The AAREA research team is comprised of full time researchers as well as graduate students with academic backgrounds in areas of anthropology, education, industrial psychology, sociology, and statistics. The biosketches of AAREA researchers can by assessed can be clicking on their names below.

Please note that Adobe Acrobat Reader is required to view and print PDF files.

Dr. Kathryn Borman is Professor of Anthropology and is affiliated with the Alliance for Applied Research in Education and Anthropology in the Department of Anthropology at the University of South Florida. She received her doctorate in the Sociology of Education from the University of Minnesota in 1976, and has extensive experience in educational reform and policy as well as evaluation studies. She served as Principal Investigator of the NSF Project, Assessing the Impact of the National Science Foundation Urban Systemic Initiative, in which researchers

Most recently Dr. Borman and her colleagues are engaged in two projects: the US Department of Education-supported National Evaluation of Comprehensive School Reform project (with American Institutes for Research and NORC) and an NSF-supported project investigating careers outcomes for youth entitled Understanding Factors that Sustain Science. Technology, Engineering and Mathematics Career Pathways.

Members of the Alliance lead by Dr. Borman are embarked upon a new four year US DOE-funded project entitled Replication and Outcomes of the Teaching SMART® Program in Elementary Science Classrooms involving a number of schools in a randomized experimental design with controls to assess the efficacy of the Teaching SMART® Program. Other recent projects include: consultant to the U. S. Department of Education and National School to Work Office, and Co-Principal Investigator of the NSF project, Addressing National Needs for Skilled Technical Graduates.

Dr. Borman has authored or edited more than 20 books, book chapters and series in areas involving educational policy and reform, and enjoys traveling extensively giving presentations on those topics. She has been a past editor of several journals over the last two decades including the American Educational Research Association journal, Review of Educational Research and she is the founding editor of both Educational Foundations and the International Journal of Educational Policy Research and Practice as well as a member of several editorial boards. Additionally, she has been involved in training graduate students for research and has taught a variety of courses including anthropology and education, and methods in qualitative analysis. Dr. Borman's curriculum vitae is available as a PDF file, here.

Dr. Ted Boydston is a life-long science educator. For eighteen years, he taught high school biology, chemistry, physics, and earth science in Miami-Dade County Public Schools and held the position of science department chairperson for twelve years. During his last seven years with the Miami-Dade school district, he was a District Science Supervisor preceded by five years as a science coordinator in one of the school district's six regions.

Janelle Christensen is a legal sociologist and medical anthropologist interested the educational curriculum of medical doctors (MD’s). She is currently pursuing a dual degree in Public Health and a PhD in Applied Anthropology. Janelle received her B.A. in Anthropology from UC Santa Barbara and her M.A. at the International Institute for Sociology of Law in Onati, Spain. Her research background includes an analysis of legal regulations on international medical and social programs, such as Camphill Communities. She enthusiastically joined the evaluative Teaching SMART ® project in 2006.

Bridget Cotner is an educational anthropologist and qualitative researcher pursuing a doctoral degree in the Measurement, Research and Evaluation Program in the College of Education, University of South Florida. She received her B.A. in Anthropology from Ball State University in 1998, and her M.A. in Applied Anthropology from the University of South Florida in 2001. Bridget is the project director of the randomized control trial, Replication and Outcomes of the Teaching SMART® Program in Elementary Science Classrooms.

Diane Cotsirilos is a senior at the University of South Florida. She is working on dual majors in Anthropology and American Studies. She is currently working on the Teaching S.M.A.R.T. project as a field research assistant. She intends to pursue a Master's degree in American Studies after graduation.

Maressa Dixon is currently a Master’s student in Applied Anthropology. She graduated with University Honors from Miami University (OH) in 2006, receiving B.A.s in Anthropology and Black World Studies. Maressa works as a graduate research assistant on AAREA’s Replication and Outcomes of the Teaching SMART Program in Elementary Science Classrooms project. Her thesis research focuses on public education and activism in African American communities in the Tampa Bay area.

Julia Fraser is a senior at USF; majoring in Anthropology. She is currently working as an undergraduate assistant for the NSF grant funded project entitled "Effects of College Degree Program Culture on Female and Minority Students' STEM Participation". Julia was accepted into the Anthropology Department Honors Program and intends to conduct research regarding issues of college women and their sexual health in Fall 07. After graduating, Julia intends to pursue a MPH in Health Promotion.

