Early Childhood Justice ​Collaborative


ECJ CoLab Fellows

Antonieta Barces
​Velma E. Schmidt Fellow

Antonieta Barces (She/hers) is a doctoral student at the University of North Texas. She is currently pursuing a Ph.D. in Curriculum and Instruction with an emphasis in Early Childhood Studies. Anto served as an early childhood educator for over 13 years in the Dallas area, where she gained insight into bilingual teaching pedagogies and equitable educational practices among children of color. Her research interests are grounded in her background as an immigrant and mother of a child with disabilities, which has led her to focus on transformative early childhood pedagogies, critical consciousness practices in bilingual education, and equity and social justice in early childhood spaces. Anto earned her Master's degree in Early Childhood Studies at the University of North Texas.

Jennifer Castillo
​​Justice Scholar Fellow

Jennifer Castillo is a first generation Latina Ph.D. student at the University of North Texas. She is pursuing a degree in Curriculum and Instruction with a focus on Language and Literacy and an emphasis on Bilingual Education. Jenn’s experience as a former dual language bilingual teacher guides her interests in identity work, language practices, and critical consciousness. Committed to humanizing and critical pedagogies, Jenn works with preservice bilingual teachers to unlearn false, dominant narratives about emergent bilinguals that have been created by power structures and deficit thinking.

Molly Doherty
​Velma E. Schmidt Fellow

Molly is a Ph.D. Student in the Early Childhood Studies program at the University of North Texas. Her experiences as an early childhood educator and mother of two young children inform her inquiry on anti-oppressive pedagogies and practices in early childhood spaces. Her research interests include how young children interact with anti-oppressive children's texts, motherhood and anti-racism, and early childhood practitioner research with narrative inquiry.

Zutella Vea Holmes
Justice Scholar ​Fellow

Zutella Vea Holmes (she/hers) is a doctoral student at University of North Texas in the Early Childhood Studies program. Zutella is a graduate of the HBCU Prairie View A&M University (PV!), Texas State, and currently is a Justice Scholar at UNT. Zutella’s research focuses on anti-racist text in the classroom, the adultification of Black children and the experiences of Black female preservice teachers in educational programs. Through the lens of Critical Race Theory and Black Feminist Thought, Zutella hopes to bring insight into the educational discourse of early childhood education.

Jeonghye Nah
​Velma E. Schmidt Fellow

Jeonghye (Jung-Hae) is a Ph.D. student  in Early Childhood Studies at the University of North Texas. She is an international student from South Korea. Throughout her career, she has worked with young children in childcare and several educational institutions. Currently, she volunteers as a teacher at a Korean heritage language school on Saturdays to teach Korean to 4-5 year-old children. Her research interests are focused on Asian American childhoods in the DFW metropolitan area, and she is especially interested in children's geographies and everyday experiences. ​

​Iana N.M. Phillips
​Velma E. Schmidt Fellow

​​Iana (we-our-us-I) is a doctoral student in the Early Childhood Studies program at the University of North Texas. Our academic and professional focus is dedicated to centering the voices of BICOC (Black Indigenous Children of Color) in Montessori learning environments, while supporting their identity development. Additionally, we are creating spaces to empower BIMOC (Black Indigenous Montessorians of Color) by engaging Black feminist thought.

An American Montessori Society (AMS) credentialed Elementary I and II teacher of twelve years and credentialed Administrator, Iana has worked in multiple Montessori environments and various models, including public, private, and public charter. Over the course of Our Montessori career, We have served children in the classroom and have worked with future Montessorians as an instructor at the Institute for Advanced Montessori Studies in Silver Spring, MD. Iana has also served on the American Montessori Society and Montessori Public Policy Initiative boards and is a nationally recognised presenter. Iana holds degrees in History from Mary Baldwin College and New Mexico State University and a Master’s degree in Teaching from Trinity Washington University. Iana attended the University of Texas at Austin to commence her doctoral degree and transferred to the University of North Texas to complete her doctoral studies. Iana considers ourself a humble Montessori parent, supportive consultant, enthusiastic learner, and proud Montessorian of Colour.

ECJ CoLab Faculty Partners

Michelle Salazar Pérez
​Velma E. Schmidt Endowed Professor

Dr. Michelle Salazar Pérez is a Professor of Early Childhood Studies at the University of North Texas. She uses women of color feminisms to inform her community collaborations, research, and pedagogy. Dr. Pérez’s past and current scholarship addresses early childhood policy reform, historical and contemporary constructions of childhood/s, teacher education, and critical qualitative methodologies. You can learn more about her work at michellesperez.com.