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Romero-Hall Recognized by Canadian Social Knowledge Institute

April 4, 2024 by Alyssa Seisser

Romero-Hall Recognized by Canadian Social Knowledge Institute

For many people outside of an academic environment, accessing scholarly work may appear to be outside their reach. Not everyone has access to academic journals or can attend conferences where the latest research is shared. But for Enilda Romero-Hall, an associate professor of STEM Education/Learning, Design, and Technology in the Department of Theory & Practice in Teacher Education, academic work should be shared and made more accessible to those outside of the academy.

Just recently, Romero-Hall, along with three colleagues, were named a 2024 Open Scholarship Award recipient by the Canadian Social Knowledge Institute (C-SKI). Recipients are celebrated for their exemplary open scholarship via research, projects, or initiatives. In addition to the recognition of her accomplishment, C-SKI also offers a tuition scholarship for Romero-Hall and her colleagues to the Digital Humanities Summer Institute (DHSI).

“I’m honored to be recognized, along with my co-editors, with the 2024 Open Scholarship Award,” said Romero-Hall. “Our collaboration efforts to disseminate feminist pedagogy practices and application is highly connected to a shared vision and commitment to open scholarship.”

Just visit Romero-Hall’s website and you’ll find a commitment to sharing her scholarly work with broader groups. She’s authored two edited books, over 40 journal articles, and presented in over 60 peer-reviewed presentations. A sought-after guest on numerous podcasts, Romero-Hall calls herself a “Scholar, Instructor, Learning Designer.” She’s also in demand nationwide with invitations as keynote speaker at regional and international events. Romero-Hall also serves as the Program Chair for the American Educational Research Association Instructional Technology Special Interest Group and Advising Editor to the Feminist Pedagogy for Teaching Online digital guide.

With her scholarly interest in interactive multimedia, along with digital literacy, networked learning, and online social communities, Romeo-Hall is a natural fit for her most recent C-Ski accolade. With her experience in the Panamanian, Canadian, and U.S. education systems, she understands the importance of making scholarly work and research accessible to as many as possible.

“This recognition highlights our commitment to give back to our scholarly community not only to share knowledge but also to support the open scholarship movement,” said Romero-Hall.

UT Researchers Receive Two Grants Totaling $790,000 to Research Food Insecurity on College Campuses and to Develop Food Security Certificate Program

January 24, 2024 by Alyssa Seisser

UT Researchers Receive Two Grants Totaling $790,000 to Research Food Insecurity on College Campuses and to Develop Food Security Certificate Program

Junehee Kwon, professor and head of the Department of Retail, Hospitality, and Tourism Management (RHTM) in the University of Tennessee, Knoxville (UT), College of Education, Health, and Human Sciences, leads two research teams with federal and private funding sources. One team received a $740,000 grant from the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) to develop a food security certificate program. Earlier, Kwon also led a team of UT researchers including Marsha Spence, Jacqueline Yenerall, and Tyler White to secure a $50,000 grant from the Danone Institute of North America (DINA) to learn more about food and nutrition insecurity on the UT campus.

Junehee Kwon, with Retail, Hospitality, and Tourism Management, Faculty headshot taken in the Communications Studio on February 07, 2023. Photo by Steven Bridges/University of Tennessee

With the USDA grant, Kwon will work with researchers from the University of South Carolina and Montana State University to increase food security education for college students, while finding practical solutions to food insecurity on their campuses. The team will develop food upcycling programs at the collaborating universities using UT’s food4VOLS as a model.

“We are very excited to receive both grants to conduct food security research and to develop an academic program to increase food security education in three universities,” Kwon stated. “The goal of the USDA Higher Education Challenge Grant is to develop a multidisciplinary certificate program across each campus. I am excited to work with the new College of Emerging and Collaborative Studies and faculty in related programs to build a food security certificate program at UT.”

According to the USDA Economic Research Service, roughly 33.8 million, or 10.2%, of Americans faced food insecurity in 2021. In the southeast, that number is even higher at 11.4%. However, those numbers pale when compared to the percentage of college students facing food insecurity on campus. For example, one study showed that one of three students on the University of Tennessee, Knoxville, campus might be considered food insecure. A 2017 study reported that nationwide, 14-59% of college students were food insecure at one time during their college careers.

To help address rising food insecurity on the UT campus, the University of Tennessee Culinary Institute in RHTM developed food4VOLS, to repurpose unused food into heat-and-serve meals to increase students’ access to food as well as to reduce food waste on campus. In 2022, food4VOLS recovered nearly 120,000 pounds of food from food service establishments on campus.

