Shana Lusk PhD

Biography

Shana Lusk, Ph.D., is an Assistant Professor of Education at Western Colorado University. She earned her doctorate in Educational Psychology from the University of Connecticut, where she served as a research assistant on Project Focus. A member of the Catawba Nation, Shana’s dissertation explored the educational experiences of her fellow tribal members, capturing their stories of school integration beginning in the 1960s.

She previously worked as a speaker for notMYkid, educating students in grades 6–12 about Safe Dating and Healthy Relationships, and empowering them to speak out against abuse. Shana holds a Master’s degree in Curriculum and Instruction with a Concentration in English as a Second Language from Arizona State University. As a former classroom teacher, she has experience supporting the diverse needs of English learners in third- through eighth-grade classrooms. During her time in the classroom, she was selected as a Javits-Frasier Scholar by the National Association for Gifted Children to advocate for and nurture the talents of culturally and linguistically diverse students.

Her research interests include Indigenous education, text analytics, culture and schooling, gifted English learners, teacher preparation, and longitudinal educational outcomes.