Rheta Lanehart is a doctoral student in Archaeology in the Department of Anthropology, University of South Florida. In addition, she is enrolled in the GIS Certificate Program in the Department of Geography. She holds a M.S.P.H. in Epidemiology from the College of Public Health, University of South Florida. Her research interests include stable isotope and lipid residue analysis on bones and pottery samples from Neolithic China.

Reginald Lee is a Ph.D. Candidate in Educational Measurement at the University of South Florida. He received a M.A. in Special Education from the University of South Florida. He has examined the impact of systemic reform on mathematics and science achievement in urban schools and studied student engagement during instructional activities (Assessing the Impact of the National Science Foundation Urban Systemic Initiative). His research interests include equity and access issues in public education with a current emphasis on high school and college course-taking

Heather Meikle is a fourth year graduate student in the Industrial/Organizational Psychology program at the University of South Florida. She graduated with Highest Honors from the University of Florida with B.S. in Psychology and a B.A. in Criminology in 2004. Currently, she is the Project Director for the NSF grant entitled "Effects of College Degree Program Culture on Female and Minority Students' STEM Participation". She has developed two quantitative measures related to this research, "Careers and Educational Experiences" investigates

Jason Miller is a Ph.D. student in the Applied Anthropology program at the University of South Florida. He received his BA in Theater Design from Seattle University and his MA in Cultural Anthropology from Western Washington University. Jason’s master’s thesis was entitled: Participating, Acting and Researching: Aspects of PAR and its Applications. He is interested in community based learning and research, specifically the relationship between Higher education, civic engagement and community collaboration.

Amy Moorer is a senior undergraduate at the University of South Florida. Currently, she is working on the Teaching SMART/ Pasco Project in AAREA. Amy has been a member of this research team since fall, 2006. Future endeavors for Amy include attending graduate school in the fall and conducting research in the area of child anti-social behaviors.

Dr. Caroline Peterson is a chiropractic physician, Ph.D. Candidate in Applied Biological Anthropology, and an Epidemiology MPH student. She will complete her PhD and MPH from the University of South Florida in 2007. Her dissertation focuses on breech presentation as an accommodation to maternal allostatic load. Caroline received her BA in anthropology from The College of William and Mary in 1989, her DC from Los Angeles College of Chiropractic in 1994. She has practiced natural family medicine in California, Oregon, and Florida for over six years with

Chrystal Smith is a Ph.D. Candidate in Applied Biological Anthropology in the Department of Anthropology, University of South Florida. She received her B.A. in Anthropology from Howard University, M.A.A. in Applied Anthropology from the University of Maryland, College Park and M.P.H. with an emphasis on Epidemiology from the University of South Florida. Chrystal is the Project leader of the evaluation study of the St. Louis Center for Inquiry in Science Teaching and Learning (CISTL). Her research interests include population genetics, the development and

Dr. Will Tyson is an Assistant Professor of Sociology and AAREA Post-Doctoral Scholar. Dr. Tyson came to AAREA in the summer of 2004 as a Post-Doctoral Scholar on a grant from the National Science Foundation Research on Learning Education program (NSF ROLE) entitled, "Understanding Factors that Sustain Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics Career Pathways."

Dr. Tyson is presently working as an editor on a manuscript, From Seed to STEM: Growing a Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics Workforce," a presentation of early research findings from the NSF ROLE project. Dr. Tyson's curriculum vitae is available as a PDF file, here

Tasha-Neisha Wilson graduated from the University of South Florida with a B.A. in Sociology, May 2007. She has worked with Dr. Borman and the AAREA research team since 2002. She is currently working on the Teaching SMART® program. Tasha organizes and inputs data into the project database. She is interested in pursuing a graduate degree in Social Work so she can work with children in the foster care system.

Hesborn Wao is a doctoral candidate in the Measurement and Evaluation program at the University of South Florida. In 1997, he received his B.Ed. degree at the University of Nairobi (Kenya) and taught high school Mathematics and Accounting for three years before joining USF where he graduated with a M.Ed. (Measurement & Evaluation) in 2003. Hesborn is interested in applying mixed methods approach to research design, conduct, and reporting; developing assessment instruments and;

Cassandra Workman is currently a student in the dual Ph.D./M.P.H. program in the Department of Anthropology and College of Public Health. She received her B.A. in Biological Anthropology from Northern Illinois University. In addition, she holds a M.A. in Anthropology from Western Michigan University. Her research interests include women's health and the political economy of HIV/AIDS.