Our research team brings together the nation’s experts in human development and those from learning sciences, computer science, education, public health, sociology, psychology and new media studies. Our team members’ expertise is wide ranging and includes learning theory and design, digital learning, literacy, science education, racial discrimination and health, ethnic identity, social media, and African American, Latino and Asian child and adolescent development. The team is drawn from scholars across the USC campus as well as those at the top research institutions across the US.
Dr. Brendesha Tynes, PhD
Brendesha Tynes is an associate professor of education and psychology and founding director of the Center for Empowered Learning and Development with Technology at the University of Southern California. Her research for the past 18 years has focused on the racial landscape adolescents navigate in online settings, online racial discrimination and the design of digital tools that empower youth of color. Tynes is the recipient of numerous awards including Ford Pre-doctoral and Postdoctoral Fellowships, the American Educational Research Association’s 2012 Early Career Contribution Award for scholars who have made significant scholarly contributions to communities of color, the 2015 AERA Early Career Award, and the Spencer Foundation Midcareer Award. She was also an honoree in the American Psychological Association’s Thank-a-Scientist Campaign for 2017, named one of Diverse Magazine’s Emerging Scholars under 40 and her article in the Journal of Adolescent Research was #1 (or the top 10) in the 50 most frequently read articles for several years. Her work has been cited in the New York Times, the Los Angeles Times, Newsweek and several other outlets. Inspired by findings from her research, Tynes created Rate My Media, the first crowdsourced rating app to promote equity and inclusion in educational technology and entertainment media. Rate My Media was rated #2 in the top 10 best apps of 2016 by Black Enterprise. Tynes is also a former high school history and global studies teacher. She has a master’s in learning sciences from Northwestern and a doctorate in human development and psychology in education from UCLA.
Matthew Hamilton
Matthew Hamilton is a PhD student in the Urban Education Policy – Education Psychology program at University of Southern California’s Rossier School of Education, working with Dr. Brendesha Tynes. They study the intersections between play-based learning, technology, and struggles for liberation from systems of oppression. They are particularly interested in game design research to support critical imagination, world-building future visioning, and transmedia storytelling.
Matthew graduated from Brown University, majoring in Religious Studies with a concentration in poetry. They have a Masters in Theological Studies from Notre Dame, with a focus in comparative social ethics and liberation theologies. They also have a Masters in Teaching from Seattle Pacific University, and taught Language Arts, Social Studies, and spoken-word poetry for 10 years at a program re-engaging students on the verge of dropping out of high school. They have co-designed multiple learning games to support student motivation and critical consciousness.
When they are not working, Matthew loves to nurture shared imagination through writing, dance, music, and theater.
Tara-Marie Desruisseaux
Tara-Marie Desruisseaux is a doctoral candidate at the University of Southern California. Her research interests include topics related to the experiences of Black math teachers throughout the teacher pipeline, the recruitment, retention and placement of Black teachers, and the attitudes that Black students have towards mathematics. Prior to becoming a student at the Rossier School of Education, she earned her bachelor’s degree from Duke University, majoring in Psychology and minoring in Education. After graduating, she taught 7th and 8th grade math in Brooklyn, NY with Uncommon Schools.
Essence Wilson
Essence Wilson has a Bachelor of Arts in Psychology-Honors with Summa Cume Laude distinction, and a Master of Art in General Experimental Psychology with Distinction from California State University, Northridge (CSUN). Her research interests include multimedia and education. During her research endeavors, she has implemented the first Lightboard Studio for her campus to encourage higher retention on difficult subject matters. She has also utilized the Critical Race Theory in understanding educational gaps of those from marginalized backgrounds resulting in the monograph “Beating the Odds: Graduating in 4 Years at CSUN”. She was an instructor for Introductory Psychology at CSUN and due to her teaching accomplishments has received the Roger Moss Teaching Award for demonstrating outstanding teaching skills. She was also a teaching assistant for Quantitative Statistics more specifically in the realm of Structural Equation Modeling and was also peer educator for “The Blues Project” in raising awareness for mental health throughout her campus. She is an Ambassador for the Girl Scouts of Greater Los Angeles and a member of the National Congress of Black Women, Los Angeles Chapter.
