Stephanie J. Rowley facts for kids

Stephanie Johnson Rowley is a psychologist and university leader. She is known for her work on how young people understand their racial identity. She also studies how parents talk to their children about race and ethnicity. Currently, she is the dean of the School of Education and Human Development at the University of Virginia.

Before this, Dr. Rowley was a top leader at Teachers College, Columbia University. There, she was the provost, dean, and vice president for academic affairs. She was also a professor of psychology and education. She is part of the main group for the Society for Research in Child Development. This group helps researchers who study how children grow.

About Stephanie Rowley

Stephanie Rowley went to the University of Michigan. In 1992, she earned her first degree in Psychology and African American Studies. Later, she studied at the University of Virginia (UVA). She earned her master's degree in 1995 and her Ph.D. in 1997. Her advanced degrees were in Developmental Psychology. This field looks at how people change as they get older.

For her Ph.D., she wrote a big research paper called a dissertation. It was about how African-American high school students see their racial identity. It also looked at how much they felt connected to school. While at UVA, she received special support from the Ford Foundation. She was also a Carter G. Woodson Predoctoral Fellow. Her main teacher and guide was Robert M. Sellers.

After finishing her studies, she became a professor at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. In 2000, she moved to the University of Michigan. There, she worked in the Psychology Department. She also worked with the Center for Human Growth and Development.

At Michigan, Dr. Rowley won two special awards. In 2015, she received the Rackham Distinguished Graduate Mentor Award. In 2018, she won the Cornerstone Award. These awards recognized her great work. She helped African-American students with their schoolwork and their social lives. Before moving to Teachers College in 2019, she held several leadership roles at Michigan. She was an Associate Chair in Psychology. She also led a special program in Education and Psychology. Plus, she was an Associate Vice President for Research.

Dr. Rowley has also received money to support her research. This funding came from the National Science Foundation. In September 2022, she became the dean of the UVA School of Education and Human Development.

Stephanie Rowley's Research

Dr. Rowley's research looks at how children develop their racial and gender identities. She also studies their ideas and beliefs about race and gender. Her work combines ideas from different fields. These include developmental psychology, Black studies, and education.

She has been part of many important studies. These studies helped create a new way to understand racial identity. This model looks at racial identity in two main ways. First, it explores common traits linked to ethnic and racial identities. Second, it explains what it means to be African American.

Some key findings from this model show four parts of African American racial identity:

• Salience: How important race is in a person's daily life.
• Centrality: How important race is to a person's overall self-image.
• Regard: How a person feels about being part of their racial group.
• Ideology: A person's beliefs about how their racial group should act.

Dr. Rowley has also studied how parents influence their children's school success. This research focused on children in their early years. She has also looked at gender stereotypes about math and science. Another area of her research is how children see their own abilities. This is especially true for kids in late childhood and early teen years.

One important discovery from her research is about boys and stereotypes. When boys think adults have old-fashioned ideas about gender, they tend to believe certain things. They might think girls are less good at math and science. Or they might think boys are better. These findings help us understand how social ideas affect how kids develop.