My philosophy of teaching speaks to my beliefs on learning, my role as an educator, and the development of critically reflexive practice. I am committed to fostering an atmosphere, be it in-person or virtual, that supports student learning and is open to diverse opinions so that critical discourse can occur. I believe in learning for learning's sake, increasing understanding and interpretation, and acquiring and enhancing skills. I understand that students arrive to new academic settings representing a variety of teaching and learning experiences. It is my desire that when students enter the learning space I create, I foster their curiosity, promote their exploration of new ideas, and encourage their risk-taking in the pursuit of knowledge.
Teaching Approach
My teaching provides me the opportunity to engage learners as they critically think about and investigate questions, seek to gain clarity on phenomena, and endeavor to increase their understanding of a new concept. I envision my teaching role as a facilitator in the classroom, which allows for the co-construction of knowledge such that students and I, the instructor, draw from our lived experiences and expertise to come to a shared understanding of the material.
Through a combination of lecture, discussion, reflexive writing, online engagement, and experiential learning activities I emphasize meaningful contribution to conversations, ask learners to raise new insights and pose thoughtful questions in their written and verbal work, introduce materials to reinforce or challenge ideas, and encourage interrogation of concepts until meaning has been reached. In my approach to instruction, I strive to strengthen the connection between the courses I teach and the practical experiences my students hope to gain in their areas of interest within the field of education. While the objectives of the courses I teach are predetermined, I ensure to also embed themes related to power, privilege, equality, equity, self, identity, and representation. This is important because I want to help my students understand the promise, complexity, and consequences of education practice and individual experiences given the historical, contemporary, social, and political realities shaping the profession locally and in a global context.
Embedded in my pedagogical approach is my commitment to student mentorship. I routinely invite students to collaboratively write scholarly work with me for publication, advance their scholarly identity by guiding their independent research studies, support the development of their own teaching pedagogy in my supervision of their teaching practicums in my courses, and foster their practical experiences in my supervision of their internships. I also encourage my master’s students to take advantage of writing opportunities for practice-based publications. My goal is to demystify the publication process, which they often believe is more suitable for doctoral students.
Undergirding my philosophy of teaching is the importance of understanding one’s self, prior to interaction with others. As noted by Blasco (2012), I want my students to understand the complexities of “how to comprehend and engage constructively with difference, how to gain awareness of one’s own cultural situatedness, and, thereby, also how to recognize and address issues of discrimination, inequity, and injustice” (p. 476). Thus, I ask my students to examine how their diverse and culturally rooted stories may influence their self-identities and future education-related praxis. This is crucial because organizations, whether domestic or abroad, are situated in larger societal and global context that must contend with ethical concerns related to issues of ethnicity and race, gender and gender expression, nationality and citizenship, religion, sexual orientation, and socio-economic status, among others. To support students as they wrestle with these concepts, I incorporate conversations on positionality and critical reflexivity. I strive to help them reposition “the other” and realize the impact they have on the places, spaces, and people they encounter, both in research and in practice, once they leave my classroom.
Academic Appointments
Senior Lecturer
Boston University
Higher Education Administration, Wheelock College of Education | September 2023 - present
SED RS600 B1 Introduction to Research
SED AP699 A1 Current Issues in Higher Education: Policy and Practice
Program Director
Lesley University
International Higher Education, Graduate School of Education | July 2022-September 2023
Interim Program Director
Lesley University
International Higher Education, Graduate School of Arts and Social Sciences | November 2021-June 2022
Associate Professor (promotion July 2023)
Assistant Professor (September 2018 - June 2023)
Lesley University
Ph.D. Program in Educational Studies | July 2022-present
EAGSR 7104 Qualitative Research Methods II
EAGSR 8104 Interdisciplinary Seminar II
International Higher Education Masters Program | August 2018-present
GINTC 6000 Foundations of International Higher Education (course developed by Dr. Vital)
GINTC 6100 Identity and Belonging in a Categorized World
GINTC 6109 Global Perspectives on International Higher Education
GINTC 7107 Applied Research in Professional Practice
GINTC 6999-02 Values Differences and Moral Judgments: Inclusive Contexts (course revised by Dr. Vital)
Co-Instructor
Lesley University Institute for English Language Programs Beyond Borders
Co-Instructor, English for Education and Empowerment: Multilingual Parent Advocacy Certificate course, The Lesley-Brockton School and Community Engagement Project, Spring 2021 (course co-developed by Dr. Vital)
Co-Instructor, Integrated English Skills for Academic Purposes, Lesley University/ Institute of Science, Technology and Advanced Studies of Haiti, Summer 2019 (course co-developed by Dr. Vital)
Affiliate Faculty
Oregon State University
Adult & Higher Education Leadership Doctoral Program, College of Education | Summers 2018-2020
AHE 645 (online): Ethical Practice in Higher Education
Part Time Faculty
Northeastern University
Global Studies and International Relations Master's Program, College of Professional Studies | September 2017– June 2018
