Stephanie Renee Toliver is an Assistant Professor of Curriculum and Instruction at the University of Illinois, specializing in English Education and Adolescent/Secondary Literacy. Her research focuses on Black storytelling, Afrofuturism, and arts-based pedagogies to address systemic inequities in education. She authored the award-winning book Recovering Black Storytelling in Qualitative Research: Endarkened Storywork , and her work appears in journals like Teachers College Record and Journal of Literacy Research . Toliver has received multiple accolades, including the Steve Cahir Early Career Award and the AERA Qualitative Research SIG Award. Her scholarship emphasizes speculative fiction as a tool for social justice and culturally sustaining pedagogies for Black youth. Key research areas include: Black storytelling as social critique, speculative fiction for youth empowerment, and critical literacy pedagogies for pre-service teachers. Her recent work explores intersections of AI, digital literacy, and historical trauma. Toliver advocates for radical imagination in education to challenge anti-Blackness and promote equitable learning environments. Education: Ph.D. in Education. Grants & Collaborations: Active in interdisciplinary research networks, focusing on qualitative methods and Black feminist epistemologies. Labs/Teams: Engages with communities through arts-based research initiatives and public scholarship in media like Chicago Tribune and Ms. Magazine .











