Dr. Sewell is Chair for 2025-2027. Dr. Sewell is the Director of the Dr. Jewel Plummer Cobb Honors Program and Associate Professor at Talladega College. Previously, he was Associate Dean of Students and Dean of First-Year Students at Williams College and as Curriculum Manager at Praxis Labs. He has worked across the educational spectrum. His scholarship focuses on the experiences of gifted students of color with college access, the transition to college, and the experiences of Black students at Predominantly White Institutions. Dr. Sewell serves on the Editorial Board for the Journal of African American Males in Education (JAAME). He has previously served as the Multicultural/Multiethnic Education SIG Program Chair. He earned his Doctor of Education degree in Educational Leadership and Policy from Vanderbilt University, Master of Science in Education from UPenn, Master of Arts in Afro-American Studies from UCLA, and Bachelor of Arts in American Studies and History from Williams College.
Dr. Melisa Valentin is the Program Chair for 2026-2027. Dr. Valentin has loved dedicating more than 20 years to learning from diverse individuals in different contexts, specifically international students and historically marginalized ethnic and racial groups. She has enjoyed educational consulting, research, curriculum development, and instructional design. Dr. Valentin's life experiences have led her to focus her research on how curriculum impacts Latinx children, including their perceptions of their racial identity. She is interested in studying how the curriculum otherizes students through colonial narratives utilizing a theoretical framework merging critical race theory, reader-response theory, and principles of culturally responsive teaching. Her goal is to challenge the hidden curricula to build a shared vision of what all learners could become when they are met where they are and uplifted through cariño pedagogies, race-conscious curricula, and responsive instruction. Most importantly, she intends to foster equitable visions of our children's individual value and academic potential.
Dr. Nez is the Secretary for 2026-2027. She is an Assistant Professor in the College of Education in the Department of Education Specialties/Bilingual & Multicultural Education Program at Northern Arizona University, Flagstaff, AZ. Her research explores Indigenous theoretical framework and Indigenous research methodology for language revitalization and culturally relevant pedagogy. Tribal member of the Navajo Nation. I identify my clans to all my relations: Táchiinii nishli, Ta’néészahnii baáshishchiin, Naakaii Dine'é ei dáshicheii dóó Bit'ahnii ei dáshinali.
A final-year doctoral candidate in Teaching and Leadership at the University of North Dakota, with research interests in multilingual education, teacher preparation, STEM education, academic self-efficacy, and equitable teaching and learning. She serves as a Graduate Research Assistant on NSF-funded projects focused on rural education, STEM teacher development, and culturally and linguistically responsive teaching. Her dissertation examines preservice STEM teachers’ self-efficacy for supporting multilingual learners in STEM classrooms.
A second-generation Indian American located in Connecticut with family roots in both India and Singapore. She is a doctoral candidate studying Curriculum and Instruction at the University of Connecticut, with a concentration in Bilingual and Multicultural Education. As a former elementary school teacher in East Hartford Public Schools, she has always had a strong passion for teaching and teacher education. Elizabeth is dedicated to creating counterspaces for pre-service teachers of color and her research specifically focuses on the experiences of Asian Americans in teacher preparation programs. Through her work she strives to create a more equitable environment for future educators.
Neisha Terry Young, Secretary: Dr. Neisha Terry Young serves the Multicultural/Multiethnic SIG as secretary for 2025-2026. Dr. Neisha Terry Young is the Director of the VOICE Research Lab and Assistant Professor of English Education at Stony Brook University. Her research explores the affordances of multiliteracies in supporting the intersectional identities of Black immigrant youth. Dr. Terry Young has received various recognitions and awards for her work, including the Drexel University School of Education Ann Marie Weil Award (2022) for Ph.D. students whose dissertation research contributes to making a difference through a better understanding of human needs. She has also received a fellowship with Just Education Policy (2022 cohort), the English Language Arts Teacher Education (ELATE) graduate student research award (2022), and the 2024 MAXQDA Black History Month Research for Change grant, in addition to numerous travel grants to present her work both nationally and internationally. Dr. Terry Young earned her PhD in Education Policy and Leadership from Drexel University.
Melisa Valentin, Treasurer: Dr. Melisa Valentin is the Multicultural/Multiethnic SIG Treasurer for 2025-2026. Dr. Valentin has loved dedicating more than 20 years to learning from diverse individuals in different contexts, specifically international students and historically marginalized ethnic and racial groups. She has enjoyed educational consulting, research, curriculum development, and instructional design. Dr. Valentin's life experiences have led her to focus her research on how curriculum impacts Latinx children, including their perceptions of their racial identity. She is interested in studying how the curriculum otherizes students through colonial narratives utilizing a theoretical framework merging critical race theory, reader-response theory, and principles of culturally responsive teaching. Her goal is to challenge the hidden curricula to build a shared vision of what all learners could become when they are met where they are and uplifted through cariño pedagogies, race-conscious curricula, and responsive instruction. Most importantly, she intends to foster equitable visions of our children's individual value and academic potential.
Adriel A. Hilton, Program Chair: Dr. Hilton serves as the 2025-2026 Program Chair for the Multicultural/ Multiethnic SIG. Adriel A. Hilton is Vice President of Institutional Strategy and Chief of Staff at Columbia College Chicago. In this role, he partners with President Shantay N. Bolton and the Board of Trustees to advance initiatives that stabilize enrollment, strengthen philanthropy, elevate Columbia’s brand, and improve operational effectiveness. Dr. Hilton brings more than twenty years of higher education leadership experience. He previously served as Vice Chancellor for Student Affairs and Enrollment Management and Associate Professor of Education at Southern University at New Orleans, Dean of Students and Diversity Officer at Seton Hill University, Chief of Staff and Executive Assistant to the President at Grambling State University, and in leadership roles at Upper Iowa University, and Webster University Myrtle Beach. His work consistently reflects a focus on student success and institutional transformation. A published scholar, Dr. Hilton has written extensively on leadership, enrollment management, diversity, and historically Black colleges and universities. He earned a PhD from Morgan State University, an MBA from Webster University, Master’s in Public Administration from Florida A&M University, and a BA from Morehouse College.
Crystal Hutchinson, Social Media Coordinator: Crystal Hutchinson is a doctoral student at Rowan University's Educational Research Program. She is currently a fifth-grade teacher and a research assistant in Rowan's Critical Consciousness and Transformational Learning Lab.
Allen "A.C." Williams, Graduate Student Committee: Allen "A.C." Williams received his Bachelor of Health Science degree from the University of Missouri-Kansas City and his Master of Education degree in Higher Education Management from the University of Pittsburgh. He is a current PhD student in the higher education program at the State University of New York (SUNY) at Buffalo (UB). His research interest includes organization. Allen is a member of Kappa Alpha Psi Fraternity, Inc.
Yiting Chu, Immediate Past Chair: Dr. Yiting Chu served as the Multicultural/Multiethnic SIG Chair for 2023-2025. Yiting Chu is an assistant professor in the Department of Language, Literacy, Ed.D., Exceptional Education, and Physical Education at the College of Education, University of South Florida, Tampa. Dr. Chu's research is broadly situated at the intersections of multicultural education, teacher education, and education policy.
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