Name: April Mustian
Title: Special Education Program Director; Professor - Special Education
Education: Ph.D. in Special Education, University of North Carolina-Charlotte; M.A. in Special
Education, General Curriculum, University of North Carolina-Charlotte; B.S. in Psychology,
University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill; B.S. in Exercise and Sport Science, University
of North Carolina-Chapel Hill
Office: 232-I Withers/W.T.S. Building
Phone: 803/323-4693
E-mail: mustiana@winthrop.edu
Web:
Area(s): Behavioral and Literacy Interventions for Culturally and Linguistically Diverse Exceptional Learners; School-to Prison-Nexus; Discipline and SPED Disproportionality; Culturally Relevant Pedagogy; Multi-tiered Systems of Support; Program Evaluation
A former North Carolina K-12 special educator, Dr. Mustian has been supporting future and in-service special educators for 13 years and provides in-depth instruction on culturally relevant school- and class-wide behavioral and literacy practices. Before joining the Winthrop family, Dr. Mustian spent a decade at Illinois State University, where she was a professor, the Director of Faculty Development for the National Center for Urban Education, and the coordinator for INFUSE, an urban preservice special education program. In those roles, she partnered with multiple communities and schools in Chicago and beyond to support educational goals driven by collective community voice. Her research interests include academic and behavioral interventions for culturally and linguistically diverse students with high-incidence dis/abilities, community-engaged special education teacher preparation, examining the connections between teacher bias and disproportionality in special education and discipline, and rerouting the school-to-prison nexus via culturally relevant pedagogy. Dr. Mustian has authored or co-authored over 30 publications since beginning her career in 2010, and she continues to present at conferences and provide professional development to schools and districts. In her free time, she enjoys hanging out with her family and close friends, reading, and traveling. She also considers herself to be a "foodie" and enjoys opportunities to try new local food spots.