Our Team

Dr. Shelby Cosner leads all aspects of CUEL. She is a qualitative researcher who is recognized as an expert on leadership for school improvement, the development of organizational capacities that support improvement, preparation and development of educational leaders, and the use of continuous improvement to transform leadership preparation.

Dr. Hebert is a qualitative researcher and serves as the lead CUEL documentarian, and coordinator for all CUEL development projects.  In this role she has contributed to a wide assortment of past CUEL research and development projects. She currently contributes to CUEL’s mentor support of two university principal preparation programs as part of a $47M 4-year project funded by The Wallace Foundation to transform university-based principal preparation and provides oversight for all site visits to CUEL by other institutions.

Dr. Steve Tozer, who was the founding CUEL Director and is now an Emeritus Professor, remains a key contributor for a range of CUEL continuous improvement and leader development projects. He also broadly engages in policy advocacy for CUEL, both in Illinois and widely throughout the U.S. In this latter role, he serves on the Advisory Boards for the Aspen Institute, the National P-3 Institute, the University of Connecticut/Office of Early Childhood Education PK3 Leadership Program, and Teachers Supporting Teachers. He is a member of The Wallace Foundation Education Leadership Network. 

Dr. Watson is a Leadership Coach in the CUEL. In this role, she coaches Chicago Public Schools network chiefs and network deputy chiefs as a part of the CUEL’s grant work funded by the Lloyd A. Fry Foundation. This grant project, titled, “Engaging P2 to Diagnose and Address Network Chief Learning Needs,” seeks to contribute to the CPS 5-Year Vision by strengthening the practice of Network Chiefs as principal supervisors who effect continuous improvement and help principals grow as instructional leaders. Dr. Watson coordinates with CUEL faculty and CPS leadership to design and implement tools, routines, and protocols to develop network chiefs’ and deputies’ formative evaluation skills. In turn, network staff will coach principals to attend effectively to equity-oriented instruction, culture and climate, trust building, family engagement, and organizational change.

Dr. Whalen oversees all CUEL research and has been a part of a broad assortment of past CUEL research and development projects. He is a quantitative and qualitative methodologist with expertise in program evaluation as well as with the design of data infrastructures for use with evaluation and continuous improvement (the latter of which contributed to CUEL work recognized by the Spotlight Award from the Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching). Areas of content expertise include school leadership preparation/development, professional learning, and school-community partnerships.

Mr. Zavitkovsky is a contributor to several CUEL continuous improvement and leader development projects and he has contributed to several past CUEL research and development projects.  Zavitkovsky is an expert with the design of data systems and infrastructures for continuous improvement.

Dr. Allen is a key contributor for a range of CUEL continuous improvement and leader development projects. His content expertise centers on leadership coaching, leadership preparation, equity-oriented leadership, and the experiences of and supports for African American principals in urban contexts. He teaches and coaches in EdD program in the Department of Educational Policy Studies. Allen is a former principal and network-level leader, and he earned his EdD from the University of Illinois at Chicago.

Dr. Barron is a key contributor for a range of CUEL continuous improvement and leader development projects and she has contributed to a broad range of past CUEL development projects. She teaches and coaches in the EdD program in the Department of Educational Policy Studies. In this work she has supported EdD candidates through internships and during their novice years as principals, assistant principals, and principal supervisors as well as through EdD doctoral completion. In addition to the EDPS 559 residency course, she teaches the EDPS 553 course, Leading Urban School Systems, part of the UIC superintendent endorsement strand.

Dr. Campos will be contributing to several CUEL continuous improvement and leader development projects. She coaches and teachers in the Ed.D. program in the Department of Educational Policy Studies. Campos was the principal of Rodolfo Lozano Bilingual International Center, Chicago Illinois, for eleven years. She served as assistant principal and then principal of Talcott ES in Chicago and prior to that was a bilingual coordinator in the CPS Office of Language and Culture.  Campos holds two master’s degrees and received her EdD. from the University of Illinois Chicago in 2016.

Dr. De Voto is a qualitative researcher with content expertise related to school leadership, leadership preparation/development, and education policy. Craig currently contributes to a collaborative project between UICs Learning Sciences Research Institute (LSRI) and UICs Center for Urban Education Leadership (CUEL). This $4.7M 5-year project funded by the National Science Foundation is designed to develop organizational capacities for K-8 mathematics leadership and learning. He has also been a contributor to a number of past CUEL research and development projects.

Dr. Kenya Mandeldove-Sadler is a contributor to several CUEL continuous improvement and leader development projects. She coaches and teaches in the EdD program in the Department of Educational Policy Studies. In this work, she ushers UIC aspiring principals through residency including CPS principal eligibility, novice leadership, and the capstone phase of the EdD program. She is a former teacher, principal, and district level administrator in Chicago Public Schools. She has also served as a Deputy Chief of Transformation for several years in Ohio. In spring 2023 she earned a PhD in Reading and Language from National-Louis University.

Dr. Mayrowetz is a qualitative researcher with content expertise related equity-focused instructional leadership, distributed forms of school leadership, and instructional reforms. He currently contributes to CUEL’s mentor support of two university principal preparation programs as part of a $47M 4-year project funded by The Wallace Foundation to transform university-based principal preparation and provides oversight for all site visits to CUEL by other institutions. He teaches in the areas of educational policy, organizational theory, leadership theory, educational law, instructional reform, instructional leadership, and case study research.

Dr. Stephen McClain contributes to several CUEL continuous improvement and professional development projects. He coaches and teachers in the Ed.D. program in the Department of Educational Policy Studies. McClain is a former school and network leader in Chicago, Illinois and earned an EdM from Harvard Graduate School of Education and EdD from the University of Illinois at Chicago. 

Dr. Salisbury is a mixed methods researcher with content expertise related to equity-focused instructional leadership and distributed forms of school leadership. He currently contributes to CUEL’s mentor support of two university principal preparation programs as part of a $47M 4-year project funded by The Wallace Foundation to transform university-based principal preparation and provides oversight for all site visits to CUEL by other institutions. Salisbury teaches in the EdD and PhD programs in the Department of Educational Policy Studies. He teachers in the areas of equity-focused instructional leadership, organizational change/theory, and educational leadership.

Dr. Yue Yin is a professor of Educational Psychology, with a focus on assessments, science education, research design, and applied measurement/statistics. Dr. Yin is dedicated to using assessments to enhance instruction and learning, and her research has explored various assessments, spanning K-12 and higher education in subjects such as physics, chemistry, biology, mathematics, statistics, and engineering.  Building on learning and educational theories, Dr. Yin employs advanced measurement and statistical tools to explore innovative approaches for using assessments to enhance learning and instruction. Beyond her academic work, Dr. Yin serves as a K-12 school board member, where she draws upon her passion for education and expertise to advance the quality of education for all students.

Meagan Richard is a contributor on several CUEL research and development projects. She has extensive experience in survey design and administration, advanced statistical analysis, and in-depth interviewing.