Hyeri Mel Yang

Research

Co-investigator: “Addressing barriers to student participation in ICT post-secondary programs in Cambodia” , University of California, Berkeley Blum Center for Developing Economies. Jan 2025 – Present.

  • PI: Omar Romero-Hernandez, Ph.D.
  • Developed theoretical framework and led data analysis for a study on ICT access among marginalized youth.
  • Co-authoring a manuscript exploring inclusive technology pathways in low-ID settings.

Co-investigator: Systematic Review & Evidence Gap Map for Skills Policy in LAC , Inter-American Development Bank, Skills for Life Initiative. Sep 2024 –  Present  

  • PI: Emma Nasulnd-Hadley                                                               
  • Co-leading a systematic review on socio-emotional learning, preschool education, sports for development in Latin America and the Caribbean.
  • Synthesizing evidence across curriculum models, teacher training, family engagement, and infrastructure to inform evidence-based policymaking.

Co-Principal Investigator: “Know That: Pathways to a Critical Conversation Space” , University of Michigan. Dec 2021 –  Present

  • PI: Gabrielle Kubi, Ph.D.
  • Designed and facilitated after-school curriculum promoting critical consciousness among Black girls and girls of color.
  • Led protocol design, RADaR analysis, academic manuscripts draft, and stakeholder engagement with local schools and communities.

Co-Investigator: Digital Competency in Higher Education, Texas A&M University. Mar 2022 – Dec 2022   

  • PI: Dong-Jin Kwon, Ph.D.
  • Aiming to investigate personal and contextual factors that are related to higher education institution instructors’ 
  • Digital competence by utilizing the DigComP framework and conducting exploratory factor analysis (EFA)
  • Contributed to literature review, survey design (Qualtrics), and manuscript development.

Co-Investigator, NSF-Funded Projects: Critical Data Practices and STEM Equity during COVID-19, University of Michigan. Sep 2021 – Mar 2024   

  • PI: Angela Calabrese Barton, Ph.D. & Leslie Herrenkohl, Ph.D.
  • Led qualitative coding and analysis for ethnographic studies on youth data practices and justice-oriented STEM education.
  • Co-authored literature reviews and manuscripts, including studies on educator responses to crisis and community care.

Lab member, Advancing Critical Consciousness & Equity Lab, University of Michigan. Dec 2021 – Aug 2022   

  • PI: Matthew Diemer, Ph.D.
  • Participated in discussions on critical consciousness development and gained exposure to advanced statistical methods in transformative justice research.

Co-Investigator, Community-Based Ethnography Project: “A Very Belonging Kind of Place” ,  University of Michigan. Sep 2021 –  Mar 2022  

  • PI: Michelle Bellino, Ph.D.
  • Conducted ethnographic research with refugee students in Southeast Michigan.
  • Led interview design, thematic coding, and co-authored a community-oriented technical report.

Co-Investigator: Online Teaching During COVID-19 , Daegu National University of Education. Mar 2021 – Sep 2021     

  • PI: Jieun Lim, Ph.D.
  • Explored instructional challenges and innovations in Korean higher education during the pandemic.
  • Conducted interviews and co-authored a peer-reviewed publication.

Principal Investigator: “Fifty Computing Narratives from Daegu”, Ministry of Education, Korea.    

  • JAn 2021
  • Documented AI and Ed-tech teaching practices through 50 educator interviews.
  • Produced multimedia materials to promote digital learning integration.

“I came to theory because I was hurting… I came to theory desperate, wanting to comprehend—to grasp what was happening around and within me… I saw in theory then a location for healing.”
― bell hooks, Teaching to Transgress: Education as the Practice of Freedom