Inspired by her family background and the goal of wanting better education practices for people of color, Christine Quince is conducting her postdoctoral research at the School of Education at UC Berkeley.
Specializing in teacher education, Christine is looking at the different pedagogies used by teachers of color and how they are implementing these methods in classrooms. The second portion of her research delves into understanding the cultural capital of black students, so she can find ways for teachers to incorporate those values in the class atmosphere.
“Different members of my family, they didn't have the best schooling experience. And so I'm just like, okay, something's got to change,” Christin said.
After getting her master's and Ph.D. in teaching from the University of Michigan, she was resolute about advancing further in her area of specialization. Despite the tediousness of her research, she finds the motivation to keep going because of her family. She keeps pictures of her grandparents and niece on her desk and reminds herself why and who she is doing this work for.
“This often motivates me to just keep on pushing because I know that they would be super proud of me, that they are rooting for me. They're always in the back of my mind,” she added.
But her relationship with her family is not the only one that helped Christine through her transition from a PhD to a Postdoc. While selecting a university to continue her research, Christine’s top priority was picking a good mentor. One of the primary reasons she chose Berkeley was the praise she had heard about her now mentor, Dr Travis Bristol.
“And I really appreciate the community at the School of Education at Berkeley,” she said.
Talking about her life at Berkeley, Christine says she always feels appreciated about the work she is doing here. She makes an effort to foster new relationships while staying in touch with the students and mentors she has worked with in her previous studies.
“And it was never intimidating,” Christine added.