DRAG
Through my research with Colombian refugee youth in Ecuador and with Latin American youth affected by the drug war, I have seen how the Colombian armed conflict is embedded in inter- and transnational circuits. This has inspired me to root my pedagogical practice in what I call critical transnationalism.
I conceptualize critical transnationalism as the capacity that learning communities develop to unravel the logics and processes that asymmetrically connect diverse actors across national borders. To cultivate and promote critical transnationalism in my classes, I create a platform from which participants can think critically, creatively, and collectively about borders and their dynamics.
For example, in my Human Rights and Education course, we address child labor and access to education by linking the makeup industry in the United States with mica production in South Asia and South America; in my Education in Emergencies and Refugees course, we discuss the impact of anti-immigration policies in the United States on the educational experiences of South and Central American migrants. In the study-abroad program Human Rights, Armed Conflict, and Education in Colombia, we analyzed human rights violations in relation to the cocaine supply chain flowing from the Colombian Pacific to the street markets of Los Angeles.
By tracing and examining the relationships that link seemingly disparate places and events, I encourage students to question the very concept of the national border and how borders can obscure the rich, complicated, and problematic relationships between distant territories and societies.
Dr. Ally Shepherd completed her PhD in Educational Policy Studies at UW–Madison in 2024, focusing on community-based language education for adults seeking sanctuary in Europe. She is currently a Research Associate at the School of Education, University of Leeds, UK. More information can be found on her website.
Educational anthropologist, qualitative researcher, and methodologist whose work draws on critical theory and the fields of qualitative inquiry, comparative and international education, critical refugee studies, and the anthropologies of education, childhood, and forced migration. She explores decolonizing research methodologies, knowledge production, and systemic inequities in crisis-affected communities. She is also an Education in Emergencies (EiE) practitioner with nearly 15 years of global experience and a certified yoga teacher offering accessible vinyasa-style classes.
PhD candidate in Educational Policy Studies at the University of Wisconsin–Madison, studying how violence, migration, and inequality affect youth at the margins of schooling using ethnographic methods. Highlights justice-oriented practices that enable teachers to sustain schooling. Latest article: DOI link. Connect on LinkedIn.
Lina is an anthropologist from the Universidad de los Andes in Colombia and holds a master’s degree in Comparative Education from Teachers College, Columbia University. She is currently a doctoral student in educational policy studies at the University of Wisconsin-Madison with research interests in migration and educational policies and their impact on students’’ civic identity.
PhD student in Educational Policy Studies, with a concentration in Comparative, International, and Global Studies in Education and a minor in Community and Environmental Sociology. Her qualitative research examines the intersections of education and rural development in Honduras, focusing on how smallholder coffee-farming families navigate schooling amid agrarian and environmental change and how these dynamics shape educational trajectories and rural futures.
Recently graduated from UW–Madison with two MAs in Educational Policy Studies and Latin American Studies, Viviana Veloza conducted qualitative research on juvenile criminal justice in Colombia through her thesis, Architectures of Disconnection: Unfulfilled Educational Promises within the Juvenile Justice System in Colombia. She has worked on social and educational policies, inclusive education, and the reintegration of marginalized youth, with a focus on advancing educational equity. Connect on LinkedIn.
For people who are interested in working with me during their PhD, I recommend the following steps:
1. Fill out the application form.
2. Schedule an appointment of no more than 45 minutes where we can get to know each other and explore opportunities for collaboration.
I am currently open to working with potential students on issues related to the state, political violence, and educational policy.