Erik Ruzek
Ph.D. Student
Department of Education
Email: eruzek@uci.edu
Biography
Erik Ruzek is a fifth year Ph.D. in Education student specializing in Educational Policy and Social Context. Prior to coming to UC Irvine, Erik was an admissions counselor for both the University of California and the California State University.
Erik is broadly interested in how educational contexts influence adolescent development and focuses on a key developmental marker – student motivation. Erik’s research builds on and expands current teacher effectiveness research by examining teacher influence on student motivational growth. He is also interested in K-16 theory and practice, education policy making, and the summer learning gap.
His post-graduation plans include working as a faculty member in a university or with education-oriented research organizations.
Erik has a Master’s degree in Leadership and Liberal Studies from Duquesne University and a Bachelor’s degree in Anthropology from UC Riverside. While at a student at UCR, Erik studied abroad in Africa. He spent two months roaming the deserts and savannahs of Kenya, camping on the shores of Lake Turkana, and excavating a 4,000 year old burial site.
Publications
Domina, T., & Ruzek, E. (2010,). Paving the way: K-16 partnerships for higher education diversity and high school reform. Educational Policy, Online First, December 31, 2010.
Zarate, M. E., Ruzek, E., & Silver, D. (2008). Middle school influences on high school graduation and college readiness in Los Angeles Unified School District. In Seizing the middle ground: Why middle school creates the pathway to college and the work force (pp. 58-67). Los Angeles, CA: United Way of Greater Los Angeles.
http://www.unitedwayla.org/getinformed/rr/socialreports/Pages/seizingthemiddleground.aspx