Kristin Papoi, Ph.D., a clinical associate professor in the UNC School of Education, has been appointed to the American Association of Colleges for Teacher Education’s Programmatic Advisory Committee on Educator Diversity for a three-year term beginning March 2027.
The committee advises AACTE staff and its Board of Directors on current trends, emerging issues, and programming related to diversity among educator preparation faculty and candidates. Members also contribute to virtual and in-person initiatives, including webinars and conference sessions designed to support educator preparation programs across the country.
The committee works in tandem with AACTE’s Diversifying the Workforce Topical Action Group, creating a national network focused on strengthening educator preparation and developing an education workforce that more closely reflects the students and communities educators serve.
Papoi’s qualitative research examines literacy and language practices, reflective practices in teacher education, and arts integration for multilingual learners, with more recent work focused on how communities of practice among preservice and beginning teachers can build professional capacity and contribute to teacher retention.
That expertise is informed by Papoi’s own experience as an elementary teacher of multilingual learners in southeast Los Angeles, where she served in teacher leadership roles and helped develop districtwide resources in literacy, social studies, and academic language. Her experience in classrooms and teacher preparation has also shaped her leadership on funded projects focused on strengthening the educator pipeline and supporting student learning.
Currently, she serves as co-principal investigator on “Enhancing Literacy Assessment Practices for English Language Learners and Multilingual Learners in North Carolina,” a UNC Frank Porter Graham Child Development Institute project that examines literacy assessment practices for multilingual learners across the state.