Darnell Cole

Dr. Darnell Cole is a Professor in Education of Higher Education and Education Psychology at the University of Southern California in the Rossier School of Education. He also serves as Co-Director of the Research Center for Education, Identity and Social Justice. His research areas span K12 & Higher education and focus on race/ ethnicity, diversity, student-faculty interactions, learning, and college student experiences. He has published over 50 research articles, book chapters, and reports. He also co-edited a book with Shafiqa Ahmadi on “Islamophobia in Higher Education: Combating Discrimination and Creating Understanding.” Dr. Cole has also accrued over $13M in research grants and contracts. His scholarship is featured in the major journals for higher education and other related fields, including the Journal of College and Character, Journal of College Student Development, Journal of Diversity in Higher Education, Journal of Higher Education, Journal of Negro Education, Research in Higher Education, and Review of Higher Education.

Fulbright Specialist (2019 – Present), U.S. Department of State’s Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs and World Learning. University of Technology in Sydney, Australia. 

Faculty Scholarly Recognition (2019), University Club, Amy King Dundon-Berchtold University Club of USC at Stoops Hall

Mentoring Award (2017), USC Rossier School of Education

Outstanding Service (2016), Cherished Hands Foundation

Scholar of Research in Residence (2014-16), Centre for TransCultural Studies, Temasek Polytechnic Institute in Singapore

Visiting Scholar Award (2011) for Wisconsin's Equity & Inclusion Laboratory (Weilab), Wisconsin's Center for Educational Research (WCER), UW-Madison's Letters and Science Center for Academic Excellence, UW-Madison's Office of Diversity and Climate, and The Greater Urban League, University of Wisconsin, Madison.

Outstanding Service (2002) to the School of Education, Dean’s Award, Marquette University

Best Teacher Award (2000), Marquette University

Holmstedt Dissertation Award (1999), Indiana University
Dissertation: Faculty-Student Interactions of African Americans and 
White College Students: A Sociocultural Examination

(Recent Classes)

EDUC 681, "Research, Policy, and Practice in Urban Education"

EDUC 523, “Diversity”

EDHP 503, “Identity & Diversity” (“Politics of Difference”)

EDUC 657, “Social Foundation of Research”

EDUC 708, “Advanced Student Development Theory”

EDUC 503, “Curriculum, Teaching, and Learning in Higher Education”

• REFEREED JOURNAL ARTICLES  (co-author with students~)
• Shafiqa Ahmadi and Darnell Cole. Islamophobia in Higher Education: Combating Discrimination and Creating Understanding (Virginia: Stylus Publishing, 2020).
• ~ Cole, D., Kitchen, J. A., & Kezar, A. (2019). Examining a Comprehensive College Transition Program: An Account of Iterative Mixed Methods Longitudinal Survey Design. Research in Higher Education, 1-22.
• ~ Kitchen, J. A., Cole, D., Rivera, G., & Hallett, R. (2020). The Impact of a College Transition Program Proactive Advising Intervention on Self-Efficacy. Journal of Student Affairs Research and Practice, 58:1, 29-43.
• ~ Sanchez, M. E., Hypolite, L. I., Newman, C. B., & Cole, D. (2020). Black Women in STEM: The Need for Intersectional Supports in Professional Conference Spaces. The Journal of Negro Education, 88(3), 297-310.
• ~ Cole, D., Newman, C. B., & Hypolite, L. I. (2020). Sense of Belonging and Mattering Among Two Cohorts of First-Year Students Participating in a Comprehensive College Transition Program. American Behavioral Scientist, 64(3), 276-297.
• ~ Rivera, G., Cole, D. & Kitchen, J. (2022). Comprehensive College Transition Program Staffs’ Impact on Students’ Academic Self-Efficacy, Academic Behavioral Change, and Achievement. Journal of Student Affairs Research and Practice.
• ~ Swanson, E. & Cole, D. (2022). The Role of Academic Validation in Developing Mattering and Academic Success. Research in Higher Education, 1-26.
• ~ Culver, K.C., Perez, R. J., Kitchen, J.A. & Cole, D. (2022). Fostering Equitable Engagement: A Mixed-Methods Exploration of the Engagement of Racially Diverse Students in a Comprehensive College Transition Program. Journal of Diversity in Higher Education. Advance online publication.
• Orsuwan, M. & Cole, D. (2022). Moderating role of race/ethnicity in the relationship between college students’ self-concept and diverse social interaction. Kasetsart Journal of Social Sciences, 43, 231–237.
• ~ Swanson, E., Culver, KC., Cole, D., & Rivera, G. (2021). Promoting At-Promise Student Success in Four-Year Universities: Recommendations from the Thompson Scholars Learning Communities. Journal of Diversity in Higher Education, 14(4), 457–462.
• Cole, D. (2021). Understanding Muslim College Students’ Belonging and Mattering at HBCUs. Journal of College and Character, 22(2), 163-170.
• ~ Cole, D., Ahmadi, S., & Sanchez, M.E. (2020). Examining Muslim Student Experiences with Campus Insensitivity, Coercion, and Negative Interworldview Engagement. Journal of College and Character, 21(4), 301-314.

