Dr. Patriann Smith has worked extensively across a range of teams, universities, and countries on funded initiatives.
Dr. Smith’s research has been funded by agencies such as the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) and the National Science Foundation (NSF). Working in collaboration with Principal Investigators, Dr. S. Joel Warrican (The UWI Cave Hill), Dr. Callum Hetherington (TTU) and their respective teams, she has received over $5 million in research funding.
Inspired by her commitment to de-essentializing Blackness as she discusses in this video with Dr. Tasha Austin, the USAID transnational research partnership in which Dr. Smith has served as USF PI for the past two years — “The Research Initiative for Supporting Education in the Caribbean” or RISE Caribbean — is a partnership between the United States Agency for International Development (USAID), The University of the West Indies (UWI), Cave Hill Campus, The University of South Florida (USF), the Eastern Caribbean Joint Board of Teacher Education (ECJBTE) and Ministries of Education (MOEs) in Barbados and the Eastern Caribbean. The logo of the RISE Caribbean initiative can be seen below. Please click on the image to read more about Dr. Smith’s role in this project.
Among the highlights of the RISE Caribbean initiative have been the RISE Caribbean 2023 conference held at USF which showcased the research mentorship provided by USF faculty to UWI Cave Hill Research Fellows and Research Assistants.
To view the keynote by Dr. Allison Skerrett from the RISE Caribbean conference, please click on the image below. An overview of all conference videos is available here.
Another highlight of the RISE Caribbean initiative has involved Dr. Smith working closely with the UWI Cave Hill team to oversee mentorship of Research Fellows and Research Assistants virtually throughout the academic year and face-to-face during the summer by way of the Cross-Cultural Research Mentorship Network (CCRMN). Working in collaboration with Dr. Smith as part of this CCRMN have been USF RISE faculty members, Drs. Constance Hines, Deirdre Cobb-Roberts, Robert Dedrick, Eunsook Kim, Jennifer Wolgemuth, James King, and Jolyn Blank. An example of the mentorship structures afforded by the RISE Caribbean team is visible below. For more information about the accomplishments of the initiative thus far, please click on the image below.
For Classroom Caffeine podcasts of scholars involved in the RISE Caribbean initiative, see here.
Under the leadership of Dr. Smith, the RISE Caribbean research team has developed and presented symposiums at the AERA 2023 and 2024 conferences. Based on these presentations, an edited book has been invited by Palgrave MacMillan. For more information about the RISE Caribbean initiative, please click on the image below.
Dr. Smith brings her extensive experience managing funded initiatives such as the United States Department of Education’s (USDOE) Promise Neighborhood as a Literacy Champion and Literacy Champion Project Manager overseen by the late Dr. Scott Ridley in conjunction with his team (TTU) to this latest undertaking. She also brings her experience working on grants and projects sponsored by the National Science Foundation in collaboration Dr. Abdul Serwadda and his team (TTU).
LET’S PARTNER TO INNOVATE
Patriann enjoys partnering with like-minded scholars, educators, and community innovators, thought leaders, influences, businesses, organizations, and other stakeholders who seek like she does, to provide pathways for humans towards living a life of purpose. She seeks funding for her Black Immigrant Literacies Lab (BIMLIT-L). She is also happy to entertain collaborative thought partners who are pursuing innovative mechanisms such as patents based on the amalgamation of insights gathered from Black immigrant literacies over the past decade. Feel free to reach out to Dr. Patriann Smith with ideas for funding and for sponsorship.
Patriann Smith, Ph.D. 