Virginia Education Science Training (VEST) Fellowships

Sponsored by the Virginia Education Sciences Training (VEST) Program with support from the U.S. Department of Education Institute of Education Sciences (IES) and the School of Education and Human Development Dean’s Office. Additional co-sponsors may be noted below.

• Spring 2025
  • >Ryan Baker - Using Large Language Models to Support Learners and Learning
  • Rebekah Coley - How Poverty Shapes Children's Structural and Social Environments: An Integrative Conceptual Framework and Review
  • Melissa Derosier - Game-based Measurement of Social Emotional Competencies: The Pathway from Conceptualization to Testing to Broad Scale Use
  • Career Panel with VEST Alumni: Eileen Merritt, Katharine Meyer, Josh Pretlow, and Kathleen Mortiz Rudasill
• Fall 2024
  • Andrew Ho – Foundational Competencies in Educational Measurement
  • NaLette Brodnax – Carceral Ideology: A New Framework for Examining Equity in Education
  • Susanna Loeb - Real-Time Research for Decision Making Across Our Decentralized US Education System: The Case of High-Impact Tutoring
• Spring 2024
  • David S. Yeager - From Growth Mindset to Mentor Mindset: Notes from a Journey of Learning
  • Myles Durkee - The Psychological Implications of Racial Code-Switching
  • Career Panel with VEST alumni featuring Myles Durkee, Ann Partee, Miray Seward, Arielle Boguslav, and Justin Doromal
  • Nelson Flores - Raciolinguistic Genealogy of the Self
  • Dorothy Espelage - Bully Prevention and Intervention in K-12 School Settings
• Fall 2023
  • Carolyn Hill - Conducting Implementation Research in Impact Studies of Education Interventions
  • Jennifer Jennings - How Do Informational Interventions Shape High School Decision-Making? Evidence from a School Randomized Trial in New York City
  • Jon Valant - When Schools Choose Students: Biases, Challenges, and Opportunities in School Choice Placement Algorithms
• Spring 2023
  • Crystal Francis, Yolanda Jenkins, and Lieny Johnson - Baltimore City's Early Childhood Landscape: Art of Research-Practice Partnership
  • Christina Cipriano, Yale - The State of the Evidence for Social and Emotional Learning (SEL): Opportunities and Challenges for Educational Researchers
  • Hunter Gehlbach, John Hopkins University - Leveraging social perspective taking to improve relationships: The detective work of deciphering the complex minds of others
• Fall 2022
  • Dan Goldhaber, University of Washington - Teacher Candidate Preparation and Teacher Outcomes
  • Nancy Deutsch, University of Virginia - Youth-Adult Relationships Across Contexts and Time: Understanding Trajectories and Roles of Adolescents Supportive Relationships with Important Adults
  • Ann Owens, University of South Carolina - Epochs of School Segregation: Racial Inequality from 1970 to 2020
