Congratulations to Maria Bastien, assistant professor of education, on the successful defense of her doctoral dissertation at the University of Ottawa. Bastien’s dissertation is titled, “From Family Literacy to Literacies in the Context of Newcomer Family Relationships: Mapping Literacies with Home Visitors from Home Instruction for the Parents of Preschool Youngsters (HIPPY).”

Her project uses qualitative research to reconceptualize conventional views of family literacy. In the HIPPY program, home visitors, which include members of participating communities, visit the parents of preschool-aged children biweekly to instruct them in use of HIPPY educational materials. Bastien used Multiple Literacy Theory to examine the experiences of these home visitors and the practices and processes they employ.

Bastien successfully defended her dissertation in July 2017, and the degree was officially conferred in November. Bastien joined the Walla Walla University School of Education and Psychology faculty in 2017.

Posted Jan. 31, 2018