The primary mission of the Department of Educational Studies in Psychology, Research Methodology, and Counseling is to offer quality graduate programs to an interdisciplinary array of students. The Educational Research program develops researchers for the public sector, private sector, and higher education. The Educational Psychology program provides exemplary graduate training in research, application, and practice related to learning, development, and mental well being of people of all ages. The Program in Counselor Education offers a quality program of teaching, research, and service for students enrolled for study and, ultimately, for the benefit of the publics they serve. The School Psychology program provides exemplary graduate training in research, application, and practice related to the learning, development, and mental health of children and youth as well as their families, teachers, educators and other professionals who work with them.
The Department of Educational Studies is committed to cultivating a scholarly community that celebrates values of diversity, equity, and inclusion. Guided by these firm commitments, we embrace a holistic perspective of diversity, which includes race; ethnicity and national origin; gender, including gender identity and expressions; sexualities; age, socioeconomic status; disabilities; religion and spirituality; as well as other identities and ideologies. Our department strives to create and actively promote a welcoming and supportive environment where diverse perspectives are encouraged, recognized, and respected.
In response to COVID-19, most admission test scores (GRE/GMAT/MAT MCAT) have been waived for Spring, Summer and Fall 2021.
Department Head: Dr. Michael Lawson
Degrees
BACHELOR OF SCIENCE
MASTER OF ARTS
EDUCATIONAL SPECIALIST
DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY
CERTIFICATES
People
Dr. Eric Baltrinic
Assistant Professor, Counselor Education
erbaltrinic@ua.edu
Teaching and Learning
Counselor Preparation
Q Methodology
Dr. Heather Britnell
Clinical Asst. Professor, School Psychology
hbritnell@ua.edu
Professor, Counselor Education
jburnham@ua.edu
205-348-2302
website
Children’s Fears
School Counseling
Women in Academia
Dr. Chunhua Cao
Assistant Professor, Quantitative Methods
ccao6@ua.edu
Dr. Ryan Cook
Assistant Professor, Counselor Education
rmcook@ua.edu
Dr. Tony Derriso
Clinical Assistant Professor, Educational Psychology
acderriso@ua.edu
Dr. Heather Fye
Assistant Professor, Counselor Education
hjfye@ua.edu
Wellness, Stress, and Burnout
School Counseling
Quantitative Research
Dr. Teresa Grenawalt
Assistant Professor, Rehabilitative Counselor Education
tagrenawalt@ua.edu
Dr. Wenjing Guo
Clinical Assistant Professor, Quantitative Research
wguo9@ua.edu
Dr. Karl Hamner
Clinical Professor, Educational Research
khamner@ua.edu
Dr. Hyemin Han
Associate Professor, Educational Neuroscience
hhan19@ua.eduDarlene Hicks
BCE/BEP Support
dcapps@ua.edu 
Dr. Stacy Hughey-Surman
Clinical Associate Professor, Educational Research
ssurman@ua.edu
classroom assessment
evaluating collective impact
arts evaluation
Dr. Joni Lakin
Professor, Educational Research
jlakin@ua.edu
education measurement
STEM education
intervention
Dr. Michael Lawson
Department Head and
Associate Professor, Educational Research
malawson1@ua.edu
student/family engagement
improvement science
mixed methods research
Dr. Joon Ho Lee
Assistant Professor, Educational Research
jlee296@ua.edu
experimental and intervention research
Dr. Junfei Lu
Associate Professor, Rehabilitation Counseling
jlu27@ua.edu
mindfulness & resilience
counselor competence development
people with disabilities
Dr. Emily Lund
Assistant Professor, Rehabilitation Counseling
emlund@ua.edu
Dr. Wenchao Ma
Assistant Professor, Quantitative Research
wma9@ua.edu
psychometrics
cognitive diagnosis modeling
item response theory
Dr. Kaiwen Man
Assistant Professor, Educational Research
kman@ua.edu
educational measurement
Dr. Laura Morett
Assistant Professor, Educational Neuroscience
lmorett@ua.edu
gesture studies
language learning/processing 
Dr. George Mugoya
Associate Professor, Counselor Education
gmugoya@ua.edu
disabilities
chronic illnesses
psychosocial correlates of health
Dr. June Preast
Assistant Professor, School Psychology
jlpreast@ua.edu
school consultation
intervention responsiveness
multi-tiered systems of support
Dr. Shena Sanchez
Assistant Professor, Educational Research
sasanchez1@ua.edu
educational research
student identity and voice
socio-political contexts of education
Dr. Randall Schumacker
Professor, Educational Research
rschumacker@ua.edu
multiple regression
multivariate statistics
structural equation modeling
Dr. Stephanie Anne Shelton
Associate Professor, Educational Research
sashelton@ua.edu
qualitative
interviewing
focus groups
gender & sexuality
queer & feminist theories Dr. Laurel Snider
Assistant Professor, School Psychology
Incoming fall 2022 
Dr. Firat Soylu
Associate Professor, Educational Neuroscience
fsoylu@ua.edu
numerical cognition
STEM learning
Dr. Macarena Suárez Pellicioni
Assistant Professor, Educational Psychology and Neuroscience
mspellicioni@ua.edu 
Dr. David Ian Walker
Associate Professor, Educational Psychology
diwalker@ua.edu
moral & character development
interdisciplinary research
military/ex-military populations
Dr. Yurou Wang
Clinical Assistant Professor, Educational Psychology
yurou.wang@ua.edu
motivation
learning
persistence
emotion
Dr. Stefanie Wind
Associate Professor, Measurement and Evaluation
swind@ua.edu
rater-mediated assessment
item response theory
nonparametric IRT