  • Stephanie Toliver, University of Colorado Boulder - Endarkened Storywork, or a Future for Black Youth's Stories in Schools
  • H. Richard Milner IV, Vanderbilt University - Learning from Formerly Incarcerated People About Education: Toward a Theory of Disruptive Movement
• Spring 2022
  • Beth Schueler
  • Rebecca Bulotsky Shearer
  • Adriana Umaña-Taylor
  • Jamie Jirout
• Fall 2021
  • Julie March
  • Youth-Nex Panel: Understanding the Well-being of LGBTQI+ Populations with Charlotte J. Patterson, Andrew R. Flores, Stephen T. Russell, Tonia Poteat
  • Jordan Matsudaira
  • Katherine Magnuson
• Spring 2021
  • Jean Rhodes
  • Francis Pearman
  • Aaron Lyon
  • Deborah Rivas-Drake
• Fall 2020
  • Hiro Yoshikawa
  • Bianca Baldridge
  • Juan Garibay
  • Tolani Britton
• Spring 2020
  • Panel: Panayitoa (Pani) Kendeou, David Mellor, and Jessica Spybrook
  • Derrick Alrdige
  • Aaron Lyon
  • Marc Brackett
• Fall 2019
  • Panel: Heather Harding, Doug Harris & Susanna Loeb
  • Marty West
  • Genevieve Siegel-Hawley
  • Veronica Katz
• Spring 2019
  • Tim Curby
  • Bethany Rittle-Johnson
  • Iheoma Iruka
  • Liz Bettini
  • Riana Anderson
• Fall 2018
  • Terri Sabol
  • Lisa Gennetian
  • Torie Weiston-Serdan
  • Ron Haskins
  • Maria Fitzpatrick
• Spring 2018
  • Carola Suárez-Orozco
  • Amanda Lewis
  • Judith Singer
  • Patricia (Tish) Jennings
  • Mesmin Destin
  • Susan Moore Johnson
• Fall 2017
  • `Stephen Russell
  • John Weisz
  • Rucker Johnson
  • Vivian Wong
• Spring 2017
  • Marty Zaslow
  • Valerie Maholmes
  • Noelle Hurd
  • Cynthia Coburn
• Fall 2016
  • Jenny Roe
  • Brian Jacob
  • Mark Lipsey
  • Roger Weissberg
• Spring 2016
  • Elise Cappella
  • Dan Willingham
  • Heather Hill
• Fall 2015
  • Jane Waldfogel
  • Doug Harris
  • Peter Youngs
• Spring 2015
  • Candice L. Odgers
  • Amanda R. Williford
  • Maureen R. Weiss
  • Kevin F. Miller
  • Adam Gamoran
  • Sandra Graham
• Fall 2014
  • Catherine Bradshaw
  • Susanna Loeb
  • Jeff Henig
• Spring 2014
  • Edward P. Mulvey
  • Brian A. Nosek
  • Laura L. Justice
  • James P. Spillane
• Fall 2013
  • Elizabeth Stuart
  • Stephen Raudenbush
  • Bridget Terry Long
  • David Figlio
• Spring 2013
  • Pamela Morris
  • Gregory Walton
  • Charles Hillman
  • Celene Domitrovich
  • Charles Smith
  • Vivian Tseng
• Fall 2012
  • Howard Bloom
  • David Lancy
  • Jens Ludwig
  • William Perez
  • Cybele Raver
• Spring 2012
  • Don Deshler & Lynn Fuchs
  • Niobe Way
  • Doug Downey
  • Catherine Riegle-Crumb
  • Robert McMahon
• Fall 2011
  • Howard Stevenson
  • Hiro Yoshikawa
  • Rebecca Maynard
  • Greg Duncan
• Spring 2011
  • Chris Hulleman
  • Jessaca Spybrook
  • Richard Lerner
• Fall 2010
  • Sean Reardon
  • Sue Synarski
  • Jonah Rockoff
  • Mark Greenberg

