Ph.D., Educational Psychology (Cognate: Development)
The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, NC

M.Ed., Higher Education Administration
The University of North Carolina at Greensboro, Greensboro, NC

B.A., Psychology
The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, NC

BIOGRAPHY:

Since earning her PhD in Educational Psychology from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Dr. McMillian has led several insightful research projects with researchers at Morgan State University, Johns Hopkins University, the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, and Duke University, among others. Her early research focused on how academic engagement and school-assignment policies related to mathematics and reading achievement, producing studies such as “Can Class-Based Substitute for Race-Based Student Assignment Plans? Evidence From Wake County, North Carolina,” which was cited by The Washington Post, the Brookings Institution, and other media outlets. Her more recent research, funded by Research Centers in Minority Institutions, has focused on how psychosocial and schooling factors affect obesity, resulting in the study “Relationships of Educational Attainment and Household Food Insecurity with Obesity: Findings from the 2007–2016 National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey,” which was included in the special issue earning the second prize for the 2021–2023 International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health’s Outstanding Special Issue Award. In addition to receiving various awards, Dr. McMillian has served as a NASA MSI TEN co-PI, during which time she created nationally available STEM lessons.

RESEARCH INTEREST:

Dr. McMillian is interested in exploring how psychosocial and schooling factors relate to obesity.

PUBLICATIONS:
McMillian, M. M., & Thorpe Jr, R. J. (2021). Relationships of educational attainment and household food insecurity with obesity: Findings from the 2007–2016 national health and nutrition examination survey. International journal of environmental research and public health, 18(15), 7820.

McMillian, M.M., Fuller, S.C., Hill, Z., Duch, K., & Darity, W. (2018). Can Class-Based Substitute for Race-Based Student Assignment Plans?: Evidence from Wake County, NC. Urban Education, 53(7), 843–874.

McMillian, M. M., Carr, M., Hodnett, G., & Campbell, F. A. (2016). A longitudinal study of academic identification among African American males and females. Journal of Black Psychology, 42(6), 508-529.

Munk, T. McMillian, M.M., & Lewis, N. (2014). Compositional Effects, Segregation, and Test Scores: Evidence from the National Assessment of Educational Progress. Review of Black Political Economy, 41(4), 433–454.

McMillian, M.M., Frierson, H.T., & Campbell, F.A. (2011). Do gender differences exist in the academic identification of African American elementary school-aged children? Journal of Black Psychology, 37(1), 78–98.

McMillian, M. M., Munk, T., Bumpers, E. L., & Coneal, W. (2010). Creating a testable, estimable model to inform our response to the test-score gap crisis. The Review of Black Political Economy, 37(3-4), 257-262.

McMillian, M.M. (2003/2004). Is no child left behind ‘wise schooling’ for African American male students? The High School Journal, 87(2), 25–33.

COURSES TAUGHT:

EDUC 301: Human Development and Learning

EDUC 414: Assessment of Students

EDUC 501: Cognitive Basis for Instruction

SCED 307: Adolescent Psychology

PSYM 502: Learning and Cognition