Jan Lacina 
Bezos Family Foundation Endowed Chair in Early Childhood Education and Associate Dean of Graduate Studies | Texas Christian University
Fort Worth, TX, UNITED STATES
Dr. Lacina's teaching and research interests focus on literacy leadership, children's literature, and early childhood teacher preparation.
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Biography
Dr. Jan Lacina holds the Bezos Family Foundation Endowed Chair in Early Childhood Education. She has been employed at TCU since 2005. Dr. Lacina’s teaching and scholarship include the intersection of literacy learning, early childhood/elementary education, and teacher education.
Dr. Lacina has served in numerous leadership positions within higher education, such as Interim Dean, Early Childhood Program Coordinator, and Post Baccalaureate Graduate Program Coordinator. Since 2011, she has served as Associate Dean for Graduate Studies in TCU’s College of Education.
Dr. Lacina is the recipient of the 2022 Notable Books for a Global Society Research Award. She is also a 2022 Warren Faculty Fellow of the Holocaust Museum of Houston. Dr. Lacina is a recipient of the TCU Dean’s Research and Creativity Award.
Dr. Lacina has authored more than 100 publications. She is an experienced journal editor, and has served in leadership positions for several national/international organization. She currently serves as Associate Editor for the Journal of Early Childhood Education; she serves on the Editorial Advisory Board for the Journal of Research in Childhood Education, and on the Editorial Board for the United Kingdom Literacy Association journal, Literacy. Dr. Lacina served as the Associate Editor and then Editor-in-Chief for the Journal of Research in Childhood Education (JRCE), and she served as the Co-Editor of the International Literacy Association’s journal, The Reading Teacher, from 2015-2021.
While at TCU, she led programs to win several national awards and one state award, including the AACTE Best Practice Award in Support of Multicultural Education and Diversity for the Early Childhood-6th Grade Program, the AACTE/Southern Poverty Law Center Culturally Responsive Teaching Award for the Language and Literacy Program, the Wisniewski Teacher Education Award for the Language and Literacy Program, and both a finalist award and winning award from the Association for Teacher Education (ATE) –the Distinguished Program in Teacher Education Award (DPTE) for the TCU Early Childhood to Grade 6 Program. She led the college to receive state recognition for Exemplary Field Based Practices from The Center for Research, Evaluation and Advancement of Teacher Education for the Language and Literacy Program.
Areas of Expertise (4)
Literacy Leadership
Children's Literature
Early Childhood and Elementary Education
Teacher Education
Accomplishments (2)
Notable Books for a Global Society Research Award (professional)
2022
Dean’s Research and Creativity Award (professional)
TCU
Education (4)
Harvard University Graduate School of Education: M.D.P 2011
University of Kansas: Ph.D. 1999
Texas Women's University: M.Ed., Elementary Education 1996
Baylor University: B.S., Education 1993
Links (2)
Media Appearances (2)
Real-Life Faces Of Education Reform
TCU Magazine online
2020-12-21
“Her work is very innovative, and her films constitute very serious scholarship, adding not only to the body of knowledge here in the College of Education, but also to the field of education and qualitative research throughout the country,” said Jan Lacina, professor of literacy and associate dean of graduate studies in the College of Education. She said that Huckaby uses filmmaking as an innovative method for researchers to connect with participants as well as a powerful way to share research outcomes.
Lead On: TCU Announces New Endowed Faculty Appointments
TCU News online
2021-09-09
Dr. Jan Lacina will be the inaugural holder of the Bezos Family Foundation Endowed Chair for Early Childhood Education.
Articles (5)
Motherhood, the Tenure Track, and Leadership
Teacher Reflections on Transitioning From K-12 to Higher Education Classrooms2022 The term glass ceiling became widespread with Christine Williams's article in The Wall Street Journal. She used the metaphor to describe barriers that women face in attempting to advance within corporate organizations. In the past, women were unable to reach top positions due to discrimination and gender-specific roles. More than a decade later, Williams reconsidered the glass ceiling metaphor and added the metaphor of a glass escalator to describe the challenges women face in female-dominated professions.
Literacy in Lockdown: Learning and Teaching During COVID-19 School Closures
Reading Teacher2020 Across the globe, students have been away from schools and their teachers, but literacy learning has continued. In many countries, students’ literacy proficiency is often measured via high-stakes assessment tests. However, such tests do not make visible students’ literacy lives away from formal learning settings, so students are positioned as task responders, rather than as agentive readers and writers.
Global Leaders' Views on the Teaching of Writing
English Journal2018 This is the best day of my life!” a tenth-grade girl exclaimed as we were transitioning from the teaching of writing to a break for lunch. No, she has not just met a pop star or a YouTuber that many teen girls are obsessed with this year; she’s excited about learning. This urban high school student expresses happiness about taking part in an annual writing camp held on my university campus.
Teacher as Decision Maker: A Framework to Guide Teaching Decisions in Reading
British Educational Research Journal2017-12-28
This department highlights literacy leaders across the globe who are working in the field of literacy education. It demonstrates how these literacy leaders are empowering educators in the field of literacy through their research.
Promoting Resilience Through Read-Alouds
YC Young Children2016 During outdoor recess, a group of first grade girls becomes upset and complains to their teacher that the boys will not them allow them to join a soccer game because "it's a boy's game." Their teacher, Mrs. Oviedo, recognizes the dispute as an opportunity to teach her students about dealing with conflict among peers. She uses a read-aloud to engage the children in conversations about feelings of discouragement and confidence.
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