MiIsha Reid, PhD is an Assistant Professor of Special Education in the Education Department at Carlow University.  Dr. Reid earned her PhD as an Urban Special Education Scholar. During her PhD studies, Dr. Reid was tasked with reimagining and rethinking special education for students with disabilities in urban school environments.  Dr. Reid has a vested interest in the success of marginalized groups of children which has led to a research focus on racial disparities in special education assessment, identification, and school disciplinary practices. Dr. Reid also has an interest in school pre-referral systems and these system processes influence on young students with disabilities who experience life at the intersection of race and disability. Dr. Reid ‘s dissertation titled Forming Positive Classroom Environments Through the Use of a Culturally Responsive-Sustaining Mixed Reality Intervention Package received the 2023 Dissertation Award from the Council for Exceptional Children. 

Dr. Reid has a wide range of experience working with children and youth in out-of-school learning environments and within-school environments. These experiences include years as an elementary school teacher in inclusive classrooms, over ten years as a STEAM museum educator, interventionist for early learners, and teaching emergent multilingual early learners, youth and adults. In whatever capacity, Dr. Reid loves being an educator and experiencing “ah ha moments” students.  

Dr. Reid is an active member of several boards including the Council for Exceptional Children for which she currently serves on the executive board for the Division for Culturally and Linguistically Diverse Exceptional Learners. As a native of the Pittsburgh area, Dr. Reid is thrilled to be a part of the Carlow community!

Education 

• PhD, Special Education and Urban Education, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA.  
• MEd, Instruction and Learning, Combined Accelerated Studies in Early Childhood and Special Education, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA.  
• BS, Applied Developmental Psychology, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA. 

Instructional Courses

• Foundations of Special Education
• Designed for Differences
• Mild/Moderate Disabilities 
• Early Intervention PreK to 8 
• Instructional Support for Reading, Writing, and Math

Selected Publications

• Reid, M., & Dancy, T.E. (in submission expected Spring 2024). Crisis management or social action: A critical content analysis of university leader’s response to anti-black violence and discrimination. Negro Educational Review. 
• Reid, M. (2022)Forming Positive Classroom Environments Through the Use of a Culturally Responsive-Sustaining Mixed Reality Intervention Package, Dissertation, University of Pittsburgh. Chair: Dr. Douglas Kostewicz Committee Members: Dr. Sheila Conway, Dr. Rachel Robertson, Dr. Lori Delale O’Connor 
• Evans, D., Reid, M., & Gonzalez, T. (December 2022). Voices from the Field: Family as Faculty. DDEL Voices Newsletter, 12(2), 7-9. 
• King, S. A., Kostewicz, D. E., Enders, O. G., Burch, T., Chitiyo, A., Taylor, J., DeMaria, S., & Reid, M. (2020). Search and selection procedures of literature reviews in behavior analysis. Perspectives on Behavior Science 43(4), 725–760. https://doi.org/10.1007/s40614-020-00265-9

Selected Grant Projects

• Reid, M. (2023-2024). Beyond with Books Special Education Racial Justice Book Club. Council for Exceptional Children Racial Justice Grant, (awarded $500). Principal Investigator