She previously served on the faculty of the University of Missouri-Columbia. Also trained as an Educational Psychologist, Dr. Summers' scholarship focuses on understanding the role of motivation and social relationships in learning and achievement, specifically how social context (as both processes and phenomena) affects students' motivation to learn, and how this contributes to students' overall success as learners. She currently serves on the editorial boards of Contemporary Educational Psychology, The Elementary School Journal, the Journal of Experimental Education, and the American Educational Research Journal.