About Dr. Elizabeth H. Morgan

Elizabeth Holliday Morgan, Ph.D. is an Assistant Professor in the Doctorate of Educational Leadership program at California State University Sacramento (CSUS).  An educator by training, she holds a Master’s in Education from the Harvard Graduate School of Education and has supported Early Childhood practitioners in utilizing developmentally appropriate practice and inclusion strategies since 2004. She has co-authored publications titled “Narratives of single, Black mothers using cultural capital to access autism interventions in schools” in the British Journal of Sociology of Education and “Caregiver Voices: Cross-Cultural Input on Improving Access to Autism Services” published in the Journal of Racial and Ethnic Health Disparities and has several additional publications under review. Before arriving at CSUS Elizabeth worked as a researcher at the UC Davis MIND Institute and recently completed an NIH T36 Training grant with the Global Alliance for Training in Health Equity Research (GATHER) program where she spent a month interning for the African Population Health Research Center in Nairobi, Kenya. When she isn’t thinking about autism service equity, Elizabeth enjoys the theater and spending time with her family and their dog, Billie Jean. 

Experience

Founder of Sankofa Family Support Group

2015–present

Founded and facilitated an outreach group for Black families of children with developmental disabilities that goes by the name of Sankofa. The word Sankofa comes from the Twi language of Ghana, which means “go back and fetch it”. Established in 2015 in order to meet the unique needs of parents of Black neuro-diverse children. Sponsored by the University of California Davis (UCD) MIND Institute, Sankofa has supported over 300 families and providers through culturally responsive trainings and resources to support advocacy development.

sankofa-group.herokuapp.com

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Program Coordinator—
Projects Focused on Equity and Inclusion for Children with Disabilities

2014–2021

Coordinator for several California-based private and government-funded organizations to support equity and inclusion for children with disabilities. Served as a program associate for The California Inclusion and Behavioral Consultation Project, through West Ed’s Center for Prevention & Early Intervention division. Also, the special education lead for the Sacramento County office of education, California Preschool Instructional Network (CPIN) project. Last, program coordinator for the UC Davis Center for Excellence in Developmental Disabilities (CEDD) at the MIND Institute. While at the CEDD was the lead grant writer and manager for a $92,000 grant from the Department of Developmental Services to support Black and Hispanic families’ access to early intervention services for children that qualify for California Regional Center services.

View a YouTube playlist about the project

Education

Ph.D.
University of California, Davis
Doctorate in Human Development

Dissertation Topic: The Developmental Process of Parent Advocacy for Black Mothers of Children on the Autism Spectrum Across Three States: A Portrait of a Successful Black Mother Advocate. 

Ed.M.
Harvard University, Graduate School of Education
Master’s Degree of Education

B.S.
Xavier University of Louisiana
Bachelor of Science in Psychology

Courses Taught (Graduate)

EDD601: Organizational Leadership and Change

EDD612: Student Services

EDD616: Dissertation 1

EDD 617: Dissertation 2

 

 

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