Cheyeon Ha

Cheyeon Ha (Ph.D.)

Assistant Research Professor
USC Center for Affective Neuroscience, Development, Learning and Education (CANDLE)
University of Southern California — Los Angeles

(E-mail: cheyeonh@usc.edu)

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Overview

I am an Assistant Research Professor at the USC Center for Affective Neuroscience, Development, Learning, and Education (CANDLE). Prior to joining the team, I completed my postdoctoral training at the Child Study Center at Yale School of Medicine and earned my doctoral degree in Learning and Cognition from Florida State University.

My research broadly centers on positive child and youth development, emotional well-being, and equity in education. Specifically, I investigate how educational systems and school-based programs foster the social, emotional, and academic growth of children and youth. I am particularly motivated to explore the developmental mechanisms that inform student-centered approaches, with a focus on individual developmental differences and dynamic sociocultural contexts to support all children and adolescents in reaching their full potential.

Appointments

2025 — Now
Assistant Research Professor
USC Center for Affective Neuroscience, Development, Learning, and Education (CANDLE)
University of Southern California, Los Angeles
2025 — Now
Assistant Research Professor
Rossier School of Education (Educational Psychology)
University of Southern California, Los Angeles
2022 — 2025
Postdoctoral Associate
Yale Child Study Center, School of Medicine · Yale University

