University of Indianapolis School of Education Faculty

Areas of Expertise

College Student Retention, Multicultural Education, Higher Education Policy

Background

Dr. Kuykendall graduated from the University of Arkansas at Pine Bluff with a secondary education degree (Biology). He earned his master's at Christian Brothers University in Educational Leadership and Doctorate in Higher Education Administration from Indiana University. Dr. Kuykendall has a strong background in college student success, preparing culturally relevant teachers, and preparing high school students for college. Dr. Kuykendall held faculty appointments at Marquette University, coordinating the college student affairs program and the University of Arkansas at Little Rock. He earned tenure and served as inaugural Director of the School of Education.

Dr. Kuykendall's research focuses on the following areas: College Preparation for High School Students, Culturally Relevant Teacher Preparation (Novice Teachers), High School to College Transitions for Black Males; Black Male Student Success, and Engagement. Dr. Kuykendall has presented at over 50 national conferences and has written and published in major peer-reviewed journals. In addition, he has consulted with HBCUs about increasing enrollment and boosting faculty morale. Dr. Kuykendall and his wife (Megan) have four children, Jackson, Neala, Monroe, and John IV.

Research Interests

College Preparation for High School Students, Culturally Relevant Teacher Preparation (Novice Teachers), High School to College Transitions for Black Males, Black Male Student Success, and Engagement.

Research

• Smith, Dimitra, J., Kuykendall, J. A., & Jackson, J. (2021). “Exploring community colleges' role in the success of African American women in STEM undergraduate programs at HBCUs,” International Journal of Social Policy and Education. ISSN 2689-4998 (print), ISSN 2689-5013, 42-54. https://ijspe.com/ijspe-202176/
• Smith, Dimitra, J., Kuykendall, J., & Jackson, J. (2021). “Protecting the support: The experiences of black assistant professors and diversity initiatives,” International Journal of Arts, Humanities and Social Science. ISSN 2693-2547 (print), ISSN 2693-2555 (online), 2(3), 19-27.
• Kuykendall, J.; Smith-Jackson, D.; & Jackson, J. (Eds). (in progress – release 2022). The Future of Black Leadership in Higher Education: Firsthand Experiences and Global Impact. IGI Global Publishing.
• Kuykendall, J. A., & Barrett, T. G. (2021). Growth of Innovation: Saturday Academies. Journal of College Student Retention: Research, Theory & Practice, 22(4), 627-654.
• Miller Jr. J.W., Kuykendall, J. A., & Thomas, S. (2013). Are we in this together? An analysis of the impact of individual and institutional characteristics on teacher's perceptions. The School Community Journal 23 (2), 137-160.
• Vianden, J., Kuykendall, J. A., Mock, R. E., & Korb, R. M. (2012). Exploring messages African American men receive about attending a predominantly White university. New York Journal of Student Affairs, 12(2), 23-39.
• Harper, S.R. & Kuykendall, J. A. (2012). Institutional efforts to improve Black male student achievement: A standards-based approach. Change, 44 (2), 22-26.
• Bennett, C. I., McWhorter, L.M., Kuykendall, J.A. (2006). Will I ever teach? Latino and African American Students’ Perspectives on PRAXIS I. American Educational Research Journal, 43 (3) pp. 531-575..

Education

• PhD in Higher Education Administration, Indiana University
• MS in Educational Leadership, Christian Brothers University
• BS in Secondary (Biology) Education, University of Arkansas at Pine Bluff 

Fun fact

I'm a huge college football sports fan!

Favorite thing about UIndy

Working with faculty and staff to create the best opportunities for students

Areas of Expertise

Discussion-based practices, social studies education

Background

Dr. Denney was previously a high social studies instructor and charter school administrator in Florida. She has experience creating curriculum focused on the integration of contemporary art into the social studies and providing associated professional development. She was a Clinical Educator, providing support to student teachers in her own classroom. She is an active member of the National Council for the Social Studies and regularly present at professional conferences.

Research Interests

Developmentally responsive teaching practices, Teaching controversial issues, Discussion-based practices in secondary settings, Civic identity development

Research

• Denney, S.M. (in press) Student perceptions of support for civic identity in a discussion-based U.S. government course. The Journal of Social Studies Research.
• Cruz, B.C. & Ellerbrock, C.R., Denney, S.M., & Viera, C. (2020) The art of global education: Using socially conscious art to develop global perspectives. In J.P. Myers (Ed.), Research on teaching global issues. Charlotte, NC: Information Age Publishing, pp. 93-113.
• Watson-Canning, A., & Denney, S.M. (2020) Politically charged classroom conversations: A duoethnographic exploration of teaching in a swing state. In T.K. Flint & N. Keefer (Eds.), Critical perspectives on teaching in the southern United States. Lanham, MD: Lexington Books, pp. 111-123.

