Amanda Barany is a graduate from the Educational Leadership and Learning Technologies Ph.D program at Drexel University with a concentration in STEM education. In Fall of 2020, she will begin her position as a postdoctoral scholar for the Louis Stokes Alliance for Minority Participation (LSAMP) program. Her current research explores how online communities of practice can support user identity exploration and change around STEM identities.

Amanda currently works with Dr. Aroutis Foster as a graduate researcher in the Games and Learning in Interactive Digital Environments (GLIDE) lab, which unifies her interests in games, the design of computer-based learning environments, identity, and interest and motivation in game-based learning. She has 10 years experience studying the design of games and learning.

Amanda’s current areas of interest stemmed from her prior research and professional experiences. She earned an undergraduate and master’s degree in social work at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, with a focus on psychology and criminal justice. For five years, she worked in the UW Madison psychology department conducting lab studies of college students’ developing interest and motivation in science content. From 2011 – 2014, she also served as project manager for the educational game Citizen Science at the Games + Learning + Society research and design lab. Amanda also worked as curricular designer for the game Fair Play, a game that provides immersive experiences of racial bias in higher education environments. Amanda was the co-lead organizer for volunteers at CSCL 2017 and co-editor for conference proceedings for GLS 2016.