She earned a Ph.D. in Curriculum and Instruction from Old Dominion University in 2014 and a master’s degree in Education from the University of Massachusetts-Lowell in 2009. Prior to beginning doctoral studies, Dr. Forest was a fourth grade teacher in Massachusetts. She is a member of the American Educational Research Association, the International Reading Association, the National Council of Teachers of English, and the American Library Association, and her research interests include diversity in children’s literature, critical literacy, and the sociology of school knowledge. Her publications to date can be viewed at http://southernmiss.academia.edu/DanielleForest.