Susan Assouline, Ph.D.
Professor, School Psychology
Susan G. Assouline received a B.S in General Science, Ed.S. in School Psychology, and Ph.D. in Educational Psychology all from The University of Iowa. Upon completion of her Ph.D., she completed a two-year postdoctoral fellowship at Johns Hopkins University and then happily returned to her alma mater to serve as the associate director for the UI Connie Belin & Jacqueline N. Blank Center for Gifted Education and Talent Development.
Assouline has been integral in the center’s expansion over its 20-year history into one of the most comprehensive centers for gifted education in the world. She is especially interested in twice-exceptionality, specifically gifted students who also have and autism spectrum disorder (ASD) or gifted students who have a specific learning disability (SLD). She also conducts research on the academic talent development of elementary students and is co-author (with Ann Lupkowski-Shoplik) of Developing Math Talent: A Guide for Educating Gifted and Advanced Learners in Math (2005). As well, she is co-developer of The Iowa Acceleration Scale (2009), a tool designed to guide educators and parents through decisions about grade-skipping students. In 2004, she co-authored, with Nicholas Colangelo and Miraca U. M. Gross, A Nation Deceived: How Schools Hold Back America’s Brightest Students.
Assouline says she is an Iowan in residence, spirit, and philosophy who loves this campus and the opportunity to contribute to the well-being of the students and fellow Iowans. “It’s a place where hard work is recognized and rewarded and I can’t imagine doing the work that I do anywhere else.”
Kyong Mi Choi, Ph.D.
Assistant Professor, Mathematics Education
Kyong Mi Choi has received her B.S. in Mathematics Education from Seoul National University, Seoul, Korea, an M.A. in Mathematics Education, an M.Phil., and a Ph.D. in Mathematics Education from Teachers College, Columbia University. She previously worked as a high school mathematics teacher in New Jersey.
Choi’s research interests include characteristics and influential factors of the mathematically gifted, curriculum analysis, and applications of cognitive diagnosis model approaches in mathematics education.
Choi says, “It is my honor to work at The University of Iowa where Mathematics Education once flourished and will again. I strongly believe that collaborative works with outstanding researchers here will definitely yield a high reputation in the field.”
Cory Forbes, Ph.D.
Assistant Professor, Science Education
Cory Forbes received a B.S. in Ecology & Evolutionary Biology and a M.S. in Curriculum & Instruction from the University of Kansas. He also received a M.S. in Natural Resources & Environment and a Ph.D. in Science Education from the University of Michigan. Previously he was a 9th-grade science teacher and a doctoral fellow with the Center for Curriculum Materials in Science.
Forbes’ research interests are focused on elementary science, including the development of effective, inquiry-based elementary science curriculum materials, how teachers use science curriculum materials, and student learning of science through inquiry. He is currently working to develop and refine an observation protocol for classroom inquiry, a professional development program for elementary teachers focused on effective curriculum adaptation strategies, and develop and test the effectiveness of elementary science curriculum materials.
Forbes looks forward to beginning his professional career at Iowa. “I have found this to be an incredibly balanced professional environment that prioritizes teacher education, graduate education, research, and outreach,” he said.
John Hosp, Ph.D.
Associate Professor, Special Education
John Hosp received a B. A. in Psychology (minoring in Studio Art) from Hobart College, a M.S. (with C.A.G.S.) in School Psychology from the Rochester Institute of Technology, and a Ph.D. in Education and Human Development (with an emphasis on Special Education) from Vanderbilt University. He is a nationally certified school psychologist and worked in the Clark County School District (in Nevada) for three years.
Hosp’s research interests include linking assessment with instruction/intervention through the use of data-based approaches to decision making and the disproportionate representation of students of color in special education programs.
“Iowa has a reputation as a place where education is highly valued,” Hosp said. “I can see that reputation is well-deserved, and I am thrilled to join the faculty at The University of Iowa.”
Nancy Langguth, Ph.D.
Clinical Associate Professor, Curriculum and Supervision
Nancy Langguth received a B.S. in Elementary Education from Iowa State University, a M.S. in Education from Northwest Missouri State University, and a Ph.D. in Education (School Counseling Specialization/Science Education Cognate) from The University of Iowa. Langguth has worked as the University of Iowa’s associate coordinator of student field experiences for the past 12 years. In that role, she facilitates and monitors special site student teaching placements for students in the Teacher Education Program.
Langguth teaches Secondary Education management courses for the Teacher Education Program, and serves as the Iowa State Education Association student program faculty sponsor. Prior to beginning her Ph.D. at Iowa, she taught middle grade students in the public school setting and college students at Cornell College.
Langguth says working in the College of Education is professionally and personally gratifying. “To be associated with faculty and staff who are so dedicated to preparing highly qualified and effective classroom teachers, is truly an honor.”
