Crystal Chen Lee

Bio

Crystal Chen Lee (Ed.D.) is an Associate Professor of English Education in the College of Education at North Carolina State University. Her research lies at the nexus of literacy, teacher education, community engagement and underserved youth. She is the founding director and PI of the Literacy and Community Initiative (LCI), a collaboration among the College of Education, the Friday Institute for Educational Innovation, and youth-serving community organizations. Dr. Lee also has two appointments as a Faculty Fellow of the Friday Institute of Educational Innovation and a NCSU Community Engaged Fellow. Her work has been featured nationally and internationally, and she has been published in books and journal articles such as Urban Education, Teachers College Record, Reading Research Quarterly, Journal of Literacy Research, Journal of Adolescent and Adult Literacy, English Journal, Teaching and Teacher Education, and  International Journal of Qualitative Studies in Education. Her work has been supported by grants such as the National Council of Teachers of English, Engaged Scholarship Consortium, and National Science Foundation.

Dr. Lee began her teaching experience as a high school English teacher in New Jersey and a literacy instructor at Teachers College, Columbia University and Montclair State University. In addition to her teaching, she has also served as an International Leadership Civic Fellow in the United States Congress and an education intern at International Justice Mission, a global non-profit organization partnering with local justice systems to end violence against people living in poverty. She received her Ed.D. in Curriculum and Teaching from Columbia University. Her dissertation received the AERA Research in Women and Education SIG Outstanding Dissertation Award (Selma Greenberg Award), the American Association of University Women (AAUW) American Dissertation Fellowship, Teachers College’s Provost Dissertation Award, and Dean’s Dissertation Fellowship.

Research Description

 Dr. Lee’s scholarship and research focuses on two strands: literacy and teacher education, with an intersection of community engagement and underserved populations in each strand. The first strand focuses on how critical literacy can lead to increased literacy improvement and community engagement particularly for underserved students. Specifically, this strand examines how literacy is not separate from youth advocacy and leadership but is rather intertwined. The second strand focuses on how teacher education can be improved and developed through a social justice framework that values communities and underserved populations. In recognizing the literacy practices of community organizations, Dr. Lee is passionate about publishing student voices, as well amplifying students’ academic and personal strengths to inform how the community can meet the literacy needs of currently underserved youth. Dr. Lee is the founding director and PI of the Literacy and Community Initiative (LCI) that examines and promotes the power of voice among marginalized students through a model of Write, Engage, and Lead. LCI’s mission is to build university and community-based partnerships by amplifying student voices through student publication, advocacy, and leadership.

Recent Selected Scholarly Publications

*indicates publication with graduate student

• Lee, C. C., Picart, J.A., & Mann, J.C. (2024). Amplifying Youth Voices through Critical Literacy and Positive Youth Development: The Potential of University-Community Partnerships. Routledge/Taylor & Francis.
• Sundaresan, D.*, Watson, A*., Bardaka, E., Lee, C. C., Mayhorn, C. B., & Singh, M. P. (2025). Prosociality in Microtransit. Journal of Artificial Intelligence Research, 82, 77-110. https://doi.org/10.1613/jair.1.16777
• Carrillo Carrasquillo, M.* & Lee, C. C. (2025). Navigating borders: A qualitative case study on Latine students’ use of border pedagogy practices. Journal of Research in Childhood Education.1-14. Online First publication. https://doi.org/10.1080/02568543.2025.2453012
• Lee, C. C., Mann, J.C.*, Manns, L.*, & Barber. J.* (2024). Hope against hope: Dialoguing through critical poetic inquiry with adolescents from urban communities. Critical Departures in Qualitative Research.13(3), 70–100. https://doi.org/10.1525/dcqr.2024.13.3.70
• Lee, C.C. & McDevitt, S. (2024). “It’s like a drop that ripples”: Funds of power among Latino immigrant youth educators in community organizations. Journal of Latinos and Education. 1-14. Online First publication. https://doi.org/10.1080/15348431.2024.2403524
• Lee, C. C., Akin-Sabuncu, S., & Pratt, S. (2024). “‘It’s like Central Park’: Conceptualizing teacher residencies as a democratic hub. Journal of Education for Teaching. 51(1), 125-138.https://doi.org/10.1080/02607476.2024.2391458
• Akin-Sabuncu, S., McDevitt, S. Lee, C. C., & Goodwin, A. L. (2024).  Reimagining teacher education for immigrant students in the context of global migration: Teacher educators’ perspectives. Teaching and Teacher Education, 143. Online First publication.  https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tate.2024.104550

Honors and Awards

• NCSU College of Education Faculty Strategic Excellence Award
• National Council of Research on Language and Literacy (NCRLL) Early Career Award Finalist
• NCSU Executive Council of the Academy of Outstanding Faculty in Extension and Engagement
• NCSU Outstanding Engagement Award
• Kofi Lomotey Outstanding Reviewer Award, Urban Education
• NCSU College of Education University Faculty Scholar Nominee
• NCSU College of Education Outstanding Teacher Award Nominee
• AERA Research in Women and Education Outstanding Dissertation Award (Selma Greenberg Award)
• AAUW American Dissertation Fellowship

Services and Engagements

• The Literacy and Community Initiative
• NC State Community Engaged Fellow
• The Friday Institute of Educational Innovation Faculty Fellow
• Wake Community-University Partnership Faculty Partner