Misty Kirby

Biography

Dr. Kirby is passionate about improving students' life chances through effective education leadership and high quality, optimistic learning environments around the globe. As a rural student in Mississippi, she always wanted to be a teacher but socio-economics and an unsupportive family were but some of the barriers faced. Nevertheless, she persisted and completed her Bachelor's degree and began teaching Year 8 and 9 English to boys who were incarcerated in upstate New York. As an urban teacher and urban teacher trainer, she has had the opportunity to work with students and colleagues from public schools in New York and Virginia. Whilst in Virginia studying for her PhD, she worked as a Literacy Coach across three high schools, in collaboration with Johns Hopkins University, to improve literacy instruction in English Year 9. In 2010, she moved to Canberra, Australia, and began another phase of work in public education at the University of Canberra as an Assistant Professor of Education, working with undergraduate Teacher Education majors and Masters and Doctoral students in Educational Leadership. Now Dr. Kirby works as an educational leader in Teaching and Learning at Charles Sturt University to better support teaching academics and to nurture the improvement of the student experience.

Research Interest

Effective education leadership and high quality, optimistic learning environments around the globe.