Upcoming workshops will be listed on the events page. VEST fellows are required to attend.

Past workshops have included:

• 2025
  • Data Science & Education Workshop: New Possibilities, Practices, and Perspectives
  • Ali Unlu - AI in Social Science Research
  • Brendan Bartanen - How to Write and Win Grants as a Graduate Student
• 2024
  • Peter Steiner - Graphical Models for Causal Inference
  • Brendan Bartanen - Revise and Resubmit: Now What?
  • Molly Faulkner-Bond - Everyone is an English Learner Researcher: Appreciating the Promise and Complexity of an Overlooked, Understudied Student Population
• 2023
  • Dr. Robert Olson - Improving the Generalizability of Impact Studies Through Better Design, Analysis, and Reporting
  • Brendan Bartanen - Contemporary Issues in Education Science: Open Science Movement
• 2020
  • Center for Open Science - Open Science: Open and Reproducible Research Practices with the
  • Beth Tipton - Generalizability
  • Allison Atteberry - Grant Writing
• 2019
  • Andrew Hayes - Statistical Mediation, Moderation, and Conditional Process Analysis
  • Brooks Bowden - Economic Evaluation & Cost-effectiveness Analysis
  • Holly Coy - Writing Policy Memos
• 2018
  • Craig Enders - Missing Data
  • Audrey Breen - Communicating Your Science
  • R follow-up - Ben Skinner
  • R - Ben Skinner
• 2017
  • Sarah Reber - Data Visualization
  • Arya Ansari - Person-Centered Methods in Educational Research
• 2016
  • Susanna Loeb - Value-Added Measures
  • Allison Atteberry - Application of Hierarchical Linear Models in Behavioral and Social Research
  • Kelli Bird - Designing and Implementing Randomized Control Trials in Education Research
• 2015
  • Andrew F. Hayes - Statistical Mediation, Moderation, and Conditional Process Analysis
  • Julie Cohen and Lia Sandilos - Navigating the Measures of Effective Teaching Data Set
  • James P. Connell - Using Data to Create Common Ground and Inform Decision-Making in Schools & School Districts
• 2014
  • Dan Martin - R
  • Tracy Sweet, Brian Junker & Andrew Thomas - Social Network Analysis
  • Craig Enders - Missing Data
• 2013
  • Allison Atteberry - Hierarchical Linear Modeling
  • Elizabeth Tipton - Meta-Analysis
• 2012
  • Ross Larsen & Tashia Abry - Mediation and Moderation
• 2011
  • Neil Seftor, Jill Constantine, Jean Knab - What Works Clearinghouse Training
  • Ross Larsen - Missing Data
  • Tom Weisner - Mixed Methods
• 2010
  • Mark Conaway - Randomized Controlled Trials in Education
• 2009
  • Kevin Grimm - Power Analysis
  • Andy Mashburn - HLM for Studying School Effects
  • Patrick Meyer - Data Management
• 2008
  • Kevin Grimm - Introduction to Longitudinal Data Analysis Using Structural Equation Modeling
  • Andy Mashburn - Introduction to Randomized Controlled Trials (RCT's) in Education Research
• 2007
  • Amy Luckner, Sonya Myers, Claire Ponitz - Reviewing Research Articles: The How, What and When to Stop
  • Sara Rimm-Kaufman - Preparing for the Job Market
  • Tim Curby and Lori Nathanson - SPSS Workshop
  • David Grissmer - Exploring and Using the NAEP and ECLS-K Data Sets
• 2006
  • Jason Downer and Andy Mashburn - Orientation to the NICHD Study of Early Child Care and Youth Development Data Set
  • Kevin Grimm - Longitudinal Data Analysis Using Structural Equation Modeling
  • David Lopez - Program Evaluation in the Context of No Child Left Behind (NCLB) and Active Learning
• 2005
  • Andrew Mashburn - Hierarchical Linear Models for Studying School Effects
  • Ryan Bowles - Item Response Theory
  • Emilio Ferrer - Applied Longitudinal Data Analysis

VEST fellow are encouraged to attend the Education Policy Seminar Series. Sponsored by the Bankard Foundation and EdPolicyWorks, all upcoming events can be found on the main event page. For recommended readings, questions about the series, or archived event details, please contact [email protected].

Students must have mentors associated with the VEST program and be enrolled in the school's education policy or educational psychology–applied developmental science Ph.D. programs. Invitations to participate in the affiliate program are issued via mentors/advisors who are already associated with VEST.

Affiliate fellows are funded by non-VEST sources and are ineligible to receive any research or travel funds from VEST.

Core Curriculum

All affiliate fellows engage in a core training curriculum comprised of these elements:

1. Two to four courses, depending on students’ prior engagement and experience with education research, that teach fellows to apply rigorous research methods to the following substantive topics: a) teacher quality, b) early childhood, and c) social and behavioral contexts for academic learning
2. An apprenticeship to research programs focused on teacher quality, early childhood, or social and behavioral contexts for academic learning (roughly 12 hours/week, depending on the specific arrangement with your mentor, in work related to education)
3. Training workshops in advanced statistical modeling or design
4. Attendance at interdisciplinary speaker series presentations

For additional information and conditions of the fellowship please speak with the VEST coordinator or your mentor.

The School of Education and Human Development received funding from the Institute of Education Sciences (IES) of the U.S. Department of Education in 2004 to implement a Fellowship Program in the Education Sciences. Additional grants were awarded in 2009, 2014, and 2020 that has allowed the School to build upon the existing Fellowship program and provide interdisciplinary training to students. Other fellows in the program are supported by other research grants and funding from the School.