Alicia Kershaw

Dr. Alicia Kershaw serves as Assistant Professor in the School of Education at Northwest Missouri State University since 2011, specializing in literacy education across elementary and middle school contexts with emphasis on evidence-based reading instruction.

Her academic credentials include:

• Ph.D. in Curriculum and Instruction and Urban Leadership and Policy Studies (University of Missouri-Kansas City)
• M.S.Ed. in Reading (Northwest Missouri State University)
• B.S. in Elementary Education (Missouri Western State University)
• B.S. in Psychology (Missouri Western State University)

Her research program centers on literacy development, particularly vocabulary acquisition within science-of-reading frameworks, dyslexia interventions, and multi-tiered support systems for diverse learners. She actively investigates pre-service teacher preparation models and literacy coaching methodologies to bridge research-practice gaps in K-12 settings.

Analysis of her 2024 conference presentations reveals concentrated scholarly focus on vocabulary instruction as foundational to reading comprehension, with practical applications in science-of-reading classrooms and interventions for struggling readers. Her work consistently addresses implementation challenges in real-world educational environments.

Recognition includes:

• Park Hill Star Teacher Award
• National Board-Certification
• Early Literacy Outstanding Dissertation
• UMKC School of Education Nomination
• UMKC Fox Fellowship Award

She has secured significant external funding through Park Hill Foundation Grants (Jolly Phonics, Voracious Readers, Summer Reading Family Fun) and Missouri Department of Elementary and Secondary Education Grants (S.P.I.R.E. Intervention, Success with Social Skills Curriculum), demonstrating applied research impact in school districts.

Her professional trajectory spans classroom teaching across multiple districts (Park Hill, North Platte, Clinton Co.), literacy coaching, and adjunct faculty positions at three universities, providing extensive practitioner perspective to her academic work.