June 2020-Present Fulbright Specialist- Distinguished Visiting Scholar at University of Technology Sydney in Australia.(COVID Delay)     

2022 – Present       Professor 

2021 – Present       Rossier Faculty Chair, University of Southern California (USC) Primary responsibility is to lead Rossier Faculty Council, School-wide Faculty Meetings, and Serve as Faculty Senator to USC Faculty Senate.

2017 – Present       Co-Founder & Co-Director, Research Center for Education, Identity and Social Justice

2006 – 2021           Associate Professor (Tenured, 2009) 

2008 – 2011           Ph.D. Program Chair, University of Southern California (USC) 

2011 (Fall)             Western Association of Schools and Colleges (WASC)                 Accreditation Team for Capacity Program Review (CPR).

2003 – 2006          Associate Professor (Tenured, 2006), University of Hawai`i at Mānoa (UHM)

2002 – 2003          Designer and Co-director of the College Student Personnel Program in the Department of Educational Policy and Leadership, School of Education, Marquette University (MU)

Coordinator of Educational Leadership’s Program Redesign Department of Educational Policy and Leadership, School of Education, Marquette University (MU)

Coordinator of Graduate Programs in Educational Leadership Department of Educational Policy and Leadership, School of Education, Marquette University (MU)

Assistant Professor, Marquette University (MU) Department of Educational Policy and Leadership, School of Education

The Center for Education, Identity and Social Justice (RossierJustice) at the USC Rossier School of Education was founded by Professor Shafiqa Ahmadi on Feb. 1, 2017, and launched with Professors Shafiqa Ahmadi and Darnell Cole as co-directors. In RossierJustice, we explore how multiple identities, such as religion, ethnicity, race, gender, sexual orientation, and disability intersect to foster shared values and democratic ideals. We examine and investigate student, staff, and faculty experiences within K12 and Higher Education institutions to inform and transform policies and practices that facilitate transformation in classrooms, campus environments, and institutions. We envision socially just and inclusive educational environments where students are prepared to be civically engaged citizens.

The mission and vision of the RossierJustice are based on three key elements:

• Rigorous primary and secondary research
• Policy, practice, curriculum development, and training informed by research
• A commitment and engagement to social justice through activities and events.

All of RossierJustice’s initiatives will include aspects of each key element.

Prof. Cole has published over 50 research articles, book chapters, and a co-edited book; he has also accrued over $13M in research grants and contracts. 

Selected Research Grants (2021-2022):

Department of Education. LA Promise Fund, South LA Black Student Programming. USC Evaluation and Assessment Plan (Evaluators: Darnell Cole, Christopher Newman & Shafiqa Ahmadi)

LAUSD (Los Angeles Unified School District) Black Student Achievement Plan (BSAP). Evaluation and Assessment, RAND and University of Southern California (Principal Investigators: Darnell Cole, Shafiqa Ahmadi, & Alice Huguet)

John Randolph Haynes and Dora Haynes Foundation Grant Award with support from the Los Angeles Mayor’s Office of Youth Development Department, City of Los Angeles, University of Southern California (Principal Investigator: Darnell Cole, Christopher Newman, & Shafiqa Ahmadi)