Vivian Lynette Gadsden is an American psychologist who is an education researcher at the

University of Pennsylvania The University of Pennsylvania (also known as Penn or UPenn) is a private research university in Philadelphia. It is the fourth-oldest institution of higher education in the United States and is ranked among the highest-regarded universitie ...

. Her research considers the social and cultural factors that affect learning and literacy. She is interested in intergenerational learning within African-American families.

Early life and education

Gadsden was an undergraduate student at

Fisk University Fisk University is a private historically black liberal arts college in Nashville, Tennessee. It was founded in 1866 and its campus is a historic district listed on the National Register of Historic Places. In 1930, Fisk was the first Africa ...

Nashville, Tennessee Nashville is the capital city of the U.S. state of Tennessee and the county seat, seat of Davidson County, Tennessee, Davidson County. With a population of 689,447 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 U.S. census, Nashville is the List of muni ...

. She moved to the

University of Michigan , mottoeng = "Arts, Knowledge, Truth" , former_names = Catholepistemiad, or University of Michigania (1817–1821) , budget = $10.3 billion (2021) , endowment = $17 billion (2021)As o ...

for graduate studies, where she completed a doctorate of education in adult literacy. Gadsden worked as a Spencer Foundation postdoctoral fellow.

Research and career

Gadsden started her academic career studying educational psychology at

Wayne State University Wayne State University (WSU) is a public research university in Detroit, Michigan. It is Michigan's third-largest university. Founded in 1868, Wayne State consists of 13 schools and colleges offering approximately 350 programs to nearly 25,000 ...

. She moved to

Washington, D.C. ) , image_skyline = , image_caption = Clockwise from top left: the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial on the National Mall, United States Capitol, Logan Circle, Jefferson Memorial, White House, Adams Morgan, ...

where she was made a research analyst in policy studies. She was appointed to the

University of Pennsylvania Graduate School of Education The University of Pennsylvania Graduate School of Education, commonly known as Penn GSE, is an Ivy League top-ranked educational research school in the United States. Formally established as a school at the University of Pennsylvania in 1914, Penn ...

(GSE) Literacy Research centre in 1988 and was made associate director in 1989. Gadsden was made Director of the National Center on Fathers and Families in 1994. In 2006 she was made the William T. Carter Professor in Child Development and Education. Gadsden's research considers the cultural and social factors that impact learning and literacy. In particular, she has focused on urban education and family literacy, and how this intersects with culture, race and gender. She is interested in how parents engage with their children's early literacy. Gadsden engages with Philadelphia's most vulnerable communities through the Penn Futures Project. During the

COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic, also known as the coronavirus pandemic, is an ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The novel virus was first identif ...

, Gadsden studied the disproportionate impact of

COVID-19 Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is a contagious disease caused by a virus, the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The first known case was COVID-19 pandemic in Hubei, identified in Wuhan, China, in December ...

on the educational outcomes of students of color. Gadsden seeks to improve the academic performance of students from underrepresented groups. She serves on the advisory boards of various school readiness initiatives and family literacy programs, and has provided expert advice to the

United States Congress The United States Congress is the legislature of the federal government of the United States. It is bicameral, composed of a lower body, the House of Representatives, and an upper body, the Senate. It meets in the U.S. Capitol in Washing ...

on children's reading. She served as the President of the

American Educational Research Association The American Educational Research Association (AERA, pronounced "A-E-R-A") is a professional organization representing education researchers in the United States and around the world. AERA's mission is to advance knowledge about education and p ...

in 2016. In 2021, she was made Chair-Elect of the

Office of the Faculty Senate.

Awards and honors

* 2017 Elected to the

National Academy of Education The National Academy of Education (NAEd) is a nonprofit, non-governmental organization in the United States that advances high-quality research to improve education policy and practice. Founded in 1965, the NAEd currently consists of over 300 elec ...

* 2020 Edu-Scholar's top education scholars * 2020 Inducted to the Reading Hall of Fame

Selected publications

* * *

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Gadsden, Vivian University of Pennsylvania faculty Fisk University alumni University of Michigan alumni 21st-century American psychologists Living people Year of birth missing (living people)