Lyndsey Aubin Benharris

Lyndsey Aubin Benharris

Associate Professor of Education, Department Chair, Department Chair

lbenharris@stonehill.edu
Education

Biography

Associate Professor Lyndsey Benharris is chair of Stonehill College’s Department of Education. Her research interests include critical literacy in early childhood education, social justice pedagogy, early reading, critical analysis of Generative AI systems, gender and identity. She currently teaches courses on child development, emergent literacy, reading theory and critical literacy. Prior to teaching at the university level, she was an early childhood educator at a public school in Massachusetts. She has authored multiple chapters and journal articles. She is the co-editor of the text Challenging Bias and Promoting Transformative Education in Public Schooling Through Critical Literacy (2024).

Education

  • Ph.D., Education, University of Rhode Island
  • M.Ed., Special Education (Pre-K to 8), Lesley University
  • B.S., Education, Salve Regina University

Courses Taught

  • Reading Theory
  • Development and Learning
  • The Children in Preschools and Kindergarten

Selected Publications, Awards & Accomplishments

  • Benharris, L., Covino, K., and Fratantonio, R. (June, 2025). The implicit bias of artificial intelligence in teacher education. Submitted to International Perspectives on the Teaching of English to Generate Hope: Inspiration in the Age of Anxiety. Accepted to the journal, in press.

  • Interrogating the Implicit Bias of AI: Teaching Educators to Use Critical Literacy to Complicate and Contextualize the Myths of Columbus – The World Literacy Summit – Oxford University, April 8, 2025

  • Benharris, L. & Covino, K. (Eds.). (2024) Challenging Bias and Promoting Transformative Education in Public Schooling Through Critical Literacy. IGI Global.

  • Critical collections: Analyzing the children’s collection in a public university. New England Educational Research Organization, April 25, 2024.

  • Benharris, L. & Fratantonio, R. (2024) Critical collections: Using critical literacy to assess a children's literature collection. In L. Benharris & K. Covino (Eds.), Challenging Bias and Promoting Transformative Education in Public Schooling Through Critical Literacy (pp. 56-90). IGI Global Publishing.

  • Why Untold Stories Matter: The Missing Voices of the People of First Contact. World Literacy Summit in Oxford, April 3, 2023.

  • The Missing Voices of the People of First Contact Examining Bias in the Books and Stories Written for Children about Christopher Columbus – NEAYC Conference, November,17 2022

  • Benharris, L., (2020) The LGBTQ+ movement towards equity: Historical perspectives and social justice implications. In S. T. Brand & L.E. Ciccomascola (Eds.), Social justice and putting theory into practice in schools and communities (pp. 96-110). Philadelphia, PA: IGI Global Publishing.

  • Civic Engagement in Early Childhood- New England Educational Research Organization, April 28, 2019

  • Sowing New Ground: A Reflective Discussion of Critical Literacy and Civic Engagement in a Diverse, Urban, Elementary School – A Longer Conversations – Massachusetts Association for College and University Reading Educators Research Roundtable – MACURE Luncheon, June 1, 2018

  • Universal Design for Learning in Higher Education- New England Faculty Development Consortium, June 9, 2018

  • Sowing New Ground: A Reflective Discussion of Critical Literacy and Civic Engagement in a Diverse, Urban, Elementary School – Massachusetts Association for College and University Reading Educators Research Roundtable – MRA Conference, April 10, 2018

  • How Literacy Class Can Liberate Underprivileged Populations: Critical Literacy and Marginalized Populations- Graduate Research Conference-University of Rhode Island, 2016

  • DESE Early Literacy Grant (2023)
  • Anti-Racist Scholarship (2023)
  • Micro-Grant Projects and Travel Grant (2021)
  • Special Projects Grant (2021)
  • Mini Grant and Anti-racist Scholarship (2021)
  • OER Creation Grant (2020)
  • Micro-Grant Literacy (2019)
  • Special Projects Travel Grant (2018)
  • Feinstein School Dean’s Graduate Fellow (2015-2016)

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