Welcome to New Faculty

The Watson College is pleased to introduce new faculty members Julie Bacak, Patti Brooks, Travis Howard, Megan Kybartas, Julia Lynch, Meredith Moates, Michael Morrow, Randall Wells and Amanda Young. Please join us in welcoming them all to UNCW!

Julie Bacak

Assistant Professor, Elementary Education

Julie Bacak, Ph.D., is an Assistant Professor of Elementary Mathematics Education. She previously held a position at Temple University as a Clinical Assistant Professor of Early and Elementary Education, working closely with student teachers throughout the School District of Philadelphia. She earned her doctorate in Curriculum and Instruction with specializations in Elementary Mathematics and Urban Education from UNC-Charlotte, M.Ed. in Language and Literacy Education from UNC-Wilmington, and her B.A. in Elementary Education from UNC-Wilmington.

Before entering higher education, Dr. Bacak was a teacher in Brunswick County Schools, North Carolina. Her research interests include mathematical discourse, practice-based teacher education, and cross-curricular instruction. Her current research explores how preservice teachers use pedagogical tools to support mathematical discourse practice. She is also currently part of a collaborative research team exploring how to support elementary teachers to integrate cybersecurity content into math and science lessons.

Julie enjoys cooking and trying out new recipes with family and friends. She is thrilled to be back in the Watson College of Education and serving the southeastern North Carolina community!

Patti Brooks

Lecturer, Elementary Education

Dr. Patti Brooks earned her Ph.D. in Curriculum and Instruction from the University of North Carolina at Charlotte (UNCC). With 18 years of experience as an elementary classroom teacher, she brings both practical expertise and scholarly insight to her work in teacher education.

Her research interests center on issues of equity, critical pedagogy, and transformative teaching practices. She examines critical literacy as a tool for empowering students to question texts, analyze power structures, and consider multiple perspectives in both literature and media. In social studies pedagogy, her work emphasizes inquiry-based learning, historical thinking, and the integration of diverse voices and counter-narratives that challenge dominant histories. She also investigates culturally responsive teaching and antiracist pedagogy, exploring how educators can adapt curriculum and pedagogy to affirm students’ cultural identities, build on community knowledge, and foster inclusive classrooms that close opportunity gaps. Additionally, her scholarship in critical service-learning focuses on how partnerships between schools and communities can promote civic engagement, social responsibility, and authentic student agency in addressing real-world issues.

As a teacher educator, Dr. Brooks is committed to bridging theory and practice. She draws on her classroom experience to help pre-service and in-service teachers develop the knowledge, skills, and dispositions necessary to create inclusive and transformative learning environments.

Travis Howard

Assistant Professor, Educational Administration

Travis Howard (Ed.D.) has been a public school educator for over 20 years. The majority of those years were spent as an elementary school administrator in various states including South Carolina, North Carolina, Indiana, and Washington. Dr. Howard earned his doctoral degree from the University of Southern Indiana in Evansville, IN. Dr. Howard’s research is primarily focused on the comprehensive mattering of Black boys and Black male administrators in K-12 spaces. His expertise as a practitioner and scholar are specifically in the areas of culturally relevant leadership, restorative practices, and structures that support wellness and academic success among culturally diverse students and faculty. In his free time, he enjoys playing tennis and watching his three boys participate in sports.

Megan Kybartas

Assistant Professor, Early Childhood Education

Dr. Megan Kybartas earned her Ed.D. in Teaching and Learning from Illinois State University, an M.S. in Human Development and Family Studies from the University of Tennessee, Knoxville, and a B.S. in Psychology with a minor in Human Development from Ball State University.

Before entering higher education, Megan worked primarily as an infant and toddler teacher in a variety of early childhood settings. She also served as director of a forest school in Tennessee, an experience that deepened her appreciation for the complexities of early childhood leadership and inspired her pursuit of doctoral study. Her dissertation research examined how childcare leaders articulate and enact program philosophies, as well as the factors that influence their implementation.

Megan’s broader research examines the systems that shape early childhood development, care, and education, with attention to how practices and policies act as forms of gatekeeping that influence children’s experiences. Her areas of focus include risky play, childcare program philosophies and leadership, parenting, and cultural perspectives on child development, with emerging interests in attachment and maternal-infant healthcare practices. She currently serves as Vice President of the Knox Forest School Board.

Outside of academia, Megan enjoys scrapbooking, exploring nature and discovering animals and critters with her two young sons and husband, and the endorphin rush of a tough CrossFit workout.

