Assistant Director

Stephen Hancock, Ph.D.

Dr. Hancock is an Associate Professor of Multicultural Education in the Department of Reading and Elementary Education at UNC Charlotte.  Dr. Hancock serves as an instructor, researcher, and leader. He is currently the Assistant Director of the Urban Education Collaborative, Director of the International Conference on Urban Education (ICUE), and leads and supports both university and community boards, committees, and task forces.

Dr. Hancock’s primary research interest is socio-cultural perspectives in urban elementary school context, which include foci on the effective teaching for diverse students, examining whiteness in elementary classrooms, and emerging research on curriculum to include both curriculum supremacy and curriculum trauma. In addition, his research interest focuses on cultural anthropological experiences in racial and community context. His research methodologies are based on qualitative approaches, which include autoethnography, ethnography, action research, and narrative. He is also interested in research that employs mixed method analysis. He has edited three books and published in top journals including the Harvard Education Review, Reading Psychology, Teachers College Record, and Urban Education.

Dr. Hancock has developed and taught courses on multicultural, diversity, equity & urban education, curriculum integration & theory, teacher leadership, teacher research methodology, child development, and reading. He teaches both undergraduate and graduate courses. He has also served on numerous master’s research committees and doctoral dissertation committees. He has served as an international invited lecturer in Germany, England, and Ireland.

Dr. Hancock is active in several professional organizations including the American Educational Research Association, National Association of Multicultural Education, Comparative & International Education Society, Society of Children’s Books Writers and Illustrators, and National Association for the Education of Young Children. As a community leader, Dr. Hancock has supported many local and regional elementary schools and community organizations. He has served as an international delegate to China, Germany, Singapore, Malaysia, and Mexico.