Kyle Roberson will use grant funding to continue his research efforts with inmates in South Dakota
Kyle Roberson, Ph.D., is currently an assistant professor in the Family and Consumer Sciences Education department. He was recently awarded the Phi U Educational Foundation Alumni Research Grant in the amount of $2,500. The grant will support his research in South Dakota with incarcerated fathers, using literacy to help them develop better connectedness with their children.
Roberson's research and support from Phi Upsilon Omicron demonstrates the difference faculty can make in people's lives, with the support of Texas Tech University and on-campus organizations. His research focuses on parent-child reading programs within state and federal prisons. The program's goal is to help inmates encourage literacy in their children, and research is being conducted to determine the program's effectiveness. He uses pre and post-surveys, interviews, and reflective writing for the study.
“This study is a mixed-methods action research project to evaluate the impact of the parent-child reading intervention on incarcerated parent's attitudes toward reading and perceptions of parental connectedness to their children,” Roberson said.
One goal Roberson hopes to accomplish is to encourage policy changes within correctional departments. He hopes his research leads to more funding and adoption of reading programs that benefit incarcerated people and their children. He also wants current programs to consider more unique ways to serve prisoners better, as these programs improve relationships between inmates and their children, along with inmates and correctional workers.
"Increased awareness will help stakeholders see the value in research related to reentry efforts and the support of children of the incarcerated," Roberson said.
His work has the potential to benefit inmates that are generally underserved and their children, which are hard to identify. Roberson directly reflects the College of Human Sciences' goals and ideals of improving and enhancing the human condition. Texas Tech University and campus organizations continue to support faculty in their research efforts in and out of Lubbock.