Patriann Smith, PhD
College of Education Associate Professor Patriann Smith, PhD, was a recipient of USF’s Outstanding Research Achievement Award.
Presented by University of South Florida (USF) Research and Innovation, this year’s
awards recognized 22 faculty members for their achievements in research productivity.
The largest internal recognition of its kind at USF, the annual nominations are submitted by deans, department chairs, center and institute
directors and associate deans of research. The nominations are reviewed by members
of the USF Research Council.
Dr. Smith joined the College of Education in 2019 as a faculty member in the Literacy Studies Program. She pursues a transdisciplinary research agenda situated at the intersection of linguistics, immigration and migration and race in literacy education, and her work advances a cross-cultural, cross-racial and cross-linguistic framework for literacy and language instruction and assessment for Black immigrant students and educators.
In 2020, Dr. Smith published 15 refereed articles including one in the American Educational Research Journal and another in Reading Research Quarterly, the leading global journal in literacy. She received contracts from Cambridge University Press and Teachers College Press for sole-authored and co-authored books, and was featured on media outlets and authored blog posts for the London Society for Economics United States Association for Public Policy. Additionally, in 2020, Dr. Smith was elected to the Board of Directors of the national Literacy Research Association (LRA) and was a co-presenter of the report, “Advancing Anti-Racism in Literacy Research,” commissioned by the LRA.
Earlier this year, Dr. Smith was awarded a three-year, $3.6 million grant from the United States Agency for International Development to partner with the University of the West Indies Cave Hill in Barbados in creating an educational research center to help support decision making and policy in Barbados and the Eastern Caribbean.
“As a Black immigrant faculty member, receiving this award speaks volumes—and for immigrants and people of color in the Tampa Bay Community, this award means that USF serves as a beacon of hope,” Dr. Smith said. “Receiving a 2021 Outstanding Research Achievement Award from USF Research & Innovation tells me that USF is committed to advancing racial justice and creating a better world for Black and brown people. I stand on the shoulders of so many giants who inspired me to dream. I am grateful to all those who made this award possible.”
As an Outstanding Research Achievement Award recipient, Dr. Smith will receive $2,000 and recognition at an event later in the fall.