Sandra Simpkins, Ph.D.
PROFESSOR Sandi, Ph.D. in Psychology, is a professor in the School of Education. She received the William T. Grant Young Scholars Award and National Science Foundation CAREER Award to study how families, friendships, and social position factors (such as, ethnicity and culture) shape adolescents’ organized after-school activities and STEM motivation. She is currently working on research focused on the positive outcomes of youth’s participation in activities as well as the predictors and correlates of high school students’ STEM motivational beliefs. Click here for Sandra's full curriculum vitae. |
Fuko Kiyama
DOCTORAL STUDENT Fuko is a doctoral student specializing in Human Development in Context with a graduate emphasis in Asian American Studies. Fuko's personal experience as a cross-cultural child, raised in the U.S. and Japan, has informed her interest in studying the development of ethnic-racial identity (ERI) and critical consciousness among children and youth of color. Her current work explores how culturally responsive program structures and practices within organized activities may impact youths’ ethnic-racial identity and Asian American youths’ racial identity ideological values. |
Guadalupe Rosas
DOCTORAL STUDENT Guadalupe is a doctoral student specializing in Human Development in Context. Her prior experiences working with youth as a college adviser inform her interests in researching how students (K-12, college) motivation and STEM identity are influenced by family and other social agents. In particular, students who belong to groups that have been historically marginalized in STEM. In addition, she is interested in exploring ways to support first-generation college students to and through STEM pathways. Guadalupe identifies as a first-generation college graduate and is the proud daughter of Mexican immigrants. |
Taylor Michelle Wycoff
DOCTORAL STUDENT Taylor is a doctoral student specializing in Human Development in Context. Her experience working as a teaching artist in San Diego area schools and afterschool programs, as well as working as a research and evaluation specialist for the American Camp Association, inform her interest in increasing access to and inclusion in out-of-school-time (OST) and summertime learning opportunities for historically marginalized youth. More specifically, through her research, Taylor hopes to investigate the effects of culturally responsive practices in OST and summertime programs on the development of youth from historically marginalized backgrounds. |
Glona Lee-Poon, Ph.D.
POSTDOCTORAL RESEARCH SCHOLAR Glona is a postdoctoral scholar working with Dr. Sandra Simpkins and Dr. Jacquelynne Eccles on a NSF funded project about adolescent STEM motivation, intersectionality, and families. Her research centers around understanding how social context shapes adolescent development and academic motivational beliefs. Currently, her work examines racial/ethnic and gender differences in adolescents' STEM motivation development and the role of parents and teachers as potential sources of challenge or strength. |
Hyewon Lee, Ph.D.
POSTDOCTORAL RESEARCH SCHOLAR Hyewon is a postdoctoral scholar working with Dr. Sandra Simpkins and Dr. Jacquelynne Eccles on a NSF funded project about adolescent STEM motivation, intersectionality, and families. She received her Ph.D. in Educational Psychology at the Ohio State University. Hyewon’s research focuses on unique motivational experiences in underserved and underrepresented student populations in STEM. Specifically, she explores (a) roles of social agents (parents, teachers, and peers) in motivation, engagement, and success and (b) comparison processes underlying the development of academic self-concept and identity. |