Rural Education Research in the United States

Gwen C. Nugent, PhD
Dr. Gwen Nugent is a Research Professor at the Nebraska Center for Research on Children, Youth, Families and Schools in the College of Education at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln.  With a background in cognitive psychology and K-12 instruction, she has over 30 years of experience in the design, production, and evaluation of mediated instruction.  She coordinates STEM (science, technology, engineering and mathematics) development and research projects, with a focus on teacher professional development and the use of technology to improve student learning.  As part of the National Center for Research in Rural Education, she served as principal investigator for the Coaching Science Inquiry in Rural Schools project, which examined how professional development and follow-up coaching influenced teachers' knowledge and implementation of guided scientific inquiry.

Gina M. Kunz, PhD 
Dr. Gina M. Kunz is a Research Associate Professor and Assistant Director at the Nebraska Center for Research on Children, Youth, Families and Schools in the College of Education and Human Sciences at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln.  She is a licensed psychologist for children and adolescents with a background in school psychology. She has served in many roles in large-scale federally funded research and has led numerous professional development workshops and training sessions for pre-service and active professionals in the areas of school psychology and STEM (science, technology, engineering and mathematics) education. As a Co-Principal Investigator of the National Center for Research on Rural Education (R2Ed) and Director of Rural Outreach and Coordination, she served as a Co-Principal Investigator for the Coaching Science Inquiry in Rural Schools research project. She also served as a Co-Principal Investigator for the Conjoint Behavior Consultationin Rural Communities study. 
Susan M. Sheridan, PhD
Dr. Susan M. Sheridan directs