Education

• PhD, Curriculum & Instruction, University of South Florida
• MAT with a focus on Social Science Education, University of South Florida
• BS in Psychology, University of Florida

Fun fact

I have 26 first cousins and 6 of us are educators!

Favorite thing about UIndy

Collaborative and supportive colleagues

Areas of Expertise

Elementary education, literacy education, multilingual learners

Background

Dr. Deppe had over 20 years of elementary classroom experience, including teaching multilingual learners in a linguistically diverse school setting, before moving into higher education as an assistant professor of education.

Research Interests

Literacy in all its dimensions–from access to quality children’s literature, to effective instruction, interventions, assessment and ongoing support in the science of reading; multilingual learners and the integration of translanguaging practices in the elementary classroom

Education

• EdD in Literacy, Culture, and Language Education, Indiana University–Bloomington

• Masters in Business Administration and Educational Leadership (MBAE), University of Indianapolis

• BS in Elementary Education, Indiana University-Bloomington

Fun fact

I have a strong passion for travel. My family and I have visited all 50 states, and I have personally explored four of the seven continents. I am continually planning new adventures and enjoy sharing our unique travel experiences with others.

Favorite thing about UIndy

One of the aspects I value most about UIndy is the small class sizes. They allow us to build meaningful connections with our students, which better equips us to understand their needs and provide the support necessary for their success.

Areas of Expertise

Literacy Education

Background

Dr. Johnson had extensive experience teaching elementary school as a classroom teacher, intervention specialist, and reading and literacy specialist before moving into higher education.

Research Interests

Literacy education, word-solving development in early readers, scaffolding for student learning

Research

• Rodgers, E.M., D’Agostino, J.V., & Berenbon, R., Johnson, T. & Winkler, C. (2021). Scoring Running Records: Complexities and affordances, Journal of Early Childhood Literacy.
• D’Agostino, J. V., Rodgers, E., Winkler, C., Johnson, T., & Berenbon, R. (2021). The generalizability of Running Record accuracy and self-correction scores. Reading Psychology, 42(2), 111-130. DOI: 10.1080/02702711.2021.1880177
• Johnson, T., Mikida, C., Rodgers, E. & D’Agostino, J. V. (2020). Scaffolding self-correction during oral reading. The Reading Teacher, 73(6), 796-799.

Education

• BS in Elementary and Special Education from University of Dayton
• M.Ed. in Reading Specialist from Xavier University
• Completing PhD in Reading and Literacy in Early and Middle Childhood from The Ohio State University 

Fun fact

I have an identical twin sister. I love reading (surprise!) and being active outside. I also enjoy musical theater.

Favorite thing about UIndy

I appreciate the willingness to try new things!

Areas of Expertise

Second Language Acquisition

Background

Dr. Reinhardt was a classroom teacher at the middle and high school level for Spanish. She has 10+ years in higher education serving in a variety of roles, including School & Field Liaison, Secondary Coordinator, and Director of the Clinical Partnership Academy. 

Research Interests

Preparing pre-service teachers to meet the needs to English Language learners in the K-12 general education classroom; service learning and community engagement

Education

• EdD in Literacy, Culture and Language Education, Indiana University (in progress)
• Masters in Sociology, University of Indianapolis
• MA in Teaching Spanish, IUPUI
• BA in Journalism and Spanish, Butler University

Fun fact

I love to bake pie.

Favorite thing about UIndy

The students, of course. They rock!

Areas of Expertise

STEM curriculum & pedagogy, emotional and behavior disorders, & education leadership,

Background

Dr. Somers has over 25 years of experience as a special education teacher, principal and director of child psychiatric services. He was recognized by Indiana Council for Exceptional Children as Special Education Professor of the Year in 2012.