Melissa McNaught, Ph.D.
Assistant Professor, Mathematics Education
Melissa McNaught received a B.A. in Mathematics from University of Arkansas, a B.S.E. in Secondary Education from Missouri Southern State University, an M.S. in Mathematics from Pittsburg State University in Kansas, and a Ph.D. in Curriculum and Instruction from University of Missouri. Prior to her doctoral studies, Melissa taught secondary mathematics courses in rural Missouri for seven years.
McNaught’s research includes investigating the teacher’s use of curriculum within classrooms and its impact on student learning. She is currently working on an NSF-funded project entitled, “Comparing Options in Secondary Mathematics: Investigating Curriculum,” a three-year longitudinal comparative study that addresses questions related to the impact of two distinct organizations of high school mathematics curricular materials on student learning.
“I chose The University of Iowa because of its commitment to mathematics education and its history of research in mathematics curriculum,” McNaught said. “I feel especially fortunate to be given the opportunity to work alongside excellent researchers and educators without leaving the Midwest.”
Kristen N. Missall, Ph.D.
Associate Professor, School Psychology
Kristen N. Missall, received a Ph.D. in Educational Psychology/School Psychology from the University of Minnesota where she also completed a two-year postdoctoral experience at the Center for Early Education and Development. She worked as an early childhood and elementary school psychologist in the Mounds View Public School District, a suburb of Minneapolis, for two years.
Prior to joining the faculty at The University of Iowa, Missall was an assistant professor of School Psychology at the University of Kentucky for five years. She conducts research in the areas of early literacy and social skill development, school adjustment, and general outcome measurement, and has particular interest in the skills and experiences of children transitioning from preschool to kindergarten.
Missall says she chose The University of Iowa because the emphasis on academics and research is strong, balanced, and applied. “I am honored to be working with high caliber faculty and students who value their scholarship and translate their learning to improve their community,” she said.
Christopher Morphew, Ph.D.
Professor, Higher Education
DEO, Educational Policy and Leadership Studies
An Iowa native, Christopher Morphew earned his Ph.D. and M.A. at Stanford University. He also has degrees from Harvard University and the University of Notre Dame. He joins the College, after having served as an associate professor and program coordinator for graduate education at the University of Georgia’s Institute of Higher Education. Previously, he was an associate professor at the University of Kansas.
Morphew’s research agenda focuses on state higher education systems and issues related to institutional diversity among colleges and universities. His work has appeared in many journals, including Research in Higher Education, Higher Education Policy, The Review of Higher Education, and the Journal of Higher Education. He is co-editor of Privatizing the Public University, published earlier this year by Johns Hopkins University Press.
“I’m excited to be back in Iowa,” Morphew said, “and look forward to the opportunity to work with a productive and collegial group of faculty members in the College.”
Lia Plakans, Ph.D.
Assistant Professor, Foreign Language Education
Prior to earning her Ph.D. in Foreign Language and ESL Education at The University of Iowa, Lia Plakans spent 15 years teaching English as a second/foreign language in Texas, Iowa, Ohio, and Latvia, working with learners in a range of settings from pre-K community-based programs to university intensive English programs. After graduating from Iowa, she worked as an assistant professor of Foreign Language Education at the University of Texas at Austin. She holds a B.A. in anthropology and psychology from University of Iowa and an M.A. in applied linguistics/teaching English as a second language from Iowa State University.
Plakans’ research focuses on assessment of second/foreign languages, in particular the integration of second language writing with other skills in assessment. She also studies second language reading and writing processes and research methodology.
“I’m pleased to be back at The University of Iowa because it has a wonderful balance of scholarship, teaching, and community connections,” Plakans said. “I have great respect for education in Iowa, and thus look forward to helping sustain its quality as well as contribute to education for English language learners and their teachers.”
Pamela Wesely, Ph.D.
Assistant Professor, Foreign Language Education
Pamela M. Wesely received a B.A. from Yale University, where she majored in French and Anthropology. She received an M.A. in French Studies from New York University. Her experience teaching during the summers at Concordia Language Villages in Bemidji, Minn., led her to pursue a career as a French teacher. She taught French at the middle school level, where she worked with beginning foreign language learners. Through these experiences, she began to ask about how American students experience learning a foreign language, and how foreign language teachers can meet their students’ needs.
Wesely received her Ph.D. in Curriculum and Instruction, with a focus on Second Languages and Cultures Education from the University of Minnesota, while teaching middle school French and supervising student teachers. Her research focuses on the experiences, opinions, and attitudes of U.S. students and teachers in foreign language and immersion programs.
Wesely said she chose Iowa because of its wonderful environment for teaching and research. “I am awed by the reputation of the scholars and research in the College of Education,” Wesely said. “The support and inspiration provided is unbelievable.”
