Rate My Professor Lisa Porter

Lisa Porter serves as Associate Professor of Sociology at James Madison University, where she is part of the Department of Sociology and Anthropology and affiliated with the Latin American, Latinx, and Caribbean Studies program. She earned her B.A. from the University of Wyoming, M.A. from California Lutheran University, and Ph.D. from Claremont Graduate University. Porter's scholarship addresses equity in school-parent partnerships, university-community engagement during crises, family engagement in education within culturally and linguistically diverse classrooms, intercultural ties in dual immersion programs, transnational experiences of U.S. expatriates particularly in Costa Rica, and peace education.

Porter co-authored the book Equity in School-Parent Partnerships: Cultivating Community and Family Trust in Culturally Diverse Classrooms with Socorro Herrera and Katherine Barko-Alva, published by Teachers College Press in 2020. Her peer-reviewed articles include “Navigating Liminal Spaces in University-Community Engagement: Risky Collaboration in Times of Crisis” in the Journal of Community Engagement and Scholarship (Fall 2023), “Plexiglass: How Power, Policy and Politics Create a Mirage of Equitable Family Engagement” in the Journal for Multicultural Education (2021), “Fearful No More: Teachers Amplifying CLD Familial Voices in Technological Spaces” in the MinneTESOL Journal (2020), “Looking for Pura Vida: Disgruntled Parents in Search of Educational Alternatives in Costa Rica” in the Journal of Interdisciplinary Studies in Education (2019), “Journeying Together: Building Intercultural Ties between Parents in Dual Immersion Programs” (2018), “Transnational Spaces: US Expatriates Recreating Home in Costa Rica” in the International Journal of Interdisciplinary Social Sciences (2009), and “Peace Education,” co-authored with Maureen Lorimer, in Encounter: Education for Meaning and Social Justice (2005). She has also contributed book chapters, including “Luchando Contra la Corriente: Failed Promises in Addressing the Needs of Latinx/e/o Families in K12 Settings” (2024) and “Technology as Technocracy: Educators’ Conscientious Use of Technology for Authentic Family Engagement” (2020), as well as book reviews.