Posted on September 25, 2024 by Katelyn Juarez
Sharon Nichols, Ph.D.
Sharon Nichols, Ph.D., Professor and Chair of the Department of Educational Psychology, has been named the inaugural co-editor of Educational Psychology for Policy and Practice (EPPP). The launch of this new journal comes from the APA’s publishing division entering an agreement with APA Division 15 (Educational Psychology).
Nichols’s current work focuses on the impact of test-based accountability on teachers, their instructional practices, and adolescent motivation and development. Nichols is the Director of UTSA’s Urban Education Institute and has previously served as the Vice President of Division 15 of the American Psychological Association.
The concept for EPPP emerged over five years ago when Nichols was the chair of a Policy Committee within Division 15 of the American Psychological Association, “In that role and across many different conversations with scholars at different levels of their career, it became clear a journal with this focus was needed to provide a pathway for scholarship that considers the myriad ways educational psychology science can be used to better understand how educational policies inform, influence, and effect educational practices and outcomes,” said Nichols.
The idea for the journal was further energized by the experience Nichols gained from studying the effects of high-stakes testing accountability on teachers and students. Originally mandated by the No Child Left Behind act, Nichols noticed that too few educational psychologists weighed in on how this policy and its mandates impacted student motivation and learning, both of which are key topic areas studied by educational psychologists.
EPPP will be launched as a biannual peer-reviewed journal for scholarship that applies educational psychology science to phenomena and issues relevant to educational policy and practice, serving as policymakers, administrators, educational practitioners, and the public. This will be the Division’s second journal to the organization’s flagship journal the Educational Psychologist.
“Another key feature of this journal we are developing will be the commitment of authors to produce briefs that can be shared freely with relevant stakeholders, building on the policy and practice brief program initiated through our division,” said Nichols.
EPPP will be APA’s 90th peer-reviewed journal, joining a comprehensive portfolio that covers various aspects of psychology. The journal will join other APA Publishing educational psychology titles such as the Journal of Educational Psychology, APA Division 16’s School Psychology, and the Journal of Diversity in Higher Education.
Inaugural co-editors of EPPP, Dr. Sharon Nichols and Dr. Francesca López, are excited about what this partnership means, “We are looking forward to our partnership with APA to deepen the impact of educational psychology scholarship throughout our communities.”
About APA Division 15 (Educational Psychology)
APA Division 15 is an internationally recognized nonprofit professional organization for educational psychologists, broadly defined. Its mission is to promote the generation, dissemination, and application of scientific psychological knowledge in educational practice and policy; to inform psychological science through applied educational psychological research; to develop and support a vibrant and diverse community of educational psychologists who engage in these endeavors; and to establish and grow collaborations with other organizations who share the Division’s values and pursue similar goals.
About APA
APA is the world’s largest nonprofit publisher of psychological science, setting standards for scholarship in the field. APA Publishing produces journals, books, videos, databases, and educational products for researchers, practitioners, educators, students, and the public.
— Katelyn Juarez
