Shea Kerkhoff is an Associate Professor of literacy and secondary education at the University of Missouri-St. Louis. She holds a Ph.D. from North Carolina State University in Curriculum and Instruction with a focus in literacy and language education. As a teacher educator and former high school English teacher, she draws on years of experience working alongside adolescents to help them develop the reading, writing, and critical thinking skills they need to thrive in today’s digital, global world. Dr. Kerkhoff utilizes mixed methods to investigate critical, digital, and global literacies. She has been recognized for her outstanding research and has published in esteemed journals, such as Teaching and Teacher Education, Reading and Writing: An Interdisciplinary Journal, and Reading Research Quarterly.
Dr. Kerkhoff is affiliated faculty with the Show Me Literacies Collaborative. In this capacity, she serves as co-PI on the Missouri Comprehensive Literacy State Development grant. The Collaborative has facilitated professional learning and research with over 100 schools across the state that have been historically under-resourced. The professional learning and research topics include inquiry-based reading, source-based argument, disciplinary literacies, and digital literacy.
Dr. Kerkhoff also serves as Going Global, Inc.'s Education Director. In this role, she facilitates professional learning and research with teachers in Kitale, Kenya. In 2018, she was named a Longview Foundation Global Teacher Educator fellow and continues to work with the organization as a mentor. Dr. Kerkhoff is passionate about literacy education at home and abroad.
Program Involvement
MEd - Secondary Education | Curriculum & Instruction
