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Norma López

Assistant Professor

Norma López (she/her/ella) is an Assistant Professor of Higher Education at Loyola University Chicago. She was previously a postdoctoral scholar at the Institute for Democracy and Higher Education (IDHE) at Tufts University. Prior to entering academia, Norma worked for over 20 years in higher education, ranging from admissions and orientation at a small liberal arts college to residential life and academic advising at a private research university.

Education

  • PhD, Higher Education, Loyola University Chicago, Chicago, IL (2020)
  • EdM, Administration, Planning, and Social Policy, Harvard University, Cambridge, MA (1999)
  • BA, Williams College, (1995)

Research Interests

  • Dr. López's research agenda centers social justice, decoloniality, and community-centered knowledge production. It links classroom practices to institutional and civic structures by advancing participatory, decolonizing pedagogies; operationalizing radical participatory democracy; and documenting the socialization of faculty/staff of color to inform policy and practice that redistribute power to the communities institutions serve.

Professional/Community Affiliations

  • Association for the Study of Higher Education (ASHE)
  • ASHE Council for the Advancement of Higher Education Programs (CAHEP)
  • American Educational Research Association (AERA)
  • College Student Educators International (ACPA)
  • Student Affairs Administrators in Higher Education (NASPA)

Courses Taught

  • ELPS 430 Curriculum and Pedagogy in Higher Education
  • RMTS 420 Educational Research I: Qualitative Methods
  • ELPS 459 Proseminar in Higher Education
  • RMTD 520 Research Capstone for Doctoral Students
  • ELPS 530 Organization and Governance in Higher Education

Publications/Research Listings

  • López, N., *Beltrán, A., & *Paul Midyett, A.A. (2026). Stand-with vibes: The influence of institutional response to political events on student of color political learning. American Journal of Education. https://www.journals.uchicago.edu/doi/10.1086/738766
  • López, N., Morgan, D.L., & *Surprise, S.R. (2025). Bridging cura: Faculty of color socialization at a Jesuit institution. The Journal of Catholic Education, 28(2), 113–136. https://doi.org/.https:/10.15365/joce.2802062025
  • López, N., *Chaidez, C., *Matamoros, D., *Parker, D., & Morgan, D.L. (2025). Cultivating comunidad: The role of collectivism in Latinx/a/o STEM identity. Journal of Postsecondary Student Success 5(1), 110–130. https://doi.org/10.33009/fsop_jpss137777

Awards

  • NASPA Emerging Faculty Leader Academy, 2024