Research Interests

Comprehensive School Counseling; STEM & students with exceptionalities; Use of Simulations & Case Studies in higher education

Research Publications

• Somers, J (2020, spring). Using a Questioning Technique to Promote and Assess Mathematical Inquiry. ICTM Journal.
• Somers, J. (2020) Using a Question Formulation Technique (QFT) to Promote Mathematical Inquiry, to the Association of Mathematics Teacher Educators (AMTE) TECH TALK Blog.
• Somers, J., Zhang, G., & Aiming-Attai, R. (2018). Using a Video-based Learning Community to Support Math Instruction of Elementary Education Pre-service Teachers. eCampus News, March 2018. Retrieved from eCampusNews. 

Education

• EdD, Curriculum & Instruction and School Administration, Indiana University

Fun fact

I live in a log cabin with two wood stoves as the primary source of heat, no city water and no land-based internet or cable television!

Favorite thing about UIndy

Exceptional students!

Areas of Expertise

Emotional/behavioral disorders, autism spectrum disorder, special education curriculum, ableism, Universal Design for Learning

Background

My name is Dr. Sarah Wareham started my career in K-12 Education almost 20 years ago!  Wait, what?!  That seems like so long ago, but I carry all of those years of teaching with me into this role as a faculty member. I was a Kindergarten to 2nd Grade Special Education Inclusion Teacher for 8 years. During my time in K-2, I worked with a lot of students on the Autism spectrum and become a sort of "expert" in my little slice of the world.

I love the problem-solving process that comes with working with students on the spectrum and built my repertoire of skills teaching this population of students. Because of this, I was asked to serve my school district as Lead Teacher and Program Director for the Connections Classroom. This classroom was unique in that we pulled together students with autism from across our District who were under performing in their homeschools in order to figure out which best practices addressed the performance gap we were seeing. Leading this program was both energizing and exhausting, as most teaching is!  It was my greatest privilege to work with these students and their families for two years. I ended up handing the program off to another teacher, so I could work more broadly across my school District and the State as an Autism Consultant, and later a Behavior Specialist.

Leaving the classroom and those student and family relationships was hard, but I maintained close connections with teachers who welcomed me into their classrooms to soak in time with their students. I created new relationships during this time that I still hold dear today.  In this role, I enjoyed working across multiple stakeholder groups, including UIndy, and once I'd gotten my PhD I had my heart set on moving into higher education and becoming a professor.  The promise of shaping the next generation of teachers, letting them learn from my mistakes, failures, and successes sounded amazing. And it has been!

I joined the University of Indianapolis School of Education Faculty as an Assistant Professor in 2019.  I've learned so much about myself and the profession of education while working here. My colleagues are great mentors and friends, helping me along the way to develop my research agenda and find my place in this world! My students are exceptional and I value every opportunity I have to learn from them and support them in their journey to find their place in this world, too! Teaching at UIndy allows me to focus on what I love, teaching! Building relationships with students and faculty across campus allows me to pursue many different areas of interest. I'm still building my research agenda because it's hard for me to choose an area of study.

Currently, I'm interested in retention, graduation, and placement of teacher candidates from underrepresented populations, mutually beneficial partnerships with K-12, and Universal Design for Learning on our college campus. These topic vary widely, but the theme that connects them is an emphasis on student engagement and learning.

Research Interests

Depends on the day!

Education

• PhD, Educational Leadership, Indiana State University
• MA, Special Education, Indiana University
• BA, Elementary Education, Hanover College

Fun fact

I live in a multi-generational household with my husband, son, and my father-in-law. I love that my son is so close with my father-in-law. We have a lot of fun and make the best of our situation by sharing household responsibilities. It's a great life!

Favorite thing about UIndy

My favorite thing about UIndy is that you are encouraged to pursue your passions. Faculty and students alike are encouraged to speak up on topics that are important to them and are offered opportunities to affect change on campus and in our community.

Areas of Expertise

educational technology, educational psychology, globalization and education, literacy instruction

Background

Dr. Zhang's research focuses on using technologies to construct meaningful learning environments, the impact of globalization on education, and using technology to facilitate language learning. Her work has appeared in Asia Pacific Journal of Education, EDUCAUSE Review, Journal of Early Childhood Teacher Education and On the Horizon. She was recently awarded an Innovator Grant to work with teacher candidates and prepare them to teach effectively with iPads in K-12 classrooms.

Research Interests

technology integration, language learning, globalization and education, educational reforms and policies

Education

• PhD, Educational Psychology and Educational Technology, Michigan State University
• MA, Literacy Instruction with specialization in Second Language Acquisition, Michigan State University

Fun Fact

I speak Mandarin Chinese and English.

Favorite Thing About UIndy

The people