My research focuses on transition to college by youth and adults, especially student populations that have not attended college historically. I am particularly interested in how underserved youth and adult students (minority, low income, first-generation students, immigrants) use the community college to transition to higher education, including how public policy positions community colleges as a primary port of entry. The expanding mission of community colleges, including the increasing importance of linkages to high schools, adult education, and the workforce is of particular interest. Since 1989, I have directed the Office of Community College Research and Leadership (OCCRL). an organization supported by government agencies at the state and federal levels, including the National Science Foundation and the U.S. Department of Education. I am also the principal investigator on several grants sponsored by private foundations, including the Lumina Foundation for Education (Indianapolis, Indiana) and the Joyce Foundation (Chicago, Illinois).
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College of Education
Education Policy, Organization and Leadership
http://education.illinois.edu/frp/eol/dbragg
Faculty Research Profiles: Debra Bragg
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Professor
Education Policy, Organization and Leadership
330 Education Building
1310 S. 6th St. MC 708
Champaign, IL 61820USA
Section Links
- Research Biography
- Degrees
- Key Professional Appointments
- Activities & Honors
- Grants
- Selected Publications
- Selected Links
Research Biography
Degrees
- Ph.D., Comprehensive Vocational Education, The Ohio State University, 1985
- M.S., Home Economics Education, The Ohio State University, 1980
- B.S., Home Economics Education, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, 1977
Key Professional Appointments
- Director, Forum on the Future of Public Education, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, 2009--
- Professor, Educational Organization and Leadership, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, 2003--
- Director, Office of Community College Research & Leadership, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, 1989--
- Associate Professor, Department of Educational Organization and Leadership, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, 1996-2003
- Associate Professor, Department of Human Resource Education, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, 1996-2002
Activities & Honors
- Consultant - STEM Transfer, Association for American Colleges and Universities, 2011-2012
- Technical Work Group (TWG) member, Technical Work group on Career Pathways, Office of Vocational and Adult Education, USDE, 2011-2012
- Consultant Evaluator for Oregon Community College System and Portland Community College (Lead institution on the grant), Community Based Job Training grant, US Department of Labor, Portland Community College, 2010-2013
- Senior Scholar Award, Awarded April 2008, Council for the Study of Community Colleges, 2007-2008
- Distinguished Teaching Career Award, Awarded May 2008, College of Education, 2007-2008
- Co-Chair Awards Committee, American Educational Research Association - Division J: Higher Education, 2004-2007
- Director, National Office, National Council on Student Development, 2003-2007
- Editorial Board Member, Journal of Applied Research in the Community College, 2002-2008
- Board member, National Science Foundation, 2002-2005
- President, Council for the Study of Community Colleges, 2001-2002
- Recognition for Outstanding Service, Illinois State Board of Education, 2001
- Academic Leadership Fellow, Committee on Institutional Cooperation , 2000-2001
- Meritorious Service Award, American Vocational Education Research Association, 2000
- Distinguished Scholar, College of Education, 1997
Grants
- Principal Investigator, Proposal for Evaluation of Illinois' Adult Education Bridge Grants, Illinois Community College Board, 2009
- Principal Investigator, Shifting Gears Bridge Status Study, Illinois Community College Board, 2009
- Principal Investigator, The Adult Learner and the Applied Baccalaureate, Lumina Foundation for Education, 2009
- Principal Investigator, College and Career Readiness (CCR) Evaluation, Illinois Community College Board, 2008
- Principal Investigator, Perkins IV Planning, Consultation and Technical Assistance Initiative, Illinois Community College Board, 2007
- Advisor, Transfer Experience and Advising Mentors (TEAM), Lumina Foundation for Education, 2007
- Principal Investigator, Perkins IV Consultation and Technical Assistance, Illinois State Board of Education, 2007
- Principal Investigator, Shifting Gears Evaluation, Illinois Community College Board, 2007
- Principal Investigator, Moving Beyond the GED: A Transition Pathway for Success at Community Colleges, U.S. Department of Education (University of Minnesota), 2006
- Principal Investigator, Initiatives to Enhance Tech Prep and High School-to-Community College Articulation in Illinois, Illinois Community College Board, 2003
- Principal Investigator, Effective Programs in Career and Technical Education, U.S. Department of Education (Ohio State University), 2003
- Principal Investigator, CTE Transition Program Evaluation, U.S. Department of Education (Ohio State University), 1999
- Principal Investigator, National Dissemination Center for Career and Technical Education: Virtual Toolkit for CTE Leaders of High School Reform, U.S. Department of Education (Ohio State University), 1999
Selected Publications
- Bragg, D. (in press). Career and technical education. In J. Levin & S. Kater (Eds.), Understanding community colleges (pp. 187-202). London, England: Routledge/Taylor Francis.
- Bragg, D. (2011). Examining pathways to and through community colleges for youth and adults. In L. Hagedorn (Ed.), Higher education: Handbook of theory and research (pp. 355-393). New York, NY: Springer.
- Bragg, D., & Ruud, C. (in press). How applied baccalaureate degree programs address the needs of adult learners. New Directions for Community Colleges. San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass Publishers. (16 dc pages)
- Bragg, D., Smith, W., & Dresser, L. (2012). Leveraging workforce development and postsecondary education or low-skilled, low-income workers: Lessons from the Shifting Gears initiative. New Directions for Community Colleges, No. 157, pp. 53-66.
- Bragg, D., Baber, L., & Castro, E. (2011). Illinois' College and Career Readiness Pilot Initiative. The Illinois Report 2011. Champaign, IL: Institute for Government and Public Affairs, University of Illinois.