to 35 teachers from 13 elementary schools that offer dual language and Spanish immersion programs. This mini-grant funded a 3-hour workshop on culturally and linguistically sustaining pedagogies to foster student bilingualism, biliteracy, biculturalism, and critical consciousness.

Molly Hamm-Rodríguez received a faculty research mentorship award of $2,000 from the USF Office of High Impact Practices and Undergraduate Research (Co-PI, Kiran Jayaram) for “A Forgotten Chapter in the History of Anthropology of Education: the AAREA (Alliance for Applied Research in Education and Anthropology) at USF“ through December 2024.

This award supported four USF undergraduate students to conduct oral history research to develop an understanding of how the Alliance for Applied Research in Education and Anthropology (AAREA) at USF contributed to the subdiscipline of educational anthropology and to the educational policy landscape of Florida. This project coincides with the 50th anniversary of the USF Applied Anthropology graduate program and the American Anthropological Association’s annual conference to be held in Tampa.

Ruthmae Sears and her team of fellow USF faculty received a grant of $3 million from the National Science Foundation (NSF) Robert Noyce Teacher Scholarship Program for the project cited here:

Sears, R., Potter, R. Castellanos, A., Arthur, S., & Jackson, B. (2024). Mechatronics Integrated into STEM Teaching for Transformative Inclusive Communities (MISTTIC). National Science Foundation Robert Noyce Teacher Scholarship Program. Grant number 2344964.

The MISTTIC Project supports two cohorts of Master Teaching Fellows (MTFs) to earn a master’s degree from USF COEDU in either Mathematics Education or Science Education while simultaneously training for and earning credentialing in Mechatronics education. The project is designed to train and prepare MTFs to become leaders in their schools and after-school communities to 1) foster a collaborative venture between the university, community partners, and the school district to amplify STEM-focused initiatives in secondary classrooms; 2) increase the number of students that are exposed to mechatronics and STEM pathways based on the opportunity to engage in relevant activities; 3) provide an exemplar model to support teachers leaders who can advance the integration of mechatronics within the curriculum; and 4) disseminate results that document how the MTFs plan and enact culturally responsive tasks. The MISTTIC project will help prepare teachers to support students in developing critical thinking skills and to meet the STEM college programs and workforce demands through specialized training in mechatronics. This project is made possible through a collaboration between USF College of Education, USF College of Arts & Sciences, USF College of Engineering and in partnership with Hillsborough County Public Schools as well as community member including AMRoC FabLab, Scoutlier, Florida High Tech Corridor, Gentlemen’s Quest, and others.

Elizabeth Hadley received a grant of $650,000 from the National Science Foundation for "Using sensing technology and automated speech recognition to capture teacher language interactions in diverse pre-k classrooms" through August 1, 2027.

This project will use innovative new technology to automatically analyze conversations between teachers and children in preschool classrooms. The aim of this study is to identify how often teachers have responsive conversations with children, and to examine whether all children have equitable opportunities to engage in these conversations.

Lauren Evanovich (Co-PI) in collaboration with Dr. Stephanie Martinez (Co-PI, USF CBCS CFS)received a grant of $1,699,071 from Education Innovation and Research in a subcontract from the University of Oregon for "Freshmen Success: Implementation of Comprehensive Universal Supports for School Engagement" through December 31, 2027. 

The Freshmen Success: Implementation of Comprehensive Universal Supports for School Engagement is a fully developed curriculum model designed to improve the transition and engagement of all freshmen in high school, thereby increasing student achievement and high school completion. Freshmen Success provides a universal level of support for freshmen that includes: a) implementing a leadership team who uses data-based decision making to guide implementation, b) explicitly teaching and reinforcing a common set of knowledge and skills related to increasing student engagement to all freshmen, and c) providing all freshmen with a universal level of peer support.

Lauren Evanovich received a grant of $63,745 from the US Department of Education (IES), in a subcontract from The University of Wisconsin-Madison, for "Promoting Family-School Collaboration in Positive Behavioral Interventions and Supports" through June 30, 2027.

The purpose of the Promoting Family-School Collaboration in Positive Behavioral Interventions and Supports (FSC-PBIS) study is to collaborate with families, educators and other key stakeholders to further develop, refine and pilot test the FSC-PBIS intervention.

