Reading Faculty
Thomas W. Bean, Ph.D.
Professor
Thomas W. Bean is a Professor of Literacy/Reading in the Department of Teaching and Learning. He is considered a leading scholar in content area literacy with over 25 books, 31 book chapters, and over 100 articles in refereed journals including Reading Research Quarterly and the Journal of Adolescent & Adult Literacy. Tom is a senior author of the widely used text, Content Area Literacy: An Integrated Approach (10th ed). His most recent book is Teaching Young Adult Literature: Developing World Citizens, co-authored with Dr. Judith Dunkerly-Bean and Helen Harper.
Jamie Colwell, Ph.D.
Associate Professor
Jamie Colwell is an Associate Professor of Literacy in the Darden College of Education & Professional Studies. She received her Ph.D. in Curriculum and Instruction, Literacy from Clemson University in 2012. Her research interests include adolescent literacy, pre-service teacher educaiton in literacy, and the uses of technology to promote literacy. Dr. Colwell has published in journals such as Journal of Literacy Research, Language Arts, and Journal of Adolescent & Adult Literacy. She also works as an affiliate advisor for the Carpi, Italy Summer Study Abroad program for education majors.
Judith Dunkerly-Bean, Ph.D.
Assistant Professor
Dr. Dunkerly-Bean, Ph.D. is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Teaching and Learning. Her research focuses on the intersection of human rights, social justice and critical literacy through a transnational feminist and cosmopolitan framework. Her work has been published in journals such as The Journal Of Literacy Research, The Journal of Adolescent and Adult Literacy, Current Issues in Comparative Education and Language and Literacy, as well as featured in several edited volumes and a research handbook. Along with Co-author Dr. Thomas Bean, Dr. Dunkerly-Bean has published a methods text, Teaching Young Adult Literature: Developing Students as World Citizens.
Abha Gupta, Ph.D.
Professor
Dr. Abha Gupta, teaches graduate-level courses in Reading education. Currently she is a Professor and Graduate Program Director of Reading in the Department of Teaching and Learning.
Lea Lee, Ph.D.
Professor
Dr. Lee is a professor in the Department of Teaching and Learning at Old Dominion University. Dr. Lee earned the Master's Degree in Early Childhood Education from Chicago State University of Minnesota in 1993 in the area of Literacy and Early Childhood Education. She was born and raised in Seoul, Korea. After she completed her Bachelor's degree, she moved to the United States of America 21 years ago to pursue her graduate education.