Janel King
Janel King is a PhD student in the University of Southern California’s Rossier Urban Education Policy program, working with Dr. Brendesha Tynes. Her research interests include motivation and social-emotional development in underserved communities, particularly in regards to creation with the arts and technology. Prior to her graduate studies at USC, Janel was the Director of Education for the Latino Film Institute’s Youth Cinema Project, where she wrote the curriculum and trained Film Mentors and teachers in educating underserved students. For 12 years before that, she worked in Lynwood Unified School District as a teacher and grade level chair and Coordinator for Secondary Education and Visual and Performing Arts. In addition to her bachelor’s degrees in Cinema Television and Classics, as well as her master’s degree in Elementary Education, Janel also holds a Multiple Subject Teaching Credential and an Administrative Services Credential in the state of California.
Jaymon Ortega
Jaymon Ortega is a third year Ph.D. student at USC Rossier’s School of Education in the Urban Education Policy Program. In addition to full-time course work, Jaymon works as a Graduate Research Associate in the Race and Equity Center with his advisor, Dr. Shaun Harper. His research interests consider the utility of esports in higher education as a tool for Black and Latinx student success. Jaymon has worked at nine community colleges in the Los Angeles area as both a professor and counselor. Before working in the California community college system, he also advised student-athletes, first-generation, low-income students at USC and the University of California, Berkeley, respectively. Jaymon is an alumni of UC Berkeley, USC, and the Institute for Recruitment of Teachers (IRT).
Ashley Maxie-Moreman
Ashley Maxie-Moreman, Ph.D. (“Maxie”) is a recent graduate of University of Miami’s Counseling Psychology program. She earned her B.S. in Psychology from the University of Florida and her M.Ed. in Psychological Counseling at Teachers College, Columbia University. Maxie recently completed her internship in Pediatric Health Psychology at Nicklaus Children’s Hospital in Miami, Florida. She is now completing the Hematology, Oncology, and Blood and Marrow Transplantation Postdoctoral Fellowship at Children’s National Hospital in Washington, D.C.
Maxie’s research interests include online and offline ethnic-racial discrimination, exposure to traumatic events online, adjustment outcomes, and protective factors in Black and Latinx youth and emerging adults. She is a recipient of the John C. Mitchell Research Fellowship, the Belfer Aptman Scholars Research Award, and the University of Miami School of Education and Human Development Research Award. Maxie is also a self-published author of a children’s picture book series. The most recent book in the series is titled Bray Bray Conquers the Coronavirus. This series centers Black children and aims to promote ethnic-racial identity development and address difficult topics in a developmentally appropriate way.
Dr. Valerie N. Adams-Bass, PhD
Dr. Valerie N. Adams-Bass is a Developmental Psychologist, an Assistant Professor of Youth and Social Innovation, and a faculty affiliate of the Youth-Nex Center to Promote Effective Youth Development in the School of Education and Human Development at the University of Virginia. Her research focuses on how Black children see themselves and related outcomes. Dr. Adams-Bass is most interested in examining how media exposure influences inter-personal interactions and self-concept. Her research also examines how racial/ethnic socialization experiences and racial identity are related to the process of identity development and the social and the academic experiences of Black children and youth. Dr. Adams-Bass regularly trains youth development professionals and teachers to use culturally relevant practices when working with Black children and youth and she is a faculty affiliate of The Racial Empowerment Collaborative at the University of Pennsylvania’s Graduate School of Education.
Maddie Adams
Maddie Adams is a junior undergraduate student at the University of Southern California. She is a Research Assistant for the Learning About Race Online research project and is currently helping to finalize the procedure protocol and conduct interviews for the project.