Holmes Scholar recognized nationally

Nov. 9, 2022 — DENTON — The American Association of Colleges for Teacher Education (AACTE) has named Texas Woman’s doctoral student Phyliciá Anderson the Holmes Scholar of the month for October.

“It is truly an honor to be recognized by AACTE,” Anderson said. “I feel very humbled to have been selected, and I appreciate the support throughout my journey toward earning a doctorate.”

Anderson stood out for her productivity in the past year, contributing a chapter titled “Cultural (mis)representations in the media: Challenging hegemonic ideas,” in Engage and Empower: Expanding the Curriculum for Justice and Activism and a journal article published in the Journal of Language and Literacy Education titled “Language, literacy, and love: A critical framework for teaching adolescent emergent bilinguals.”

She also authored a chapter — “BookSnaps: Reading and analyzing young adult novels across languages” — in Leveraging Languages, Literacies, and Cultures: Innovative Approaches for Teaching Multilingual Students to be released in December.

“The Holmes Scholars program has allowed me to learn more about the opportunities attached to earning a doctoral level degree like leadership skills and networking opportunities,” Anderson said. “It has been most exciting to see others conducting research in fields similar to mine and participating in discussions about the field of education and what can be done to help the next generation of students become more successful.”

Many of those discussions have happened for Anderson at national and international conferences where she has been busy presenting. She has presented at conferences in Dublin, Ireland; San Juan, Puerto Rico; and Galicia, Spain. She also shared research at the American Educational Research Association (AERA) annual conference.

Anderson said support of her advisor, Mandy Stewart, PhD, and others helped her along in her initial year of doctoral studies.

“It’s great to know that I am not in this by myself and have those that I can rely on because they see value in what I am researching,” she said.

Her research focuses on African American/Black adolescent literacy and the influences of race, language and power on the literacy development of adolescents in different educational settings.

“Being a Holmes Scholar has given me the confidence to conduct the hard research and ask the hard questions when it comes to educational freedom for all,” Anderson said. “As I have journeyed through this program, I have found a greater need to support the African American community by helping others understand how education can be modified to support marginalized communities.”

Anderson is part of the 2021 inaugural class of TWU Holmes Scholars and a doctoral candidate in Reading Education. The Holmes Scholars program, sponsored by AACTE, supports racially and ethnically diverse students pursuing graduate degrees in education by providing mentorship, peer support and professional development opportunities.

TWU is the only woman-focused university participating in the program to date and supplements support with a grant from the Jane Nelson Institute for Women’s Leadership.

Page last updated 9:44 AM, October 2, 2023