Fall 2024 Featured Courses

Faculty Spotlight: Candace Skibba

New Research Lab for Undergraduate Students

Candace Skibba, associate teaching professor of Hispanic Studies and associate director of the Master’s in Applied Second Language Acquisition in the Department of Languages, Cultures & Applied Linguistics, has created a research lab tailored to undergraduate students. Through this lab, Skibba has developed a research platform for Carnegie Mellon University students that fosters inclusive teaching methods and challenges conventional teaching norms.

With a research portfolio rooted in understanding normalcy and the construction of otherness, Skibba's journey in academia is marked by a profound interest in exploring human representations of the body and dismantling societal constructs of difference. Above all, Skibba's work promotes inclusive teaching methods. Her research delves into systems that contribute to the marginalization of certain identities, overlapping with racial understanding, anti-racist pedagogy, disability studies and LGBTQ+ studies. Ultimately, the aim of her research is to push back against structures that perpetuate inequality and redefine what is considered successful within a classroom setting. A key aspect Skibba's approach is the exploration of how bodies and identities interact within a classroom. Skibba advocates for more equitable interactions among students and emphasizes the need for adaptable teaching practices that align with the dynamic nature of education in the 21st century. 

Reshaping the Narrative

Prior to creating the research lab last year, Skibba's commitment to inclusivity was evident in collaborative efforts, such as co-authoring an anthology on teaching gender-based violence. The anthology explores trauma-informed pedagogy and care, drawing inspiration from influential theories like Paulo Freire’s Pedagogy of the Oppressed. Skibba emphasizes the importance of treating topics equitably and with emotional intelligence, ensuring that the learning environment remains progressive and inclusive.

In response to the challenges posed by the COVID-19 pandemic, Skibba also launched a podcast on pedagogy which explores the impact of teaching methods on students and strives to understand which approaches are genuinely effective from their perspective. Through engaging conversations with diverse guests, including a circus performer teaching through performance, the podcast seeks to break down the stigma surrounding who holds authority in teaching. Skibba's innovative approach includes reshaping the narrative around traditional teaching roles.

Emphasizing Student Voices

At Skibba's research lab, Amanawit (Amy) Assefa serves as the primary bibliographical researcher. A rising senior studying International Relations and Politics, her work in the lab is structured around identifying institutional challenges in teaching methods. Assefa is helping Skibba lead the lab until May, after which the lab plans to expand by hiring more student researchers and engaging SURG/SURF fellows.

"Ideally, a year from now, there would be qualitative data that are student-designed and student-facilitated … for being able to create models [that] apply to other institutions [and] test methods in classrooms," Skibba said.

The data from Skibba's research lab will be quite open, from collecting biofeedback data to design or architectural data (such as spatial designs for making people more comfortable in an institutional setting). Thus, the lab hopes to facilitate conversations across campus with student-led data on teaching methods. Assefa has played a major role in the lab’s current expansion as a lead researcher.

Skibba's work could not be complete without collaborating with and emphasizing student voices. She envisions the lab as a space where students engage in research and conversations about inclusivity in the classroom, creating a rich tapestry of safe and comfortable interactions that contribute to students’ own identity work. By challenging traditional norms, prioritizing inclusivity and amplifying student voices, Skibba’s lab has created a dynamic space where teaching and learning transcend conventional boundaries. The impact of Skibba’s work can extend far beyond the classroom, inspiring a generation of educators to rethink their approaches and embrace a more equitable and inclusive pedagogy.

Alumni Spotlight: Kerri Ullucci

Kerri Ullucci (DC 1997) has spent more than 20 years working on race, equity and education issues in K-12 settings. Looking back, Ullucci, a History Department alumna, attributes the roots of her equity-focused career to her years at Carnegie Mellon.

While a student in the History Department, Ullucci met Susan Ambrose, former senior vice provost for undergraduate education and experiential learning and professor of education and history. Ambrose taught a class on race in the U.S., and it was in that class that a seed was planted. Through this experience, Ullucci came to understand the pivotal nature of race in the U.S. and see a role for herself in this work. She spent much of her work-study hours in the Division of Student Affairs, where she helped facilitate the sexual assault peer educators. Through this experience, she had her first taste of leadership and went on to spearhead the first women’s conference at CMU, Mosaic. Her education in the Department of History taught her how to analyze, research, find patterns and look for cause and effect. Years in Student Affairs helped to shape her sense of advocacy, see and respond to a problem and find like-minded folks to engage with along the way.

Putting Lessons into Practice

More than 25 years later, Ullucci is a professor of diversity and equity in education at Roger Williams University in Bristol, Rhode Island, where she prepares young teachers to teach and works with schools and districts on pressing equity issues. Ullucci earned her bachelor’s degree from Carnegie Mellon, her master of arts in teaching from the University of Pittsburgh and her Ph.D. in urban schooling from the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA), studying under Tyrone Howard, professor of education. Her research interests center on race and poverty issues in schooling and the development of culturally relevant teaching practices. Her publications span several journals, including Urban Education, Race, Ethnicity and Education and Teacher Education Quarterly. Her book, co-authored with Joi Spencer, Anti-Blackness at School: Creating Affirming Educational Spaces for African American Students,” was published in 2022, through Teachers College Press.

Looking back on more than 20 years of teaching, it is clear how indelibly CMU shaped Ullucci’s trajectory. She appreciates the mentorship she received, the leadership opportunities which propelled her on her path and the fabulous faculty who supported a curious first-generation woman and helped her find her way.