Marva Cappello

Marva Cappello is Professor of Teacher Education and Director/Founder of the Center for Visual Literacies at San Diego State University's School of Teacher Education. She additionally serves as Director of the SDSU/CGU Joint Doctoral Program in Education, which develops scholars committed to democratic schooling and social justice for diverse communities.

Her research pioneers visual-based methods as equitable literacy pedagogy, with key interests including:

• Visual and Multimodal Literacy Development
• Critical Analysis of Visual Text Complexity
• Cross-Cultural Educational Applications
• Participatory Visual Research Methods
• Teacher Identity Construction through Visual Media

Dr. Cappello's international work spans US/Mexico border regions, Samoa, and Belize, examining how visual strategies support diverse learners. As founder of the Center for Visual Literacies, she cultivates global scholarly communities and recently hosted the 'Voices of Women of Color' symposium. Her teaching encompasses literacy methods and qualitative research at all graduate levels.

Publications from 2016-2020 reveal consistent innovation in visual literacy, with articles in top journals like The Reading Teacher demonstrating practical classroom applications. Her work bridges theoretical frameworks with actionable strategies, particularly through multimodal composition approaches and visual thinking routines. The international scope of her research underscores visual literacy's adaptability across cultural contexts.

Through the Joint Doctoral Program and Center for Visual Literacies, Dr. Cappello mentors scholars in social justice-oriented research. Her lab provides platforms for symposiums, cross-cultural collaborations, and the development of visual methodologies that challenge traditional literacy paradigms while creating inclusive learning pathways.