Karen Alexander, Ph.D.

Bio

Dr. Karen Alexander has been an educator for 28 years. Four of those years were at the secondary level where she taught family and consumer sciences. Her remaining years in education have been at the postsecondary level as a teacher educator for Family and Consumer Sciences.  She currently serves as the Program Chair of the Family and Consumer Sciences Education Program and the Interim Director of The Curriculum Center for Family and Consumer Sciences.

Dr. Alexander has extensive experience teaching instructional methods for use in the career and technical education (CTE) classroom as well as occupational preparation and career development practices. In her undergraduate and graduate courses, she specifically teaches the integration of academics in CTE, especially in the area of content literacy.

Actively engaged in scholarship, she has over 20 professional publications and has given more than 240 presentations at international, national, state, and regional conferences. Dr. Alexander is frequently invited locally and regionally to provide professional development to classroom teachers and school counselors.

Research Interests or Areas of Expertise:

Dr. Alexander's research interests include teacher mentorship and professional development as well as the instructional needs of FCS teacher preparation programs. She has a particular interest in the integration of literacy skills with FCS content.