Catherine Brighton, Ph.D. is Associate Dean for Academic Programs & Student Services and Associate Professor of Curriculum & Instruction in the Curry School of Education, University of Virginia, where she also serves as the co-director of the University of Virginia Institutes on Academic Diversity.  Catherine’s research interests include teacher change and school reform initiatives, differentiating curriculum, instruction, and assessment, and qualitative methodologies. She is currently Principal Investigator on a Spencer Foundation-sponsored research project focused on kindergarten teachers’ use of literacy data to inform instruction. Additionally, she serves as a Co-Principal Investigator on a US Department of Education-funded grant on talent development through the lens of primary-grade literacy. Catherine also led a multi-year project for the National Research Center on the Gifted & Talented focus on talent development through curriculum in primary-grades classrooms in schools with diverse student populations.