Biography
Taylor Gara is a fourth-year doctoral candidate studying educational policy at the University of California, Irvine. Her research aims to use rigorous research methods to evaluate critical issues in educational policy, with an expertise in visual and performing arts education in K-12 public school contexts.
Her current work evaluates the effect of federal educational policy reforms on the state of arts education programs in K-12 public institutions. Taylor has also designed, and is implementing, a mixed-methods research project to evaluate the impact of high school dance education programs on adolescents’ college and career readiness, postsecondary education enrollment, and motivation. This university-community project is in partnership with the Santa Ana Unified School District.
Her previous research, funded by the National Endowment for the Arts, examined adolescents’ persistence and selection into music, visual art, drama, and dance courses in middle school, and the achievement differences of students enrolled in arts-related coursework, compared with non-arts students.
Taylor received her B.S. in Psychology from Old Dominion University, and her M.A in Applied Developmental Psychology from George Mason University. Taylor has enjoyed dancing since early adolescence. While attending community college, she served as a dance instructor teaching and choreographing Pointe and Jazz classes to early elementary and middle school children. In addition to dance, Taylor obtained her 200hr yoga teacher certification in 2016, and practices yoga in her free time.
Publications
Gara, T. V., & Winsler, A. (under contract). Who is taking dance electives, when, and for how long? Adolescent dance participation in middle and high school. In D. Risner, K. Schupp, & P. Musil (Eds.) Dancing Across the Life Span: Age Related Issues in Dance.
Gara, T. V., & Winsler, A. (2019). Selection into, and academic benefits from, middle school dance elective courses among urban youth. Psychology of Aesthetics, Creativity, and the Arts. Advanced online publication
Winsler, A., Gara, T. V., Alegrado, A., Castro, S., & Tavassolie, T. (2019). Selection into, and academic benefits from, arts-related courses in middle school for low-income, ethnically diverse youth. Psychology of Aesthetics, Creativity, and the Arts. Advanced online publication
Gara, T. V., Brouillette, L., & Farkas, G. (2018). Did the frequency of early elementary classroom arts instruction decrease after no child left behind? If so, for whom? Early Childhood Research Quarterly, 45 (4), 263-276.
Gara, T. V., & Winsler, A. (2018). Art. In M. Bornstein (Ed.) The SAGE Encyclopedia of Lifespan Human Development. New York: Sage Publications.
Publications in Review
Gara, T. V., Farkas, G., & Brouillette, L. (under review) Did consequential accountability polices decrease the share of visual and performing arts educators in U.S. public secondary schools during the No Child Left Behind era?
April 2020
Taylor Gara is a fourth-year doctoral candidate studying educational policy at the University of California, Irvine. Her research aims to use rigorous research methods to evaluate critical issues in educational policy, with an expertise in visual and performing arts education in K-12 public school contexts.
Her current work evaluates the effect of federal educational policy reforms on the state of arts education programs in K-12 public institutions. Taylor has also designed, and is implementing, a mixed-methods research project to evaluate the impact of high school dance education programs on adolescents’ college and career readiness, postsecondary education enrollment, and motivation. This university-community project is in partnership with the Santa Ana Unified School District.
Her previous research, funded by the National Endowment for the Arts, examined adolescents’ persistence and selection into music, visual art, drama, and dance courses in middle school, and the achievement differences of students enrolled in arts-related coursework, compared with non-arts students.
Taylor received her B.S. in Psychology from Old Dominion University, and her M.A in Applied Developmental Psychology from George Mason University. Taylor has enjoyed dancing since early adolescence. While attending community college, she served as a dance instructor teaching and choreographing Pointe and Jazz classes to early elementary and middle school children. In addition to dance, Taylor obtained her 200hr yoga teacher certification in 2016, and practices yoga in her free time.
Publications
Gara, T. V., & Winsler, A. (under contract). Who is taking dance electives, when, and for how long? Adolescent dance participation in middle and high school. In D. Risner, K. Schupp, & P. Musil (Eds.) Dancing Across the Life Span: Age Related Issues in Dance.
Gara, T. V., & Winsler, A. (2019). Selection into, and academic benefits from, middle school dance elective courses among urban youth. Psychology of Aesthetics, Creativity, and the Arts. Advanced online publication
Winsler, A., Gara, T. V., Alegrado, A., Castro, S., & Tavassolie, T. (2019). Selection into, and academic benefits from, arts-related courses in middle school for low-income, ethnically diverse youth. Psychology of Aesthetics, Creativity, and the Arts. Advanced online publication
Gara, T. V., Brouillette, L., & Farkas, G. (2018). Did the frequency of early elementary classroom arts instruction decrease after no child left behind? If so, for whom? Early Childhood Research Quarterly, 45 (4), 263-276.
Gara, T. V., & Winsler, A. (2018). Art. In M. Bornstein (Ed.) The SAGE Encyclopedia of Lifespan Human Development. New York: Sage Publications.
Publications in Review
Gara, T. V., Farkas, G., & Brouillette, L. (under review) Did consequential accountability polices decrease the share of visual and performing arts educators in U.S. public secondary schools during the No Child Left Behind era?
April 2020
