Education
Ph.D. University of Chicago
M.A. University of Chicago
B.A. Wesleyan University
Dr. Lara Perez-Felkner is a Professor of Higher Education and Sociology in the Higher Education Program within the College of Education, Health, and Human Sciences at Florida State University. At FSU, she is an Affiliated Faculty member in the Department of Sociology and The Village at the Florida Center for Reading Research (FCRR), and Senior Research Associate with FSU’s Center for Postsecondary Success. Her research uses developmental and sociological perspectives to examine the mechanisms that shape entry into and persistence with respect to college and career pathways, from secondary school through the workforce. She especially focuses on postsecondary access and success in scientific and technological career fields.
She has over 60 research publications to date, appearing in journals including: Developmental Psychology, Educational Evaluation and Policy Analysis, Journal of Higher Education, Research in Higher Education, Review of Educational Research, Review of Higher Education, and several edited volumes. At FSU, she and her teams have brought ~$6M in external research funding as PI or co-PI, including support from the National Science Foundation, the Gates Foundation, the Sloan Foundation, the Spencer Foundation, and the WT Grant Foundation. Her research has been covered in news outlets including ABC News and National Public Radio affiliates, the Conversation, Diverse Issues in Higher Education, and Science News for Students.
She is actively engaged in and has held various leadership and service roles in AERA, ASHE, and other professional societies, including Program Co-Chair, Inaugural Vice-Chair of the ASHE Fellows Committee, and the AERA Grants Board. Dr. Perez-Felkner has led roles as an editor in multiple capacities including leading an edited volume on undergraduate women in STEM in New Directions in Institutional Research (2018), a special issue in International Journal for Gender, Science, and Technology (2020), and most recently a successful edited book on Latin* Engineering Students (2024), extending into a co-edited Journal of Hispanic Higher Education special issue. She serves on the editorial boards of the Journal of Higher Education, Research in Higher Education, the Journal of Postsecondary Success, and Sociology of Education. She is now Associate Editor of Research in Higher Education.
At FSU, she has been active in institutional service and leadership, including most recently as a Faculty Fellow in Academic Affairs. She has led the FSU’s NSF ADVANCE team and served as co-chair of Latin* Faculty and Staff Collective at Florida State, core member of FSU’s APLU IChange ASPIRE alliance team, and a member of the President’s Council since 2018. More recently, she has been a Faculty Development and Advancement Faculty Fellow and Mid-Career Fellow with FSU-FAMU’s Institutional Challenge Grant., and prior has been a Student Experience Research Network (SERN) Mid-Career Fellow and Institute in Critical Quantitative, Computational, & Mixed Methodologies (ICQCM) NSF Quantitative Critical Methodologies Scholar.
Dr. Perez-Felkner has taught graduate courses in Student Development Theory, Sociology of Education, Sociology of Higher Education, Management in Higher Education, Higher Education Outcomes Assessment, and Applied Education Policy Analysis. Impressed by the enthusiasm and caliber of FSU students, she has and continues to mentor and support students in collaborative research on higher education pathways to degrees and careers.
She values the integration of teaching, mentoring, and research. Since joining the faculty, Perez-Felkner has been a 2015, 2021, and 2022 finalist for the FSU College of Education’s Robert M. Gagne Research Award, and has received FSU’s Transformation through Teaching Award (2014), Hardee Center’s Supervisor/Mentor Award (2016), FSU Graduate Faculty Mentor Award (2019), FSU College of Education’s Graduate Teaching Award (2021), and FSU’s Inclusive Graduate Teaching and Advising Award (2022).
Dr. Perez-Felkner has professional experience in Student Affairs as well. At the University of Chicago, she served as a Resident Head in the College and on an NSF AGEP-supported Social Sciences Division Taskforce on Diversity for the Professoriate. Prior to graduate school, she was a post-placement counselor for grade 7-10 students with Prep for Prep, helping underrepresented students transition to magnet schools and private day and boarding college preparatory schools. While earning her B.A. at Wesleyan University, she also worked in residence life, admissions, and student leadership.
Email: lperezfelkner at fsu dot edu
Lara Perez-Felkner, Ph.D. 