AnnMarie Gunn & Susan Bennett received a grant of $24, 683 from the Florida Hight Tech Corridor and USF Research and Innovation.. Funding will provide support to build a robust curriculum focusing on reading achievement and socioemotional development for early childhood. (2024-2025)

AnnMarie Gunn & Susan Bennett received a grant from Anchin Center Bank of America.. This funding supports the research and development of teaching cases to be used in teacher education (2023-2024)

Alexandra Panos received a grant of $50,000 from the Spencer Foundation Small Grants program for the "Stories-to-live-by: Literacy Teaching for the Climate in Florida" participatory project with educators across the state beginning June 2024 and running through summer 2025.

This participatory practitioner inquiry is designed to center and be guided by K-12 literacy and English Language Arts educators as they individually and collectively seek to bring the climate crisis to their unique literacy teaching and learning contexts.

Jose Castillo received 11 grants totaling approximately $22 million from the Florida Department of Education to support the implementation and evaluation of federal and state education policies. These grants were awarded for July 1, 2023 through June 30, 2024.

Jose Castillo received 13 grants totaling approximately $24 million from the Florida Department of Education to support the implementation and evaluation of federal and state education policies. These grants were awarded for July 1, 2024 through June 30, 2025.

The grants from the Florida Department of Education support various federal and state policies designed to support practices and services to improve outcomes for students. Examples include providing training, technical assistance, and support to schools and districts on evidence-based practices included in educational policy (e.g., implementing multi-tiered system of supports, using assistive technology to improve outcomes for students with disabilities, improving literacy instruction). 

Ann Cranston-Gingras received a grant of $2,374,796 from the United States Department of Education for "The College Assistance Migrant Program" (CAMP) through June 30, 2029.

The College Assistance Migrant Program (CAMP) provides support for eligible participants from migrant and seasonal farmworker backgrounds in completing their first year of college and transitioning to complete their bachelor’s degree.

Ilene Berson and Michael Berson received a grant of $75,000 from the Library of Congress for “Scaffolding Historical Inquiry for Preschoolers: School & Home Active Play-Based Explorations (SHIP-SHAPE)” through September 30, 2025.

Ilene Berson and Michael Berson serve as Members of the Leadership Team and Steering Committee for a grant of $99,604 from the Library of Congress for “Empowering Young Delaware Citizens: Inquiry-Based Explorations” through September 30, 2025.

Ilene Berson and Michael Berson serve as Members of the Leadership Team and Steering Committee for a grant of $58,405 from the Library of Congress for “Transformative Teaching Initiative: Leveraging Library of Congress and Teaching with Primary Sources for Enhanced Inquiry in Preservice Teacher Education” through September 30, 2025.

Ilene Berson and Michael Berson are Co-PIs on a grant of $60.417 from the Library of Congress for “KidCitizen: Expandable Mobile and Online Apps for Elementary grades on Congress and Civic Participation” through September 30, 2024.

Ilene Berson and Michael Berson received a grant of $84,969 from the Library of Congress for “Scaffolding Historical Inquiry for Preschoolers: School & Home Active Play-Based Explorations (SHIP-SHAPE)” through September 30, 2024.

Michael Berson is a Co-PI on a grant of $2,990,460 from the National Science Foundation DRL-Discovery Research K-12 NSF# 2010256 for "Reaching across the hallway: An interdisciplinary approach to teaching computer science in rural schools" through June 30, 2025. Ilene Berson serves as an advisor on the grant.

Information on the SHIP-SHAPE project can be found at https://tampabayhistorycenter.org/ship-shape/

Information on the NSF Reaching Across the Hallway grant can be found at https://www.usf.edu/education/about-us/news/2020/research-project-computer-science-middle-school-history.aspx

Information the Library of Congress KidCitizen grant can be found at https://www.usf.edu/education/news/2021/usf-research-team-library-of-congress-grant-visual-literacy-historical-inquiry-children.aspx

Susan Bennett

USF Research and Innovation and Florida High Tech Corridor Early-Stage Innovation Fund. Social Emotional Curriculum Development for Early Childhood. 
Gunn, A. A., & Bennett, S. V. (2024-25)- $25,000 Funded 
This funding supports us in building a robust curriculum that schools and afterschool centers can use to increase students’ vocabulary and students’ social and emotional learning. 
 
USF Graduate Student Research Collaboration Award. Mitigating Summer Slide in Our Community Graduate Student Research Collaboration.  
Bennett, S. V., Gunn, A. A., McConnaughy, E., & Stemme, M. L. (2024-2026)- $22,000 Funded 
This funding supports collaborative research with two literacy professors and two doctoral students. They will share the role with us as Co-PIs and conduct research projects in the community. 
 
