Teaching Expertise

• Literature for Children and Young Adults (English 381)
• Cultural Pluralism in Children's Literature (English 582)
• Writing in Elementary and Middle Schools (eEnglish 315
• Seminar in Children’s Literature (English 681)

Research Interests

• Creative Response to Literature
• Social Justice Themes in Children's Literature
• The Life and Legacy of Jane Addams
• Role of Reflection in Teaching
• Writing in the Elementary & Middle School

Education:

• Ph.D., Lesley University, 2001
• M.A., University of Wisconsin-Madison, 1978
• B.S. in Ed. Central Michigan University, 1973

Publications

• “Jane Addams, Stories and Imagination: A Model for Approaching Social Justice Literature with Young People.” Language Arts: The Journal of the Elementary Section of the National Council of Teachers of English. May 2009.
• "Bringing What is Hidden to Light: Jane Addams and the 2006 Jane Addams Children's Book Award." The Looking Glass: New Perspectives in Children's Literature. Vol. 10 No. 3 September 2006 Available at: http://www.the-looking-glass.net/
• “Under Construction: A Model of Best (Next Step) Practice.” With Jennifer A. Jones. Language Arts Journal of Michigan, Winter 2006.
• “Children and Bread in Time of War.” The Looking Glass: New Perspectives on Children’s Books, vol. 9, no. 2, 2 April, 2005. Available at: http://www.the-looking-glass.net/
• ”Imagining Peace and Social Justice: The Jane Addams Children’s Book Award.” With Donna Barkman. BookLinks, vol. 14, no. 4, March 2005.
• “Imagining Peace and Social Justice in a World Community: The Jane Addams Children’s Book Award.” WILLA (Women in Literacy and Life Assembly), vol. XIII, 2004, pp. 33-40.
• "Building on Students' Experiences in Teacher Education," Academic Exchange Quarterly 7:3 (Fall 2003)
• "Writing Stories: Advice (and More) from a Writer," The Primer: The Journal of the Massachusetts Reading Association 26.2:1997
• "Powerful, Positive Realistic Fiction for Young Adults." The Young Reader IX.2 (Spring 1995)
• "Nicholasa Mohr." In American Women Writers: A Critical Reference Guide from Colonial Times to the Present 5 supplement, ed. Carol Hurd Green and Mary Grimley Mason. New York: Continuum, 1994.
• "Small Press Children's Books and Where to Find Them." With Michele A. Seipp. School Library Journal, February 1982.
• "The Women's Suffrage Movement in Children's Books." With Donna Barkman. Interracial Books for Children Bulletin, Vol. 13, no. 1, 1982.