Adria Patthoff

Adria Patthoff is an Assistant Professor of Child Development at Ventura College, part of the Ventura County Community College District. She holds a PhD in Education from the University of California, Santa Cruz, an MA in Early Childhood Education from New York University, and a BS in Communication Studies from Northwestern University. Her research focuses on formative assessment practices in teacher education, particularly for early childhood, special education, and multilingual populations. She employs sociocultural and communities of practice theories to study how pedagogical knowledge emerges through dialogic interactions with students and educators. With over a decade of teaching experience in PreK-3 general and special education across public, charter, and dual language schools, she emphasizes mentorship and professional development. Dr. Patthoff is a credentialed teacher in California and New York and advocates for strengthening early childhood education systems. She teaches courses including Child Growth & Development, Child, Family & Community, and Child Nutrition, Health & Safety. Her publications explore barriers in teacher professional development and technology’s role in mathematics education.

Her work highlights innovative approaches like lesson study and video clubs to address gaps in educator training. She actively contributes to community-building efforts to enhance early childhood education at local, state, and national levels. Ventura College’s campus acknowledges its location on the ancestral lands of the Chumash and other Indigenous nations.