ACADEMIC BIO
Robin Phelps-Ward, Ed.D., is an Assistant Professor of Higher Education and Director of the Student Affairs Administration in Higher Education Master of Arts program at Ball State University in Muncie, IN. Dr. Phelps-Ward is dedicated to cultivating equitable, just, and supportive environments for People of Color across educational contexts, and she commits her scholarship to simultaneously and complementarily exploring the experiences of those who are racially marginalized and minoritized while developing pedagogical and institutional strategies for eliminating such oppression.
Her research focuses specifically on mentoring and formal mentoring programs to support Students of Color, Black faculty and staff belonging, Black women and girls’ natural hair and identity development, and pedagogical practice for critical-consciousness and social justice. She returned to Ball State in in fall 2019 after working at Clemson University in the Department of Educational and Organizational Leadership Development teaching primarily in the Student Affairs Masters of Education program.
Dr. Phelps-Ward is currently an active member of the Association for the Study of Higher Education (ASHE), the American College Personnel Association (ACPA), and the American Educational Research Association (AERA). Her work can be found in Gender & Education, The Western Journal of Black Studies, The Journal of Student Affairs Inquiry, and the Journal of Public Scholarship in Higher Education among other outlets.
EDUCATION
Ed.D. - Adult, Higher, and Community Education, Ball State University
M.A. - Organizational & Professional Communication Development, Ball State University
B.S. - Journalism & Mass Communications and Organizational Communication, Murray State University