Travis D. Hill
PhD Student in Giftedness and Creativity
About
I am pursuing my Ph.D. in Educational Psychology with a concentration in gifted education and creativity at the University of North Texas. My research interests include postsecondary transition supports for academically-advanced students, gamification as a pedagogical tool, and creative processes in Pro-c adults.As a nontraditional student, I am the Director of College and Career Readiness at the Commit Partnership. I facilitate the creation and support of processes and policies that impact district advanced academics courses and postsecondary readiness strategies along with outcomes in state accountability.In the 16 years I spent away from college, I have been a high school teacher, advanced academics advisor, post-secondary guidance counselor, state accountability district administrator, and now a director at a nonprofit education organization set to improve the outcomes of students in Dallas County.My passion is to better the supports for students transitioning into higher education, be it through direct work with students, their teachers and advisors, or those who perform the research to impact more robust transitional supports.
Research
As a qualitative researcher, I am interested in the details and experiences that make up people's perceptions of their lives around them. Be it Interpretive Phenomenological Analysis, Case Studies or more, I find the murkiness of qualitative research an interesting and insightful maze to navigate.I am interested in exploring the following topics:
How do academically advanced students navigate life after high school?
As a former postsecondary access advisor, I understand the difficult processes that students must navigate through to transition into college life. Much research has been dedicated to earlier grades or honors college students, but what about the murky waters in between?
How can analog tabletop game design be utilized to explore creative pursuits?
As a researcher and board game designer, I am interested in the intersection of the two, looking beyond what sparks creativity and how it is fostered, and wanting to dig into the product, process, and ultimately manifestation of what creativity is.
How are creativity and giftedness expressed in secondary student and adult populations?
As a former educator and former gifted-identified person myself, I want to explore how these formative years of our lives exhibit themselves in older teenage, emerging adult, and adult populations. With the boon of nationwide gifted education throughout the 80s, 90s, and 2000s, there are thousands of adults with different psychosocial educational experiences than others.