Tommy Ender

Tommy Ender is an Associate Professor in the Department of Educational Studies at Rhode Island College, serving as History/Social Studies Secondary Education program coordinator. His office is located in Horace Mann, Room 332, with contact: tender@ric.edu | 401-456-8464.

Dr. Ender earned his Ph.D. in Cultural Studies & Literacies from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, M.Ed. in Secondary Education from the University of New Hampshire, and B.A. in History & Political Science from Drew University. Prior to academia, he taught secondary social studies for ten years and coached competitive soccer, football, and baseball.

His research centers on counter-narratives as pedagogical theory, Latino studies in U.S. historical contexts, and music's role in connecting past-present-future understanding. Employing autoethnography and qualitative methodologies, he develops culturally responsive frameworks for urban social studies education, with emphasis on racial literacy development and hip-hop's educational applications. His work bridges theoretical critique with classroom practice through culturally sustaining pedagogy.

Recent publications (2021-2024) demonstrate consistent focus on social justice through counter-narrative expansion, Latino civic engagement, and Wu-Tang Clan's pedagogical potential. Key themes include decolonizing curriculum, community reimagining via aesthetics, and critical whiteness in teacher development, appearing in journals like Equity & Excellence in Education and Curriculum Inquiry.

No scientific awards are documented in the provided materials.

As program coordinator, Dr. Ender mentors pre-service educators through courses emphasizing culturally responsive pedagogy and inquiry-based learning. His innovative Exploring the Cultural and Historical Evolution of Hip-Hop course (FYS 100) exemplifies music-history integration, while SED 314/414 develop teachers' capacity for critical race literacy and project-based social studies instruction. Grant activities remain unspecified in source materials.