Kelley White

Professor

Education

  • Ph.D., Education, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, 2008 - Area of Study: Early Childhood, Families, and Literacy 
  • M.A., New Professional Studies: Teaching, George Mason University, 2003 
  • B.A., Psychology, Minor in Early Childhood Education, James Madison University, 1999 

Research Interests

Dr. White has used quantitative, qualitative and mixed methods to explore a variety of research questions. Her primary research interests include teacher-child relationships, classroom climate and children’s early literacy and social and emotional development.  

Courses Taught

  • EDEE 363, 420, 488 
  • EDEE 510, 615, 636, 653 
  • EDFS 635 
  • MTLA 705, MTLA 706 
  • FYSE 138: The Power of Play for Young Children’s Learning and Development 
  • FYSM 126-01; FYSE 138-05: Everything I Need to Know I Learned in Kindergarten 

Selected Publications

White, K. & Vossler, K. (2023). Blood, barf or Beyoncé: Building community and establishing procedures in the first six weeks of school. School Community Journal, 33(1), 279-302. 
 
D'Amico, L.. Fan, X., Linder, S., Pawlowski, T. & White, K. M. (2023). Examining early childhood education through the lens of stakeholders: A statewide needs assessment. Journal of Early Childhood Research. 
 
Fan, X., Linder, S., D'Amico, L., White, K. M. & Pawlowski (2022). Identifying the needs of prekindergarten children: A focus on health and well-being and family environments.  Early Childhood Education Journal, 50, 823-840. 
 
White, K. M. (2020). Building strong teacher-child relationships in today’s kindergarten classrooms: Focusing on opportunities not obstacles. Journal of Early Childhood Research, 18(3), 275-286. 
Hall, A. & White, K. M. Do my students know I don’t like writing? (2019). The Reading Teacher, 73(3), 362-366. 
 
Hall, A. H., White, K. M., Guo, Y. &  Emerson, E. (2017). Who counts as a writer? Examining child, teacher, and parent perceptions of writing. Early Child Development and Care. 
 
White, K.M., Hall, A. & Barrett-Tatum, J. (2016). Investigating what matters for writing instruction in South Carolina elementary schools: Teachers’ perceptions of effective writing strategies and barriers to implementation.  Reading Matters, 16(1),  17-23. 
 
White, K. M. (2016). Professional development that promotes powerful interactions: Using teacher book clubs to reflect on quality in teacher-child relationships. Dimensions of Early Childhood, 44(3), 28-34. 
White, K.M. (2016).  “My Teacher Helps Me”: Assessing teacher-child relationships from the child’s perspective. Journal of Research in Childhood Education, 30(1), 29-41. 
 
Hall, A., Hutchison, A. & White, K. M. (2015).  Teachers’ Beliefs about the Common Core State Standards in Writing.  Journal of Research in Education, 25(1), 88- 99.