Amanda Morales

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Amanda Morales

Associate Professor

Department of Teaching, Learning & Teacher Education University of Nebraska-Lincoln

Contact

Address
CPEH 280
Lincoln NE 68588-0233
Phone
402-472-2231 On-campus 2-2231
Email
amanda.morales@unl.edu

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Summary of Research

Amanda R. Morales currently is an associate professor of critical multicultural & multilingual Education in the Department of Teaching, Learning, & Teacher Education. Dr. Morales’ research addresses issues of equity and access for minoritized students across the PK-20 education continuum. More specifically, her current work focuses on teacher diversification pathways, teacher preparation for working with (im)migrant, multilingual, and minoritized students, critical mentoring for teachers of Color (TOCs), as well as the experiences of pre-service and in-service TOCs in predominately White institutions. She has won national research awards from AACTE – the American Association of Colleges of Teacher Education, AERA – American Education Research Association, and AAHHE - the American Association of Hispanics in Higher Education Association.

Dr. Morales teaches both graduate and undergraduate courses on critical multicultural education, intercultural communication, curriculum and pedagogy, and critical and (de)colonizing theories in education. She also serves as the co-founder and advisor for the undergraduate student organization, Future Teachers of Color (FTOC) and as an advisor for the CEHS Racial Justice Alliance (RJA) student organization.

Amanda is a Latina from the rural Midwest whose research and practice builds on her experiences as a generation college student, her prior work as an assistant professor and the diversity coordinator for the College of Education at Kansas State University (KSU), and her experience as a program manager in the Center for Intercultural Multilingual Advocacy at KSU. Prior to working in higher education, Amanda was the Assistant Director of Visitor Programs at the Fort Worth Museum of Science and History in Fort Worth, Texas for 6 years where she did school, public, and community-based programming, teaching at a middle-level magnet school, and teacher professional development for the Texas Center for Inquiry. She is the author of numerous peer-reviewed journal articles, book chapters, reports, and grant proposals (earning over 3.5 million dollars in funded projects).

Education

PH.D Kansas State University (2011), Curriculum & Instruction
M.S Texas Christian University (2004), Curriculum & Instruction
B.A Kansas State University (1998), Art History
A.A Barton County Community College (1996), Graphic Design

Areas of Expertise

  • Teacher Diversification Pathways
  • Multicultural & Multilingual Education
  • Critical Mentoring
  • Teacher Preparation (Curriculum & Pedagogy)
  • Lived Experiences of Teachers of Color
  • University, School, Community, & Community College Partnerships
  • Critical Race Theory, LatCrit Theory, & Chicana Feminist Epistemologies
  • Recruitment & Retention of Underrepresented Groups in STEM
  • Educational Foundations

Honors and Recognition

  • 2022, Research-Practice Partnership (RPP) Lab Site-Leader, Selected as one of two national RPP labs by the National Center for Research on Educator Diversity (NCRED), https://uh.edu/education/research-convening/ed-diversity/
  • 2022, Educator Diversity Programmatic Advisory Committee Member, Elected by AACTE Board of Directors
  • 2022, President’s Award for Inclusive Excellence and Collaboration given to the Racial Literacy Roundtables Leadership Team, University of Nebraska https://cehs.unl.edu/racial-literacy-roundtables/
  • 2022, CEHS Outstanding Teaching Award, University of Nebraska-Lincoln
  • 2020, Early Career Scholar Award, American Educational Research Association’s (AERA) Latina/o/x Research Issues SIG
  • 2020, University Distinguished Teaching Award, University of Nebraska-Lincoln
  • 2020, Parents’ Recognition Award, UNL Parent’s Association, University of Nebraska-Lincoln
  • 2019, Certificate in Recognition of Excellence, UNL Student Advisory Board, University of Nebraska-Lincoln
  • 2019, Faculty Fellowship Award, American Association of Hispanics in Higher Education (AAHHE)
  • 2018, Research on Teacher Diversification Award, American Association of Colleges of Teacher Education
  • 2014, TRIO Achiever Award, Mid-America Association of Educational Opportunity Program Personnel (MAEOPP), National TRIO Program
  • 2013, Outstanding Dissertation Award, American Association of Colleges of Teacher Education
  • 2013, Kathryn A. Holen Excellence in Advising Award, College of Education, Kansas State University
  • 2012, Outstanding Dissertation Award, American Education Research Association
  • 2011, Outstanding Graduate Award, College of Education, Kansas State University
  • 2011, K- State Research Forum, First Place for Social Sciences, Humanities, and Education

Memberships

  • American Education Research Association (AERA)
  • Latino/a/x Research Special Interest Group (SIG) within AERA
  • American Association of Colleges of Teacher Education (AACTE)
  • Diversified Teaching Workforce Targeted Action Group (TAG) within AACTE
  • Educator Diversity Programmatic Advisory Committee within AACTE
  • National Association of Multicultural Education (NAME)