In a distribution partnership with the Big Orange Pantry, an average of 350 meals were distributed daily to UT students in 2022. However, when considering an enrollment of over 33,000 students, it’s estimated that 10,000 students on the UT campus may be food insecure. When you do the math, 350 meals per day is a far cry from the students in need of a nutritious meal.

“The USDA grant allows the team to establish food upcycling programs in the University of South Carolina and Montana State University campuses using food4VOLS as a model,” said Kwon. “We will use these food upcycling programs for an experiential learning course for the food security certificate program.”

While food collection and distribution data are well known, less is known about food4VOLS’ reach, its ability to lower food insecurity, or the dietary quality of the meals being consumed by students.

“The Danone Institute of North America grant allows us to learn more about food and nutrition insecurity on the UT campus,” Kwon explained. “We also plan to increase food access points on the UT campus.”

With the grant from the DINA, the UT research team is utilizing a transdisciplinary approach to ascertain motivators of and barriers to utilizing the on-campus food upcycling program while evaluating the diet quality of users of the on-campus food upcycling program. At the end of the project, the team is planning to communicate lessons learned from this project with other scholars at public colleges and universities in the Southeast region of the U.S. through a symposium and academic manuscripts.

Kwon is hopeful that the information gathered and programs established by these funded projects will help reduce food insecurity on college campuses. By finding innovative and sustainable solutions that may be adopted by other colleges and universities, soon we may have fewer students on campuses in need of a nutritious meal.

“It is exciting to work with dedicated team members, without whom these grants would not have been possible. I appreciate their contributions, and I am very excited to conduct the research and to develop programs to mitigate campus food insecurity.”

Kelchen Once Again Named Top Scholar Influencer

January 4, 2024 by Alyssa Seisser

Kelchen Once Again Named Top Scholar Influencer

We’ve all heard the term “influencer.” Many of us associate an influencer as someone with a large following on social media, such as Instagram or YouTube, who set trends or promotes products. But did you know that there are a select group of scholar influencers who help shape educational practice and policy?

One of those scholar influencers is Robert Kelchen, who serves as department head of Educational Leadership and Policy Studies (ELPS) at the University of Tennessee, Knoxville, College of Education, Health, and Human Sciences (CEEHHS). Kelchen is ranked 41 out of 20,000 scholars nationwide in Education Week’s Edu-Scholar Public Influence Rankings for 2024. In fact, Kelchen is the only scholar from the University of Tennessee, Knoxville, to make the list.

“As a faculty member at a land-grant university, it is my job to help share knowledge well beyond the classroom or traditional academic journals,” said Kelchen. I am thrilled to have the opportunity to work with policymakers, journalists, and college leaders on a regular basis to help improve higher education.”

For 14 years, Education Week selects the top-200 scholars (out of an eligible pool of 20,000) from across the United States as having the most influence on issues and policy in education. The list is compiled by opinion columnist Rick Hess, resident scholar at the American Enterprise Institute and director of Education Policy Studies.

The selection process includes a 38-member Selection Committee made up of university scholars representing public and private institutions from across the United States. The Selection Committee calculates scores including, Google Scholar Scores, Book Points, Amazon Rankings, Congressional Record mentions, media, and web appearances and then ranks the scholar accordingly. Kelchen is considered a “go-to” source for reporters covering issues in higher education, with over 200 media interviews, year after year. If there is a story about higher education in the media, you’ll more than likely find a quote from Kelchen as an expert source.

“In the last year, I have had the pleasure of supporting several states on their higher education funding models, presenting to groups of legislators, and being a resource to reporters diving into complex higher education finance topics. These engagements help strengthen my own research and give me the opportunity to teach cutting-edge classes to ELPS students,” said Kelchen.

In addition, Kelchen received national recognition by the Association for the Study of Higher Education (ASHE) for his research on higher education finance, accountability policies and practices, and student financial aid. ASHE’s Council on Public Policy in Higher Education selected Kelchen for its Excellence in Public Policy Higher Education Award.

Through its eight departments and 12 centers, the UT Knoxville College of Education, Health, and Human Sciences enhances the quality of life for all through research, outreach, and practice. Find out more at cehhs.utk.edu

Teaching Positive Psychology Skills at School May be One Way to Help Student Mental Health and Happiness

January 2, 2024 by Alyssa Seisser

Teaching Positive Psychology Skills at School May be One Way to Help Student Mental Health and Happiness

Gratitude, Kindness and Optimistic Thinking Can Help Kids Feel a Bit Better

By Kai Zhuang Shum, Assistant Professor in the Department of Educational Psychology and Counseling

Youth mental health has worsened significantly over the past decade, but new interventions that teach positive psychology concepts in school may help.

