Faculty Profiles
Janet K. Outlaw
Area coordinaTOR, LITERACY STUDIES
PROGRAM COORDINATOR, M.A. IN READING EDUCATION Assistant Professor of Instruction,
Literacy Studies

Email: jkoutlaw@usf.edu
Office: Â鶹ÃÛÌÒAV Tampa Campus, EDU 207
Phone Number: (813) 396-9328
CV available upon request
Dr. Janet Kim Outlaw is an Assistant Professor of Instruction, Program Area Coordinator for Literacy Studies, and Program Coordinator for the Master of Arts in Reading Education. She is a three-time alumna of North Carolina State University, where she received her Ph.D. in Teacher Education and Learning Sciences with a concentration in Literacy and Language Arts. As a teacher educator, Dr. Outlaw teaches undergraduate and graduate elementary reading and writing methods courses. She serves as course lead for the reading practicum internship, in which she mentors teacher candidates in practitioner research to develop differentiated and joyful literacy interventions.
Dr. Outlaw’s scholarly mission is to prepare and empower teachers through dialogic pedagogies, practitioner research, and community-engaged teacher education. Her areas of research include (1) developing teacher practice in dialogic discourse for early comprehension and multimodal writing pedagogies; (2) empowering teacher candidates in practitioner research to develop dialogic community spaces with children of all abilities; and (3) designing community-engaged teacher education to provide mutual benefit in supporting teacher candidates and school community partners. Her research has been published in journals, such as Literacy Research & Instruction, Literacy Research: Theory, Method, and Practice, and Language Arts.
Areas of Expertise
- Elementary Literacy Teacher Education
- Practitioner Research
- Classroom Dialogue
- Early Comprehension Instruction
- Early Writing Instruction
- Literacy Interventions
Selected Leadership Positions
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Chair: Undergraduate Programs Committee, College of Education, Â鶹ÃÛÌÒAV (2024-2025)
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Coordinator: Literacy Studies, College of Education, Â鶹ÃÛÌÒAV (2024-)
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Collaborating Faculty Member: Elementary Education Program, Â鶹ÃÛÌÒAV (2023-)
Awards
- WLP Dr. Kathleen Moore Faculty Excellence Award, Women in Leadership & Philanthropy, Â鶹ÃÛÌÒAV (2025)
- Excellence in Undergraduate Education Award, College of Education, Â鶹ÃÛÌÒAV (2023/2024)
Courses Taught
- LAE 6317 Teaching Composition in Elementary Classrooms
- LAE 4424 Teaching Children’s Literature
- LAE 4311 Teaching Print & Multimodal Text (Composition) in Elementary Education
- RED 6316 Emergent Literacy: Skills, Strategies and Assessment
- RED 4943 Practicum in Reading
- RED 4333 Content Area Reading
- RED 4312 Emergent Literacy Strategies and Assessment (K-2)
Selected Grants
- Outlaw, J.K. (2025). WLP Dr. Kathleen Moore Faculty Excellence Award Research Grant, Women in Leadership & Philanthropy, Â鶹ÃÛÌÒAV. $5,000.