WELCOME
MULTILINGUAL & MULTICULTURAL PROFESSIONAL
Hala Sun received her Doctorate Degree (PhD) in Education at the University of California Santa Barbara (UCSB), with dual specializations in Applied Linguistics and Writing Studies.
She aspires to use her education and experiences to help empower the lives of people. With her background of being a South Korean who grew up in the Philippines, attending a Chinese school, and has traveled to many Latin American countries, she is able to speak five languages.
Overall, she is highly interested in capacity building and implementing effective strategies to support educators to support students, particularly multilingual learners and other underserved students.
RESEARCH PROJECTS:
(1) Effective and ethical use of AI/digital tools in teaching & learning contexts, specifically in curriculum design and assessment (PI)
(2) Research methodologies around / using generative AI (focused on qualitative methods) (PI)
(3) Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion efforts around international student community (PI)
(4) Multilingual immigrants' diverse language practices
MANAGEMENT, TRAINING, & PROGRAM EVALUATION:
As an Instructional Design expert in various universities, she has trained educators on how to create innovative online content materials and how to enhance student engagement in e-learning platforms. Aside from teaching, Dr. Sun has worked as a Language Assessment Analyst for McGraw-Hill Education and the American Councils for International Education, utilizing national (e.g., CCSS, WIDA, ELPA21) and international standards (e.g., TESOL, CEFR). For five years, Dr. Sun has also worked as a Research Analyst/Program Evaluator at Oxnard College, designing and evaluating programs, using quantitative and qualitative analysis, as well as analyzing student success pathways, retention, and persistence levels in K-12 + community college; she played a key role in securing 6 million dollar multi-year grants (e.g., HSI STEM, Title V) for the university. Finally, Dr. Sun has worked as a consultant to many nonprofit and nongovernmental organizations to help assess their overall organizational sustainability, including their financial management and support systems, as well as organizational structures in place.
TEACHING:
Dr. Sun has taught English, ESL, and Korean at the Middlebury Institute of International Studies, where she obtained her master’s degrees in TESOL (MATESOL ‘13) and Public Administration (MPA ’10), specializing in International Management. She has also taught ESL and Spanish in multiple settings (e.g., private businesses/individuals, local nonprofit organizations, elementary/high school afterschool programs, and university learning assistance centers). At UCSB, she has taught academic writing courses in the Writing Program for several years.
EXPERTISE:
- Fluency in 5 languages;
- Effective use of AI/Digital Tools for Teaching & Learning;
- Online/Hyflex Teaching & Learning Practices & Student Engagement;
- Teacher Agency and the use of AI;
- Multilingual Learners' Writing;
- Multilingual Education;
- Language practices (Translanguaging, Hybrid practices);
- Sociolinguistics;
- Teacher education & methodologies;
- Classroom discourse analysis
KEY EXPERIENCE:
- Program Design, Monitoring, & Evaluation (DM&E);
- AI & Digital Teaching & Learning Technologies;
- Research, Instructional Design;
- Language Assessment;
- Curriculum Design;
- Teacher Education;
- Social Media Marketing
Evaluation / Research Projects
As the Associate Director of Assessment and Evaluation at Michigan State University’s Evidence Driven Learning Innovation (EDLI), I oversee the evaluation of digital learning innovations to improve the educational experiences of faculty and students. My primary responsibility is to design and implement assessment protocols that measure the effectiveness of advanced technologies, including generative AI, within classroom settings. I conduct both qualitative and quantitative research to analyze how these technologies influence key outcomes such as student engagement, self-efficacy, and academic achievement.
In addition to leading research initiatives, I manage a range of large-scale projects, including a recently awarded National Science Foundation (NSF) grant (PI) focused on the ethical use of generative AI for STEM educators. This project involves cross-departmental collaboration, allowing me to work alongside experts in educational technology to develop training modules and resources that support teachers in adapting to the AI-driven educational landscape. I also collaborate closely with faculty members in conducting research and applying for external grants, ensuring that our projects are well-funded and aligned with the university's strategic goals. Furthermore, I mentor faculty in applying evidence-based practices for their assessment and curriculum design, guiding them in harnessing the full potential of digital tools to create more inclusive, equitable, and effective learning environments.
MATESOL Research Projects
Links to Hala's MATESOL projects:
MPA / Policy Research Projects
For my master's in public administration (MPA) thesis, I conducted a macro-level correlation analysis between conflict level and microfinance, as an income generation strategy. My study was part of a larger project, studying the following research question: To what extent is there an association between income generation through agriculture development, microfinance, and remittance strategies with level of conflict? The question is approached from several perspectives: at the micro-level, analyzing integrated interventions in geographical areas experiencing a high level of conflict (Colombia and South Sudan); and at the macro level focusing on specific intervention strategies (agricultural development, microfinance and remittances) across a sample of countries experiencing various levels of conflict.
During my MPA study, I also conducted extensive research on North Korea's human rights and effective humanitarian assistance, as well as U.S. relationship with Columbia (paper written in Spanish). In addition, while working at U.S. Committee for Refugees and Immigrants, I wrote two policy memos addressing the issue of human trafficking, specifically from Latin American countries. One memo focused on training, outreach, and protection programs, and the other focused on the supply and demand issues. Finally, I worked as a consultant at the World Bank in the poverty reduction and economic management department. I helped analyze the pay and employment data of all the countries in the world, which is now published in the World Bank's portal.
Click here for links to her policy-related projects.