LRA’s More Than a Conference Initiative. Culturally Sustaining Literacy Pedagogy Ongoing Meetings.  
Savitz, R.S., Cantrell, S., Walker-Dalhouse, D., Paulick, J., Ross, T., Lozano, D., Field, S.A., Lazar, A.M., & Bennett, S. V. (2023)- $750 Funded. 
This funding supported a webinar series to share culturally sustaining literacy pedagogy, connecting theory, research, and teachers’ classroom practices. 
 
Anchin Center Bank of America Mini-Grant. Teaching Cases for Teacher Education.  
Gunn, A.A & Bennett, S.V. (2023-2024) -$2000 
This funding supports the research and development of teaching cases for use in teacher education. 
 
PwC Reimagine Grant. PAL CENTER [For Play Program: Partners in Literacy Advocacy for Youth Summer Enrichment Program].  
Robb, H., Gunn, A.A., Bennett, S.V., Co-PI. (2023-2024)- $25,000 (Grant to the Police Athletic League of St. Petersburg). Funded.  
This funding supports the development and implementation of a robust literacy program that incorporates STEM-related literacy, learning tools, instruction and materials, and it encourages cross-curricular connections and research.  
  
Tampa Bay Rays Racial Equity Grant. PAL CENTER [For Play Program: Partners in Literacy Advocacy for Youth Summer Enrichment Program].  
Robb, H., Bennett, S.V. Co-PI, Gunn, A.A. Co-PI. (2023-2024)- $20,000 (Grant to the Police Athletic League of St. Petersburg). Funded.  
This funding supports children’s literacy programming and instruction during an out of school time summer program. 
 
Office of Community Oriented Policing Services Community Policing Development Microgrants. PAL CENTER [For Play Program: Partners in Literacy Advocacy for Youth].  
McGee, M., Robb, H., Bennett, S.V., Gunn, A.A. Co-PI. (2023)- $67,983.36 (Microgrant to the   
Police Athletic League). Funded.  
This funding is supporting children’s additional literacy programming during out of school time to help them learn to read on grade level. 

Dr. Glenn Smith & Dr. Metin Besalti, $31,200, Turkish Government, Developing Scientific Argumentation Skills with an AI-based Serious Game: Saboteur

This supports Dr. Besalti as a Post-doctoral Scholar, fall 2024 & spring 2024. We will examine the impact of an AI-based serious game on high school students' scientific argumentation and critical reading skills, and their learning experiences while playing the AI-based multiplayer discussion game. This project also allows teachers to upload a short text from their class, and in minutes automatically create a multiplayer game that playfully engages students in reading and critical discussion of texts. 

Kathy Bradley-Klug received a grant of $10,000 from the Florida High Tech Corridor for "Educational Research in the Classroom & Beyond:  The College of Education Undergraduate Summer Research Academy" through July 2024.

The program is designed to prepare undergraduate students to use research to inform their teaching or to apply for graduate programs. The program combines a structured undergraduate research training with faculty mentorship.  Ten students received a $1,000 stipend each upon successful completion of the Academy.

Jolyn Blank received a $50,000 grant from the Caplan Foundation for Early Childhood for "Play Studio for Teachers" funded through spring 2026. 

This project addresses the need for greater understanding of the relationship between play and teaching by designing a professional learning program and documenting teachers’ guided play practices in action. These representations of practice will be made available on a website that will provide early childhood educators with opportunities to develop skilled ways of observing and interpreting dramatic play and deepen their understanding of play pedagogy as professional practice. 

Sophia Han received a grant of $138,360 from the Brady Education Foundation, in a subcontract from Kennesaw State University, for “Resisting Asian American Racism: Empowering Korean American Families through the F2F Suda Program” through September 30, 2026.

Sophia Han emphasized that this research is building upon a culturally responsive/sustaining and strength-based approach called Suda as a unique Korean cultural practice to support and empower Korean American families through the F2F Suda Program. This research is intended to support Korean American families in promoting healthy identity development of their children and addressing the issues of race and racism. It also seeks to empower agencies and open discussions for other racial-ethnic minoritized groups of children and their families in the United States.

Sarah van Ingen Lauer received a grant of $471,966 from the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation for "FOCUS Cadre Learning Partner" through June 19, 2025. 

A multi-disciplinary USF team (Sarah van Ingen Lauer, Dave Scanga, Jolyn Blank, Robert Dedrick, Lilian Rodriguez-Campos, Kelly Navas, Katherine Nash, Alfredo Rodriguez Vera)is focused on forming research-practice partnerships to improve elementary mathematics teaching.