Dana Wright
Dana Wright, Assistant Professor of Education
Assistant Professor of Education
Joined Connecticut College: 2009
Education:
B.A., Vassar College; M.A., Ed.D., Harvard University Graduate School of Education
Curriculum theory and pedagogy
Critical youth studies
Sociocultural theories of learning
Participatory action research (PAR)
Urban education and the contexts of teaching
Qualitative research methodologies Professor Wright's research and teaching interests include curriculum theory and design, sociocultural theories of learning and participatory action research (PAR) with young people. Conducting research in both high schools and community-based organizations, she investigates elements of the curriculum and learning settings that limit or promote agency and engaged learning.
With support from the William T. Grant Foundation, she has studied classroom-based PAR projects with students as an approach to teaching and learning in four public high schools. Wright's recent publications examine participatory pedagogy and curriculum, student-led inquiry projects, youth and adult partnerships for community change.
Professor Wright joined the faculty at Connecticut College in 2009 following a postdoctoral fellowship at the University of California, Berkeley. She has over a decade of experience in curriculum development, participatory action research with young people and organizational development. Wright has provided capacity building and organizational development support to nonprofit organizations, foundations and to public school districts. Currently she serves on the Board of Directors for a youth organizing nonprofit.
She is the recipient of numerous fellowships and awards including the Health Disparities Research LRP award from the National Institutes of Health (NIH), an Action Research Fellowship from Youth in Focus, the Margaret Sheridan Community Learning Award from the Holleran Center for Community Action and Public Policy, and a fellowship with the Change Leadership Group from Harvard University.
At Connecticut College, Professor Wright teaches the following courses: EDU 305: Curricular Theories and Design in the Secondary School, EDU 225: Curriculum and Classroom Assessment, EDU 457: Student Teaching in the Secondary School, and EDU 270: Teaching and Learning for Social Change: Power, Agency and Action.
Since 2009, she has served as a faculty mentor to students of color as part of the College’s SHE program at Unity House. For both the 2010-11 and 2011-12 academic years, she served on the Committee for Faculty Compensation (CFC), which selects Connecticut College faculty members to receive awards for research, teaching and faculty leadership. Since 2011, Wright has served on the Steering Committee for the Holleran Center for Community Action and Public Policy.
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