Bessie P. Dernikos

Dr. Bessie P. Dernikos is Associate Professor of Literacies at Florida Atlantic University (FAU) on the Boca Raton campus. Dr. Dernikos received her doctorate in Curriculum and Teaching with a specialization in Literacy Education from Columbia University’s Teachers College (TC). She also holds a master’s degree in Reading Specialist from TC and an integrative bachelor’s and master’s degree in English from Brown University.

Dr. Dernikos teaches undergraduate and graduate literacy courses on curriculum and instruction, assessment and intervention, supervised literacy practicum, children’s literature, and critical literacies. Her research interests include examining the material, discursive, and affective forces that impact literacy learning for young children.