McMillan Named 2024 NASEM Gulf Research Program Early-Career Research Fellow
January 10, 2025
BATON ROUGE, LA — Lutrill & Pearl Payne School of Education alumna Ali McMillan, PhD, was named one
of the 13 Early-Career Research Fellows by the Gulf Research Program of the National Academies
of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine (NASEM). McMillan, the Education Coordinator at Louisiana Sea Grant, joins the five
fellows in the Education Research track, a highly competitive initiative supporting
emerging scholars in advancing science, STEM, and environmental education in the Gulf
of Mexico region or Alaska. She brings knowledge and experience to the fellowship,
with specific expertise in place-based learning. 
Aligned with the fellowship goals of exploring the implications for cultivating a sense of place in formal and informal learning environments, Dr. McMillan aims to examine locally relevant place-based practices throughout various levels of the education continuum to determine the impact of this pedagogical approach on students and their communities. Through this fellowship, she will collaborate with researchers in the Gulf region to foster new partnerships, pursue common goals, and contribute to research on place-based education.
McMillan investigated place-based literacy learning as her dissertation study. "I am thrilled to advance education research while meeting the needs of our students and our communities here in South Louisiana,” said McMillan. She also participated in the LSU Writing Project’s First Place-Based Invitational Summer Institute. Margaret-Mary Sulentic Dowell, PhD, who was McMillan’s major professor, commented, “Ali McMillan is most deserving of this fellowship, as she has excelled since her December 2023 graduation; she has several pieces in press, she has secured a book contract, and she was part of a team that secured a recent National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration grant. She was a stellar doctoral candidate, and this fellowship is a testament to her excellence.”
The National Academies Gulf Research Program is an independent, science-based program founded in 2013 as part of legal settlements with the companies involved in the 2010 Deepwater Horizon disaster, which seeks to enhance offshore energy system safety and protect human health and the environment by catalyzing advances in science, practice, and capacity to generate long-term benefits for the Gulf of Mexico region and the nation. The program has $500 million for use over 30 years to fund grants, fellowships, and other activities in research and development, education and training, and monitoring and synthesis.
McMillan was a College of Human Sciences & Education 2024 Distinguished Dissertation Awardee. With 14 years of teaching experience, including roles in Nigeria, Spain, and the U.S., McMillan integrates global perspectives into her work to promote education and environmental stewardship.
Eugene Kennedy, PhD, Interim Director of the School of Education, stated, "Dr. Ali McMillan's selection as a NASEM Gulf Research Program Early-Career Research Fellow is a testament to her exceptional dedication to advancing place-based education and environmental stewardship. Her innovative work embodies the mission of the Lutrill & Pearl Payne School of Education, combining rigorous research with a deep commitment to community impact. We are proud to celebrate her achievements and look forward to the transformative contributions she will make through this prestigious fellowship."
About the LSU Lutrill & Pearl Payne School of Education (SOE)
A school of the College of Human Sciences & Education, the SOE offers undergraduate programs for students who want to pursue a career as a pre-kindergarten through 12th-grade teacher or acquire dual certification in traditional elementary and special education classrooms. In addition SOE offers 3 graduate certificates, 17 master’s degree program areas, 9 EdS certificate programs, and 2 PhD degrees in 11 areas of focus. SOE’s focus is not only on preparing highly qualified teachers but also on preparing educational leaders, curriculum studies scholars, educational technology experts, applied researchers, higher education professionals, school counselors, and clinical mental health counselors SOE specializes in scholarly expertise regarding pressing educational and wellness issues across the entire lifespan.
Visit the LSU Lutrill & Pearl Payne School of Education.
About the College of Human Sciences & Education
The College of Human Sciences & Education (CHSE) is a nationally accredited division of Louisiana State University. The college is comprised of the School of Education, the School of Information Studies, the School of Kinesiology, the School of Leadership & Human Resource Development, and the School of Social Work. CHSE has two model demonstration schools, the Early Childhood Education Laboratory Preschool, enrolling birth to age four and the University Laboratory School enrolling Kindergarten through grade 12. The college also has four centers and institutes: the Early Childhood Education Institute, the Healthy Aging Research Center, the Leadership Development Institute, and Social Research & Evaluation Center. The college is committed to achieving the highest standards in teaching, research, and service and aims to improve quality of life across the lifespan.