Mariëtte Lusse

Dr Mariëtte Lusse is Professor (lector) of Collaborating with Parents at Rotterdam University of Applied Sciences since 2014 and Professor of Child Poverty at the university’s Knowledge Center for Talent Development since February 2022. A trained pedagogue, she has been part of the university since 2001, initially within the Pedagogy programme and later as a senior researcher.

Research focus:

• Designing evidence-based tools that help professionals work effectively with vulnerable parents.
• Preventing early school leaving through improved parent-school partnerships in urban, disadvantaged contexts.
• Developing integrated approaches to child poverty that connect science, policy, and daily practice.

Her work is implemented via large-scale projects such as SOS for Child Poverty, the Toolbox for Working with Parents, and the Rotterdam Talent Knowledge Center. She co-leads the National Child Poverty Research Programme with Prof Nicole Lucassen (Erasmus University Rotterdam) and has produced widely used practitioner guidelines on identifying, supporting, and encouraging families in poverty.

Scientific recognition:

• PhD obtained in 2013 for design-based research on parent involvement in metropolitan VMBO schools.
• Nominated for the 2015 NRO-VOR Practice Award for the guide Collaborating on School Success.

Impact & Collaboration:

Through more than 20 externally funded projects and a prolific publication record—including books, practitioner handbooks, and peer-reviewed articles—Mariëtte Lusse has established Rotterdam University of Applied Sciences as a national hub for research on child poverty and parent engagement. Her outputs are used by teachers, social-service professionals, youth-health workers, and municipal policymakers across the Netherlands.