To promote student experiential learning while advancing community impact, our team convenes a University-Assisted Community Schools (UACS) research collaborative composed of dedicated faculty, graduate and undergraduate students, and community partners. This interdisciplinary group engages in community-engaged scholarship that is both responsive and forward-thinking, producing research that yields immediate outcomes while also informing long-term initiatives. Our work supports the development and sustainability of local community schools, shapes regional educational strategies, and contributes to the broader national UACS network. Through sustained collaboration, we foster reciprocal partnerships and prepare civic-minded scholars to address complex, evolving social challenges.
Max Aba
Max Aba is a freshman majoring in Elementary Education. After college, he hopes to be a third grade teacher. Max joined the research group to learn more about the community school model and how to better integrate families and community partners into the classroom. Max hopes to use this knowledge to better support his future students.
Salena Banuelos
Salena Banuelos is a senior at the University of Tennessee in the College of Social Work. She joined the research group because she enjoys analyzing research to improve current programs and policies. She is very passionate about providing holistic care to assess all factors affecting a person’s health and overall well-being. Following the completion of her degree, she plans to pursue macro social work to continue affecting change at the policy level.
Allyssa Boring
Allyssa Boring is an undergraduate senior studying Child and Family Studies: Community Outreach, and she will begin pursuing a master’s degree in Clinical Mental Health Counseling at UT in June 2025. After completing her studies, she plans to become a certified counselor and hopes to work in the field of mental health. She is excited to continue contributing to UACS research as she experienced the impact of the work happening in Community Schools firsthand, contributing much of her final semester to assisting site coordinators and being a classroom aid.
Carly Edde
Carly Edde is an elementary education major with a minor in human development and family science. She is a junior at UTK who has been a part of the UACS research team since last year. When she graduates, Carly hopes to work in a rural school area to help give opportunities to students who may struggle financially. She chose to be a part of this team because she felt as though this was something that could truly open her eyes to problems in schools. The UACS research group has been a great way for her to get her foot in the door before becoming a teacher herself.
Ava Harris
Ava Harris is a junior at the University of Tennessee, pursuing a degree in Elementary Education with a focus on Human Development. Committed to empowering all students, Ava aims to provide both the resources and skills necessary for her future student’s personal success. She joined the UACS research group to enhance her ability to support students effectively and to develop the foundation for creating a culturally responsive classroom in her future teaching career.
Karlee Kaminski
Karlee Kaminski is a dedicated education major with a passion for fostering student learning and engagement. Her future career goal is to become an effective and innovative educator, equipping students with strong literacy and critical thinking skills. She has been part of the UACS research group for three semesters, and this experience has been invaluable in deepening her understanding of educational research, collaborating with experienced professionals, and enhancing her analytical and problem-solving skills.
Caroline Malone
Caroline Malone is a doctoral student in Theory and Practice in Teacher Education, Literacy Studies at the University of Tennessee. Her area of scholarship is adolescent parental grief and societal narratives in young adult novels. She is passionate about volunteer work to help strengthen her local community.
Megan Mundie
Megan Mundie currently serves as a graduate teaching assistant while pursuing her doctorate degree in Theory and Practice in Teacher Education at the University of Tennessee, Knoxville. Her dissertation research centers on the identity development of undergraduate students as they engage in the Community School context. She has worked with the UACS research team for three semesters and has loved learning alongside her amazing teammates!
Charlotte Nance
Charlotte Nance is an undergraduate student majoring in education with a concentration in secondary social sciences. Charlotte is passionate about education and loves supporting research that aims to help students and families. Over her time with community schools, she has enjoyed developing an awareness of East Tennessee communities and has been inspired by the positive impacts of community schools.
Joah Ochoa
Joah Ochoa is an elementary education major in her third year at the University of Tennessee on the 5-year track. Her goal is to teach in a public school after graduation, fostering a love of learning in students while supporting their personal and academic growth. She joined the UACS research group because she believes community schools play a vital role in educating students and working alongside families to strengthen and support communities through people-centered initiatives.
Felipe Trevisan Ferreira
Felipe Trevisan Ferreira is a doctoral student and Graduate Assistant in the department of Theory and Practice in Teacher Education (TPTE) at the University of Tennessee – Knoxville (UTK). His professional and scholarly journal is informed by a commitment with social justice in education, with a special emphasis on critical pedagogies in language education, through queer and decolonial theories. Felipe holds a Master’s degree in Language Studies and a Bachelor’s degree in English Language and Literatures in English, both from State University of Londrina. His research and teaching experiences span multiple international contexts, including serving as a Fulbright Foreign Language Teaching Assistant (FLTA) at the University of Georgia (Athens, USA) and as an English instructor in the GO Teach Russia project in Krasnoyarsk, Russia. As a member of the UACS research group, Felipe engages in scholarship that explores the intersections of language, identity, and social justice, contributing to initiatives that empower marginalized communities through education.
Taylor Weber
Taylor Weber is a Graduate Teaching Assistant at the University of Tennessee, Knoxville, where she is pursuing a PhD in the department of Theory and Practice in Teacher Education (TPTE) with a concentration in Elementary Education. Passionate about preparing future educators, she is dedicated to bridging the gap between theory and practice in teacher preparation programs. Her current research centers on culturally responsive teaching and early literacy, and she is grateful for the opportunity to be a part of the UACS research group.