President & Communications Committee Member: Amanda Man 

Amanda On-Yee Man (she/her) is a Ph.D. student in the School of Education in the Sociocultural and Community-based Approaches program. She completed her B.A. in English Literature and Secondary Education at Washington University in St. Louis and holds a M.S.Ed. in Education, Culture, and Society from the University of Pennsylvania Graduate School of Education. In the six years between her studies, she taught high school English in New Jersey, USA, then moved to Macau S.A.R. to teach secondary English language and literature. Her research interests revolve around the interactions and dialogues between schools, communities, and young people during and around crises. 

Vice President, Education Workshops Committee Member: Yubin Jang

Yubin Jang, a second-year Ph.D. student in the Education and Social Policy program at the School of Education and the Joseph R. Biden Jr. School of Public Policy & Administration, delves into various aspects of educational leadership, including its development, pipeline, practices, policies, and the working environment. She holds a B.A. in Education (2021) and an M.A. in Education and Educational Administration (2023) from Hanyang University in South Korea.

Currently, she collaborates with her advisor, Dr. Lauren Bailes, on educational leadership diversity in independent schools and Title II funding for educational leadership. She also analyzes how teacher professional development influences student and teacher outcomes in collaboration with Dr. Laura Desimone and Dr. Kenneth Shores.

Treasurer, Communications Committee Member: Allie Olshefke-Clark

Allie is a second-year Ph.D. in Education student specializing in Mathematics Education. She earned a B.S. in Physics and M.Ed. from the University of Notre Dame through the Alliance for Catholic Education program. Prior to starting at UD, she taught twelfth-grade math and worked as the Associate Research Director for the ACE Ascent Program in Notre Dame’s Institute for Educational Initiatives.

First Year Representative, Social Events Committee Member: Maggie Ellis

Maggie Ellis is a first year Ph.D. student in the Education program with a specialization in Mathematics Education. She earned her B.A. in Elementary Education from the College of St. Benedict and M.Ed. in Elementary Education from the University of Notre Dame. Prior to joining the program, she taught 4th grade in New York City and 4th/5th grade math and science in Denver, Colorado. She also taught and supervised pre-service elementary teachers in the University of Notre Dame’s M.Ed. program. Her research interests center around elementary methods courses, field mediated experiences, and professional learning for beginning elementary math teachers.

Social Events Committee Chair: Molly Li

Molly Li (she/her) is a first year Ph.D. student in the School of Education. She earned her M.S.Ed. from the University of Pennsylvania in 2022. Molly’s research is shaped by her experiences growing up in China and navigating different education systems. Her dedication to AI in education stems from a broader interest in how technology transforms learning environments and impacts student development. Currently, she is working with Dr. Rachel Karchmer-Klein on how AI and digital tools support teachers in instructional design.

Social Events Committee Chair: Alex Scanniello

Alex Scanniello is a first year Ph.D. student in the School of Education program with a specialization in Learning Sciences. She earned her Master of Arts in Teaching from New Jersey City University. Prior to joining the program, she taught elementary education in New Jersey. Her research interests focus on increasing teacher tenure through motivation policy and practice and increasing student motivation in the classroom.

Educational Workshops Committee Chair: Bita Moradi

Bita is a third-year PhD student in Education, specializing in literacy. Her career as a school teacher in Iran drew her into researching language and literacy skills of K-12 students and educating K-12 teachers. Her primary goal is improving educational attainments of multilingual learners (i.e., English learners) and socio-economically disadvantaged students. Due to the fact that leveraging students’ gains is associated with teachers’ pedagogical practices, she is actively conducting research on teacher education programs. Currently, Bita’s research with her advisor Dr. Adrian Pasquarella pivots around educating Delaware K-12 teachers of English learners. 

Communications Committee Member: Mina Sajjadi

Mina Sajjadi is a first-year Ph.D. student in the Education and Social Policy program at the School of Education and the Joseph R. Biden Jr. School of Public Policy & Administration. Her research focuses on teacher professional development and educational policies, with a particular interest in culturally responsive teaching and teacher efficacy.

Mina holds a B.A. in English Translation Studies from Bu-Ali Sina University and an M.A. in Teaching English as a Foreign Language (TEFL) from Tarbiat Modares University in Iran. She has 15 years of experience teaching English as a second language to K-12 students, university students, and IELTS examinees. Additionally, she served as the head of an English teachers’ research community group for one year and as vice-principal and educational technology administrator at various high schools for three years.