Michael A. Medina
Assistant Professor
Dr. Michael A. Medina is an assistant professor of Applied Human Development at Boston University Wheelock College of Education & Human Development, where he leads the Diversity & Development Lab. A Latino first-generation college graduate, he studies how educational and social contexts support young people’s academic success, belonging, and psychological well-being. Working with schools and community partners, such as Trinity Boston Connects, he examines ethnic-racial identity, critical consciousness, and experiences with diversity, particularly among youth of color.
He leads a number of current projects, including the Teacher Practices and Student Identity Project, which explores how teachers’ and students’ ethnic-racial identities relate to classroom experiences. He also leads the Resolved Project, which examines how debate-based educational experiences support students’ critical consciousness through a partnership between Boston Public Schools and the Boston Debate League.
Dr. Medina has received National Science Foundation and Ford Foundation fellowships. He serves on the American Psychological Association’s Social Justice and Equity in Education Committee and the Society for Research in Child Development’s Equity and Justice Committee. He is a consulting editor for the Journal of Latinx Psychology, Journal of Research on Adolescence, and Journal of School Psychology.
Pronouns: he/him
Recent News
In the Media
Education
PhD, Education and Psychology, University of Michigan
MS, Psychology, University of Michigan
BS, Psychology, Brown University
Courses
CE 860: Social Identity Development Across Contexts
CE 854: Proseminar on Advanced Research in Counseling Psychology
DS 502: Introduction to Adolescent Development
HD 511: Social and Policy Perspective in Positive Youth Development
Selected Publications
Medina, M. A., Vezaldenos, V., & Rivas-Drake, D. (In press). Peer Groups, Friendships, and Schools: Contexts of Multiracial Identity Development. In A. Nishina, S. E. Gaither, & L. Kiang (Eds.), The Cambridge handbook of multiracial youth and families. Cambridge University Press.
Medina, M. A., Sigal, M., Vang, T., Bellmore, A., Witkow, M., & Nishina, A. (2026). Interethnic climate and psychological adjustment in high school: The role of school belonging and ethnic identity. Journal of Youth and Adolescence, 55(1), 226–237. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10964-025-02241-5
Medina, M. A., Mathews, C. J., de los Reyes, W., Singh, A., Diemer, M., & Durand, T. M. (2025). Anti-racist methodological approaches to ethnic-racial identity and critical consciousness scholarship. Journal of School Psychology, 113, 101493. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jsp.2025.101493
Medina, M. A., Lee, S. Y., Broadnax, K., & Zaff, J. F. (2024, October 1). Critical Practice Makes Perfect: Classroom Observations of Debate-Inspired Education. Retrieved from https://www.bostondebate.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/12/Critical-Practice-Makes-Perfect-Classroom-Observations-of-Debate-Inspired-Classrooms.pdf
Medina, M. A., Rivas-Drake, D., Jagers, R. J., & Rowley, S. J. (2020). Friends matter: Ethnic-racial identity and school adjustment among African American and Latino early adolescents. Applied Developmental Science, 24(4), 376–391. https://doi.org/10.1080/10888691.2018.1524712
Selected Presentations
Medina, M. A., Lee, S. Y., Gu, X., Wu, J., & Daniel, T. (2026). Developing Critical Consciousness among Black and Latino Boys: A School-Based Approach [Paper presentation]. The Future of Education, Florence, Italy.
Medina, M. A., Nishina, A., Bellmore, A., & Witkow, M. (2024). Racial Identity and School Belonging Across the COVID-19 Pandemic [Paper presentation]. American Educational Research Association. Philadelphia, PA.
Medina, M. A., Nishina, A., Bellmore, A., & Witkow, M. (2023). Ethnic-Racial Identity and Friendship Diversity Across Contexts [Paper presentation]. Society for Research in Child Development. Salt Lake City, UT.
Medina, M. A., Nishina, A., Bellmore, A., & Witkow, M. (2022). Friend Diversity and Ethnic Identity on College Students’ Cognitive and Academic Advantage [Paper presentation]. Society for Research on Adolescence. New Orleans, LA.
Medina, M. A., Rivas-Drake, D., & Umaña-Taylor, A. (2022). How Friend Diversity and Support Shape the Link between Racial Identity and Academic Adjustment. [Poster presentation]. Society for Research in Child Development. Rio Grande, Puerto Rico.