Julia Lynch

Assistant Professor, Language & Literacy

Dr. Julia A. Lynch is a Black-Poet-Scholar from Eastern NC who earned her Ed.D. in Curriculum and Instruction from The University of North Carolina Wilmington, her MAEd in Reading Education, and her BS in Elementary Education from East Carolina University. As Julia enters her 18th year as a public educator, much of her tenure has been serving as a K-5 teacher primarily in under-resourced rural schools that served Black, Latiné, Indigenous, and multilingual communities.  Since 2022, Dr. Lynch has been a visiting assistant professor in the Department of Educational Leadership faculty at UNCW’s Watson College, where she has taught in the Curriculum & Instruction concentration.  

Julia’s interests are guided by a focus on art-based inquiry as a teaching practice and as a methodology. She operates primarily from a BlackMothering epistemology to engage in education that promotes equity and social justice in rural education, teaching, and learning. Using culturally responsive pedagogy as a foundation, her research centers on rural education, teacher identity, culturally sustaining pedagogies, and art-based literacy practices that support culturally and linguistically diverse students. 

Meredith Moates

Lecturer, Department of EEMLS

Dr. Meredith Moates is an educator with over 20 years of experience spanning both K–12 and higher education. She began her career in K–12 classrooms, where she spent a decade developing deep expertise in inclusive instructional practices and effectively supporting diverse learners. She later transitioned to higher education, teaching graduate-level courses in transition and assessment at Virginia Commonwealth University. Currently, Dr. Moates serves as a lecturer in the Department of Early Education, Middle, and Literacy Studies (EEMLS), where she prepares future educators to meet the diverse needs of all students. In addition to her academic roles, Dr. Moates is the Executive Director of a nonprofit organization dedicated to supporting students with autism as they navigate community college and university environments.

Michael Morrow

Assistant Professor, Special Education

Dr. Michael Morrow earned his Ph.D. in Special Education from the University of Tennessee, and a B.S. and M.S. in Modified, Comprehensive, and Early Childhood Special Education, also from the University of Tennessee. Dr. Morrow worked as a special education teacher and case manager in a variety of classrooms across disability categories, focusing primarily on individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities (I/DD) and Autism with complex communication needs in activity-based settings. He also served as a program facilitator and supervisor of special education programming in the Knox County Schools in Tennessee. While working on his doctorate, Morrow served as an education and behavior consultant for the Tennessee Tiered Supports Center and the Tennessee Department of Education.

Dr. Morrow’s research interests include improving post-secondary transitional outcomes for individuals with I/DD and Autism using technology-based and extended reality interventions, making the research-to-practice pipeline more accessible, belonging and social capital within college and university inclusive post-secondary programs, and improving health and wellness outcomes for individuals with I/DD. Away from the classroom and office, Morrow enjoys family time with his wife and daughter while eagerly awaiting the arrival of a new baby boy in February. He is an avid fisherman, lover of sports, concert-going, and vinyl records.

Randall Wells

Lecturer, Early Childhood Education

Ms. Wells is thrilled to be back in the Watson College of Education Community. After finishing a bachelor's degree in Child and Family Development at the University of Georgia, Randall moved to Wilmington in 1998 to pursue Birth-Kindergarten Licensure at UNCW and has been in Wilmington ever since. Randall is passionate about high-quality early childhood education and dreams of a day when we have a system that works well for all teachers, families, and children ages birth to five. She has held various roles in the early childhood education field including early childhood consultant at Smart Start of New Hanover County, youth coordinator at Step Up Wilmington, and adjunct early childhood instructor at Cape Fear Community College and Stanly Community College. 

Ms. Wells earned a master's degree from UNCG in Birth-Kindergarten Interdisciplinary Studies in 2017, enjoys being a lifelong learner, and is thankful to have the opportunity to help instill a love of learning in her students and the next generation of early childhood teachers. When not working, Randall enjoys taking walks outside, spending time with her husband and two sons, and going on family trips to amusement parks.  She also loves her little dog, Mork. 

Amanda Young

Lecturer, Workforce Learning & Development

Dr. Amanda Young earned her PhD in Adult, Professional, and Community Education at Texas State University with a focus in workplace learning, an M.A. in the same discipline and her B.S. in Industrial/ Organizational Psychology with a minor in Training Specialist from Old Dominion University. She has more than 15 years of experience in instructional design, workplace learning, and adult education across higher education, corporate, and military contexts.

Dr. Young is passionate about building learner-centered, experiential environments that empower students and professionals alike. Her research focuses on self-directed learning and how technology shapes adult learning preferences. She has presented nationally and internationally, with her work recognized by awards including the AAACE Outstanding Distance Learning Adult Educator honor and the Part-Time Faculty Excellence in Teaching Award 2025 from Texas State University.

Through her experience, as both a Navy and Army National Guard veteran, interacting with people from all over the world only increased her curiosity and passion for learning. She loves traveling to new places, exploring cultures and histories, and learning how people interact in the world—striving to visit at least one new international and one new domestic destination each year.