American young people are reporting historically high levels of hopelessness, sadness and loneliness. According to the most recent data from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, more than 20% of adolescents have seriously considered suicide – and suicide is the second-leading cause of death for childrenages 10-14.

Perhaps even more alarming than the prevalence of youth mental health problems is the inaccessibility of mental health support for the many children who need it. About 60% of depressed adolescents do not receive any treatment – and around 950,000 children do not have health insurance that covers mental health services.

One solution is to provide mental health care in schools, where kids are. This is already happening. School counselors, psychologists and social workers provide support, teach coping strategies and work with caregivers to help students overcome mental health challenges. Such vital care is essential, but clearly more help is needed.

Research shows that students who have a positive outlook regarding their lives outperform other students academically and emotionally. You might wonder, can positive thinking be taught?

I study school-based positive psychology interventions. My colleagues have found that students who’ve been introduced to science-based ideas about happiness feel more satisfied with life, experience more positive than negative emotions and have fewer emotional and behavioral problems.

Science of happiness

Psychologists began to study the science of happiness in the late 1990s. Prior to that time, most psychology researchers studied misery.

Founder of the field of positive psychology Martin Seligman speaks after being honored at the United Nations in 2016. J. Countess/Contributor/via Getty Images Entertainment

Psychologist Martin Seligman was such a scientist, having pioneered the concept of “learned helplessness.” But a conversation with his young daughter, in which she demanded to know why he couldn’t “stop being such a grouch,” inspired him to start studying what makes people happy instead.

Initial studies were conceptual in nature. But before long, researchers started to identify what makes people happy, the benefits of happiness and interventions to improve happiness.

Scientists identified three main predictors of happiness – genetics, life circumstances and purposeful activities – and potentially others, depending on one’s culture. Of the big three, the first two are often out of an individual’s control. But science has shown that people can adopt strategies to feel happier.

Achieving a state of flourishing – or feeling good and doing good – is the goal of positive psychology interventions. It can evoke positive feelings, increase engagement with life, strengthen positive relationships, move people toward purpose and help people achieve meaningful goals.

Positive psychology in schools

Positive psychology is now taught in some schools around the world, including in the U.S., Australia, Denmark, Israel, New Zealand, China and South Africa. Most interventions educate students about mindfulness and positive psychology concepts such as gratitude, kindness, optimistic thinking, utilizing character strengths and hope. The idea is not just to teach students about positive psychology as a school subject but help them practice the skills that research suggests will help them flourish.

A classroom of kids hold up their handmade gratitude journals showing words like 'freedom,' 'love' and 'brother.' — *A Toronto teacher encourages his class to write in a gratitude journal every day*. Colin McConnell/Toronto Star via Getting images

In typical programs, students first learn positive psychology concepts, then practice using them in real life with the help of trusted adults. For example, students discuss what gratitude means to them, then practice writing down three things they are thankful for every night before bed with the help of their caregivers. After a week, students discuss with adults at school how practicing gratitude affected their level of happiness.

A 2020 review of 57 school-based positive psychology programs showed more than half resulted in positive outcomes, including less stress, lower depression, less anxiety, fewer behavioral issues, better self-image, higher life satisfaction and stronger social functioning.

‘Nice inside’

One intervention currently being studied by the U.S. Department of Education is a 10-week, small-group intervention aimed at helping middle schoolers. I coach the mental health providers implementing this program.

Like other programs of its kind, it teaches youth about positive concepts, including gratitude, kindness, character strengths, optimism and hope. Early findings, presented at the 2023 National Association of School Psychologyconference, show the program is being well received both by students and providers.

We’ve found students tend to favor activities that fit with their culture or values. For example, one student shared that performing acts of kindness was their favorite program-based activity, because it helped them spend more time with family and pets – the two most important things in their life. Another student said being able to share the strategies with their mother helped them both feel happier. This student was also proud to be able to help their family.

We also found that some students believed the program helped them build positive relationships with others. One student shared, “It’s really fun to see how others react when I’m being nice, such as giving a compliment,” and that doing so helped them feel “nice inside.” Another student agreed, saying making others feel good helped them feel happier.

Positive psychology training is only one piece of the solution for improving youth mental health. Children with severe issues need comprehensive treatment, which can include mental health counseling and medication.

Even though many important factors are out of a person’s control, everyone has room for growth in happiness. My colleagues and I hope teaching positive psychology in schools will become a common practice in the future.

Reposted from The Conversation