Gladys L. Benerd School of Education

Ronald Hallett

Education:

2009                PhD, Urban Education Reform
                          University of Southern California

2003                MA, Teaching Students with Special Needs
                          The George Washington University

1999                BA, Communication Studies
                          University of Nebraska

My research interests include the influence of social context on educational participation and achievement. As a sociologist, my research seeks to address the social inequalities that influence marginalized student populations. I am interested in action based research that can be used by practitioners, policymakers and researchers.

Broadly speaking, I consider the educational process a continuum from preschool through graduate school. My current research interests fall into three areas: (1) how mobility influences educational participation for homeless and foster youth; (2) the process of transitioning to higher education for underserved student groups; and, (3) how to teach writing in graduate school.

Additionally, I work with educational leaders and administrators to reconsider how the students' family, friends, neighborhood and broader social context influence their ability to navigate the educational process.

Prior to joining the faculty at Pacific, I conducted research at the Center for Higher Education Policy Analysis at the University of Southern California. My work has been published in several research and practitioner journals, including College and University, Metropolitan Universities, and Critical Studies Cultural Methodologies.