For the past several years, Bettina Love, an online professor in the Master of Education in Middle Grades Ed degree program, has worked to incorporate hip-hop education into the classroom by taking cues from students’ real life experiences.

Today, she is focused on developing Common Core hip-hop curricula for middle and high school students. As the 2015 recipient of the Nasir Jones Hip-Hop Fellowship from Harvard University, Love has been able to grow her ability to use hip-hop as a vehicle for delivering instruction to students.

Craig H. Kennedy, dean of the College of Education, said, “her work is worthy of national recognition, and this fellowship [gave] her the platform to take it to the next level and beyond.”

Heavily focused on civics, Love believes hip-hop studies should be incorporated into all classrooms. “Hip-hop is part of American culture … I don’t think this is something that is just for African-American kids,” she said. “This is something for all kids because we are talking about a rich culture with traditions, sensibilities and roots.”

Love’s research, teaching and service are focused on understanding, contextualizing and deconstructing the formal and informal educational experiences of marginalized youth, especially in queer, urban and African-American students.

This article is adapted from two articles on the UGA College of Education website: one about Love’s current research as well as one about her fellowship from Harvard University. Click the respective links to learn more.