GST 7983 (online): Special Topics: Higher Education and Development (winter 2018) (course developed by Dr. Vital)
GST 6840 (online): The Business of International Education (winter 2018)
GST 6109 (online): Basic Field Research Methods (winter, spring 2018)
GST 6810 (online): International Higher Education (fall 2017)
GST 6506 (online & on-ground): Regional Studies: Latin America (fall 2017)
Visiting Scholar
Center for International Higher Education
Boston College | September 2016–May 2017
Graduate Student Advising and Mentoring
Dissertation Committee Member
Lesley University Graduate School of Arts and Social Sciences
Lesley University Graduate School of Education
Northeastern University; Doctor of Law and Policy Program
The Chicago School of Professional Psychology, Ph.D. in International Psychology Program
University of Massachusetts Boston; Urban Education, Leadership, and Policy Studies Program
Dissertation/Dissertation Proposal Coach and Editor (individual students)
Capella University
Colombia University
Lesley University
Michigan State University
North Carolina State University
Northeastern University
Regis College
University of Massachusetts Boston
University of New Orleans
University of South Florida
Walden University
Wayne State University
Master’s Thesis Coach and Editor (individual students)
Cambridge College
Invited Lectures
Boston University
”Towards international higher education practice with cultural humility and an equity lens”
Higher Education Leadership, Educational Leadership & Policy Studies | October 2022
Brandeis University
“What? So, what? Now, what? Interrogating positionality and adopting critical reflexivity in education practice”
ED 264A Power, privilege and Position in Schools | June 2021
Virginia Tech “Perspectives on global higher education” EDHE 6054: College & University Administration, School of Education| April 2021
Lesley University “Critical theory: Understanding and application to education research” EAGSR 8102: Interdisciplinary Seminar I, Individually Designed PhD Program, Graduate School of Education| March 2021
University of South Carolina “Reflexivity and positionality in student affairs and higher education research and practice” EDHE 832 Paradigms of Inquiry in Higher Education| September 2020
Hamad bin Khalifa University, Doha, Qatar “Leadership and management in the time of crisis: The case of the 2010 Haiti earthquake” PPO 707 Public Policy; Leadership, Public Policy and Crisis Management| July 2020
University of South Florida Vital, L. M. & Bonds Shaw, M. “Balancing work/life amid COVID-19” Scholarships for Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics Program| April 2020
Lesley University “Positioning ourselves in social inquiry: Implications of self and identity in field research” GCOUN 6101 Quantitative and Qualitative Research Methods, Counseling Psychology, Graduate School of Arts and Social Sciences | January 2020
Lesley University Vital, L. M. & Jackson, A. J. “The influence of positionality and critical reflexivity in ethical community engagement and organizing” CSOCS 1888 – 01 and 02, College of Liberal Arts and Sciences | September 2019
Brandeis University
“Context matters: People, places, language, and culture”
ED 264A Foundations of Education | July 2019
University of Nebraska–Lincoln
“Messy and personal and not always sterile: Incorporating critical reflexivity in research”
EDAD 900: Proseminar in Educational Leadership and Higher Education | November 2018
Brandeis University
“Positionality, reflexivity, & the impact of your practice”
ED 264A Foundations of Education | July 2018
Oakland University
“Critical reflexivity and positionality in education research”
ED 9010: Research Methodology – Qualitative Methods & Analysis | November 2017
University of Nebraska–Lincoln
“Beginning with self, engaging with the 'other': Preparation for educational research”
EDAD 900: Proseminar in Educational Leadership and Higher Education | November 2017
Michigan State University
“Preparing for and engaging in international research: Alumni perspectives”
Brown Bag Lunch Series, Office of International Studies in Education | November 2017
Brandeis University
“Culturally response practice: Incorporating reflexivity and positionality in the classroom”
ED 264A Foundations of Education | July 2017
Boston College
“International Research Training: Perceptions of Doctoral Students in the Field of Higher Education”
Center for International Higher Education | May 2017
Boston College
“Regional Perspectives on Higher Education: A Closer Look at Haiti”
ELHE 7801: Regional Perspectives on Higher Education in Asia and Latin America | April 2017
University of South Florida
“Innovation in higher education: Student services in fragile environments”
EDF 6938: Organization and Administration in Higher Education and Student Affairs | March 2017
Boston College
“Researcher reflexivity and positionality: Considerations for international field research and engagement”
ELHE 7903: Field experience in international higher education | February 2017
University of Nebraska–Lincoln
“The ground on which you stand: Reflexivity, positionality, and (re)positioning the other”
EDAD 995 Section 706: Proseminar in Educational Leadership and Higher Education | December 2016
University of South Florida
“Global perspectives of postsecondary education: Higher education attainment in Haiti”
EDH 6051: Higher Education in America | February 2016
Professional Course
Senior Instructional Advisor and Course Manager – The Global Citizens’ Initiative
Fundamentals of Global Citizen Leadership (online course) | Fall 2015, 2016, 2017
Core topics: Environmental sustainability, Gender equality, Good governance, Human rights, Peace and justice, Poverty reduction.
Undergraduate Courses
Language Fellow – Haitian Creole/Kreyol Ayisyen, Cultures and Languages Across the Curriculum (CLAC) Program
Residential College in the Arts & Humanities, Michigan State University | Fall 2014, Spring 2014 & 2015
Instructor – Simmons College
First-Year Experience (FYE) Seminar | Fall 2005–Spring 2010
Instructor – College of Education, Michigan State University
EAD 315: Student Leadership Training | Fall 2004, Spring 2005