About
Vickie Luttrell is Professor of Psychology and Chair of the Department of Behavioral Sciences at Drury University, where she has served since 1999 and achieved full professorship in 2012. Her expertise spans educational psychology, biopsychology, and behavioral neuroscience, with teaching responsibilities including biological bases of aggressive behavior, life span development, and statistics.
Her educational background includes:
- B.A. from Drury College (1986)
- M.A. from Hollins College (1988)
- Ph.D. in Educational Psychology from Southern Illinois University-Carbondale (1999)
Dr. Luttrell's research bridges psychology with education and criminal justice, focusing on neurobiological mechanisms of aggression, educational assessment tools like the Higher Education Values Inventory (HEVI), and socio-emotional development in disadvantaged children. Her work integrates behavioral neuroscience with practical applications in criminology and STEM literacy for non-majors.
Her publication record includes a highly influential 2005 article in Trauma, Violence, & Abuse analyzing neuroimaging correlates of violent behavior, which remains among the journal's top ten most requested papers. Current research emphasizes educational measurement and undergraduate research models.
She has received significant recognition for teaching excellence:
- SGA’s Faculty Member of the Year (2001)
- University Award for Teacher Excellence (2002)
- Advising and Mentoring Award (2002)
Dr. Luttrell secures major external funding including a $325,000 NSF grant developing science/math literacy inventories for non-STEM majors (collaborating with mathematics, physics, biology, and chemistry faculty), a $145,000 NSF grant implementing The Scientific Core undergraduate research model, and a $2.6 million U.S. Department of Education grant evaluating services for disadvantaged families. As an undergraduate research mentor, she provides technical expertise across research-intensive courses.
Her interdisciplinary collaborations span Drury's STEM departments and Burrell Behavioral Health, focusing on translating research into educational and community interventions.
