Early Researcher Innovation Network (ERIN)
The Digital Futures Institute has launched the Early Research Innovation Network (ERIN). The network will support Early Career Researchers (ECRs) who are committed to expanding their repertoire of research methodologies through rigorous engagement with various media and technological modalities.
As part of ERIN, fellows have the opportunity to:
Experiment with innovative research methodologies that leverage digital media and emerging technologies through workshops, studio time, and access to cutting edge resources.
Incorporate these methodologies into a current or proposed research project, with attention to how to better engage communities in research from project inception to dissemination of findings.
Join a learning community of peers and more experienced researchers to support one another and help generate new information on the use of emerging technologies in research
Project team
Managing Director, Digital Futures Institute
Inaugural cohort
Barrett Rosser
Associate Professor, Morgan State University
Dr. Barrett Rosser is an Assistant Professor of Teacher Education and Professional Development at Morgan State University and research faculty with the National Center for the Elimination of Educational Disparities (NCEED). Grounded in Black feminist epistemologies, including Black girlhood studies, Black girls' literacies, and practitioner research, she inquires with youth, teachers, families, and community partners across school, community, and digital spaces to advance traditional and expansive notions of literacy. A dreamer and poet, Dr. Rosser is a passionate scholar who desires to create a more just world
Shuang Quan
Associate Professor, Juniata College
Dr. Shuang Quan is an Assistant Professor of Education and the founder of the AI in Education Lab (AEL) at Juniata College. She earned her Ph.D. in Innovation in Curriculum and Instruction from Fordham University’s Graduate School of Education and has a professional background in childhood and literacy education. Dr. Quan’s research focuses on the design, implementation, and evaluation of emerging technologies, particularly Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Large Language Models (LLMs), to support young children’s literacy, cognitive, and social-emotional development, with a special focus on children from diverse linguistic and socioeconomic backgrounds.
Melissa B. Skolnick-Noguerra
Postdoctoral Researcher, University of Pennsylvania Media, Inequality & Change (MIC) Center
Melissa is a documentary filmmaker, researcher, and cultural producer whose work focuses on the intersection of social justice, media arts/culture, and policy. Since 2010, Melissa has collaborated with artists and arts organizations throughout the Greater Philadelphia region. She is the Founder/Director of Actívate Stories, a media arts entity that produces documentaries, engages in cultural preservation, and develops creative strategies focused on impact. Through her current community-engaged research project, she investigates the cultural organizing networks in Philadelphia, and how diverse artists engage in praxis and discourse practices which impact politics and policy.
Bethany Monea
Associate Professor, University of the District of Columbia
Bethany Monea is an Assistant Professor of Community Writing in Department of Arts and Humanities at the University of the District of Columbia. She holds a Ph.D. from the Literacy Studies program at the University of Pennsylvania’s Graduate School of Education. Her areas of expertise include conducting participatory and youth-led research projects, using multimodal and arts-based methods, and supporting first-generation students’ transitions to college. Her work can be found in Written Communication, Computers and Composition, Cultural Studies <-> Critical Methodologies, and elsewhere. She lives in Washington, DC, and loves creating, collecting, and teaching zines.
Alex Corbitt
Associate Professor, Syracuse University
Alex Corbitt is an assistant professor of literacy education at Syracuse University. His research examines how youths and adults represent their identities, communities, and civic lives through processes of play and co-authorship. Prior to earning his PhD at Boston College’s Lynch School of Education and Human Development, Alex taught English language arts at a public middle school in the Bronx, New York.
Scott Storm
Associate Professor, University at Albany, State University of New York
Scott Storm, PhD is an Assistant Professor of Literacy in the School of Education at the University at Albany, State University of New York. He is a former high school English teacher with 15 years of experience designing, founding, and sustaining urban public schools. Scott’s research explores the social and cultural construction of schooling, adolescence, literacies, and digital learning ecologies particularly as they relate to aesthetics and social justice. His work has appeared in Reading Research Quarterly; Journal of Literacy Research; Literacy Research: Theory, Method, & Practice; Equity & Excellence in Education; and English Teaching Practice & Critique among others.