Biographical Sketch: Dr. Vonzell Agosto began her teaching career as a teacher's aide in a suburban day school or students who were diagnosed as severely disabled. She later worked for several years in a comprehensive high school in Chicago as a special education teacher and consultant in an inclusive education program in self -contained and team taught settings. Her teaching continued as a graduate teaching assistant for a Multicultural Learning Community Seminar at the University of Wisconsin - Madison where she earned her PhD in the department of curriculum and instruction. While a graduate student Dr. Agosto trained in Theatre of the Oppressed techniques and applied them as a facilitator of anti-racist workshops for community and campus organizations and conferences. She was awarded a fellowship at the University of Wisconsin Milwaukee's Institute on Race and Ethnicity during 2007-2008. She is acknowledged as an exemplary diversity scholar (2009-2011) by the National Center for Institutional Diversity at the University of Michigan Ann Arbor. RESEARCH AGENDA Dr. Agosto's research agenda is comprised of two overlapping strands focused through curriculum and pedagogy: anti-oppressive education and educational preparation (i.e., teachers, administrators). These strands engage critical social theories attuned to diversity and equity in the preparation of teachers and administrators for curricular/instructional leadership characterized by culturally resonant and ethically oriented practice toward equitable excellence. Her interests include inquiry and instruction that makes use of technology and arts-based approaches. She explores and defines this research agenda in consideration of the goals, processes, and stances associated with anti-oppressive and social justice education. Dr. Agosto has presented her research at major conferences including the American Education Research Association, National Association of Multicultural Education, Association for Teacher Educators, Bergamo, University Council of Education Administrators, and the Equity and Social Justice Conference. Her publications include handbook chapters and articles in Race Ethnicity & Education, Teachers College Record, and the Journal of Negro Education.
Articles
Journey of Elam: Her Pedagogy as a Public Intellectual (with Zorka Karanxha), Vitae Scholasticae (2011)
We explore pedagogical moments reflecting the social justice inspired servant-leadership of Dr. Elam in her...
Resistance Meets Spirituality: "I Prayed on It" (with Zorka Karanxha), Negro Educational Review (2011)
In this article we describe the lived experiences of a Black female educational leader who...
Underrepresented Women in Higher Education: An Overview (with Deirdre Cobb-Roberts), Negro Educational Review (2011)
This themed issue explicates the experiences of underrepresented women in higher education institutions and the...
Problematic Conceptualizations: Allies in Teacher Education for Social Justice, Teacher Education & Practice (2010)
This review of the literature on the concept ally and ally identity development was inspired...
Intratexturealities: The Poetics of the Freedom Schools, Journal of Negro Education (2008)
Freedom Schools, which operated during 1964 after the collaborative efforts of several Civil Rights organizations,...
Contributions to Books
Teacher Capacity and Social Justice in Teacher Education (with Carl A. Grant), Handbook of Research on Teacher Education: Enduring Questions and Changing Contexts (2008)
In this chapter we discuss social justice and teacher capacity, an amalgam of teachers’ knowledge,...
What are we trippin' on?: Transgressing the fault lines in research on the preparation of multicultural educators. (with Carl A. Grant), Sage Handbook for Research in Education: Engaging Ideas and Enriching Inquiry (2006)
How do we prepare multicultural educators? The purpose of the chapter is to discuss some...