Education

2022 — 2025
Postdoctoral Research Training
Yale School of Medicine
2016 — 2022
Ph.D. Learning and Cognition
Florida State University
2025 — 2027
Bezos Family Foundation
Researcher (PI: Mary Helen Immordino-Yang, $2,100,000, project 2025 – 2027)
Collaborative Learning and Action-Based Communities (COLABs) at the CANDLE Innovation Lab. University of Southern California.
2025 — 2027
McCormick Grant for Towards Kindness
Co-PI (PI: Johari Harris, $24,744, project 2025 – 2027)
Caring for Community: Examining Relationships between Adolescents' Transformative Social Emotional Competencies and Prosocial Behaviors. Weissberg Scholar Group.
2024 — 2025
Institute of Education Sciences (IES)
Researcher (PI: Christina Cipriano, $1,699,927; #R305A240148, project 2024 – 2028)
A Living Systematic Review of Universal School-Based Social and Emotional Learning Programs in the U.S. Yale University & American Institutes for Research.
2023 — 2025
Institute of Education Sciences (IES)
Researcher (PI: Christina Cipriano, $1,858,247; #R305A210262, project 2021 – 2025)
The Development and Validation of the Social and Emotional Learning Observation Checklist for Elementary School (SELOC-ES). Yale University.
2023 — 2025
Chan-Zuckerberg Initiative (CZI)
Researcher (PI: Christina Cipriano, $5,600,000, project 2021 – 2025)
Fostering Youth of Color and their Educators to Thrive through Sustainable SEL Assessments. Yale University.
2022 — 2024
Oak Foundation
Researcher (PI: Christina Cipriano, $703,489; #OCAY-19-407 & #OAC OFIL-22-040, project 2021 – 2024)
Social-Emotional Learning (SEL) for All Project: Promoting SEL Access and Outcomes for Students with Learning Differences. Yale University.
2021 — 2024
Universal SEL Meta-Analysis Research Project
Researcher (project 2021 – 2024)
Yale Child Study Center, Yale University.
2017 — 2022
Institute of Education Sciences (IES)
Graduate Researcher (PI: Alysia Roehrig, $1,020,800; #R305B170017, project 2017 – 2022)
The Partners United for Research Pathways Oriented to Social Justice in Education (PURPOSE). Florida State University & Florida A&M University.
2016 — 2022
Children's Defense Fund (CDF) — North Florida Freedom Schools
Graduate Researcher (project 2016 – 2022)
College of Education, Florida State University.
2,331+
Citations
14
h-index
Peer-reviewed journal articles
2026
Beyond overall effects: Using qualitative comparative analysis to understand how multiple contextual conditions shape educational program success
Review of Research in Education (Invited manuscript).
Ha, C., Barnes, S. P., McCarthy, M. F., Strambler, M. J., & Cipriano, C.
2026
Systemwide social and emotional learning (SEL) in action: Insights from a research-practice partnership with leaders, educators, and students
Education Sciences.
Ng, Z. J., Ha, C., Zieher, A., Foster, B., Ellis, T., Adams, D., & Cipriano, C.
2026
Navigating social and emotional learning evidence in a polarized socio-political environment: A qualitative pilot study of SEL stakeholders
Social and Emotional Learning: Research, Practice, and Policy.
McCarthy, M. F., Ahmad, E., Barnes, S., Ng, Z. J., Ha, C., & Cipriano, C.
2025
Disentangling the effects of social and emotional learning programs on student academic achievement across grades 1–12: A systematic review and meta-analysis
Review of Educational Research.
Ha, C., McCarthy, M. F., Strambler, M., & Cipriano, C.
2025
Suggestions for inclusive learning: Integrating diversity in educational research and promoting equitable social and emotional learning support for all
Learning and Individual Differences.
Ha, C., Hwang, S., Baelen, R., Santos, A. C., Murano, D., Harris, J., Goren, P., & Schonert-Reichl, K. A.
2025
Trajectories of social, emotional, and academic development in early adolescents: Three-year longitudinal study
Journal of Applied Developmental Psychology.
Ha, C., & Cipriano, C.
2025
Insights from culturally relevant reading education for underrepresented students: Building social and emotional learning environments and enhancing reading outcomes
The Urban Review.
Ha, C., Craig, M., & Roehrig, A. D.
2025
Illustrating the need for centering student identity in universal school-based social and emotional learning
Social and Emotional Learning: Research, Practice, and Policy, 100088.
Cipriano, C., Ahmed, E., McCarthy, M., Ha, C., & Ross, A.
2025
Early adolescents' motivational regulation and academic achievement: Using multi-level modeling analysis based on self-determination theory
Social Psychology of Education, 28(10).
Ha, C., Zhang, Q., & Roehrig, A. D.
2025
Understanding dynamics of students emotion regulation strategy selection: Using a network analysis approach
Personality and Individual Differences, 223, 112913.
Ha, C., Ng, Z. J., & Cipriano, C.
2025
The role of teacher autonomy in enhancing job satisfaction and mitigating burnout
PLOS One.
Ha, C., Pressley, T., & Marshall, D.
2025
The satisfaction of basic psychological needs and children's reading growth
Educational Studies, 51(2), 156–173.
Ha, C., & Roehrig, A. D.
2024
The Freedom Schools Way: A Model for Intergenerational Research Training Partnerships Among Universities and Children's Defense Fund Freedom Schools® Programs
Urban Education, 59(10), 2999–3022.
Rawls, E., Roehrig, A. D., Turner, J. E., Mesa, M. P., McClarey, M., Lewis, C., Ha, C., Auman, P., & Bertrand Jones, T.
2024
Inner strength amidst pandemic: Teachers' self-efficacy and perceived personal accomplishments
Psychology in the Schools, 61, 1944–1961.
Ha, C., & Pressley, T.
2024
Affective experiences of US school personnel in the sociopolitical context of 2021: Reflecting on the past to shape the future
Education Sciences, 14(10), 1093.
Wood, M., Ha, C., Brackett, M., & Cipriano, C.
2024
A meta-analysis of the effects of USB SEL programs and marginalized students in the United States
Social and Emotional Learning: Research, Practice, and Policy, 3.
Cipriano, C., Ha, C., Wood, M., Sehgal, K., Ahmad, E., & McCarthy, M.
2023
Students' self-regulated learning strategies and science achievement: Exploring the moderating effect of learners' emotional skills
Cambridge Journal of Education, 53(4), 451–472.
Ha, C.
2023
The state of evidence for social and emotional learning: A contemporary meta-analysis of universal school-based SEL interventions
Child Development, 94(5), 1181–1204.
Cipriano, C., Strambler, M., Naples, L. H., Ha, C., Kirk Chang, M., Wood, M., Sehgal, K., Zieher, A., Eveleigh, A., McCarthy, M., Funaro, M., Chow, J., & Durlak, J.
2023
Self-regulated learning strategies and academic achievement in South Korean 6th-graders: A two-level hierarchical linear modeling analysis
PLOS One.
Ha, C., Roehrig, A. D., & Zhang, Q.
2023
How to compare multiple intervention effects in reviews of educational research: Using network meta-analysis
International Journal of Research & Method in Education, 46(1), 98–112.
Ha, C.
2023
How parental factors influence children's literacy development: Inequity in education
Education 3-13, 51(3), 493–508.
Ha, C.
2022
Contribution of children's reading motivation and prosocial efficacy to reading growth
Learning and Individual Differences, 97, 102163.
Ha, C., & Roehrig, A. D.
2022
Teacher exhaustion during COVID-19: Exploring the role of administrators, self-efficacy, and anxiety
The Teacher Educator, 57(1), 61–78.
Pressley, T., & Ha, C.
2021
Teacher stress and anxiety during COVID-19: An empirical study
School Psychology, 36(5), 367–376.
Pressley, T., Ha, C., & Learn, E.
2021
Teaching during a pandemic: United States teachers' self-efficacy during COVID-19
Teaching and Teacher Education, 106, 103465.
Pressley, T., & Ha, C.
2021
Promoting children's reading motivation with culturally relevant reading education
Florida Journal of Educational Research, 59(1), 268–282.
Ha, C., Durtschi, S., Roehrig, A. D., Turner, J. E., Craig, M., Mesa, M., & Funari, C.
2021
Preventing summer reading loss in a literacy rich environment with a culturally relevant curriculum
Florida Journal of Educational Research, 59(1), 252–267.
Mesa, M., Roehrig, A. D., Funari, C., Durtschi, S., Ha, C., Rawls, E., & Davis, C.
2019
Elementary teachers' beliefs and perspectives related to smart learning in South Korea
Smart Learning Environments, 6(3), 1–15.
Ha, C., & Lee, S.-Y.
Peer-reviewed book chapter
2027
Developmentally informed social and emotional learning (SEL) for adolescents: Navigating the U-shaped trajectory
In A. Roehrig, T. Pressley, J. Turner, & D. Timony (Eds.), Educational psychology in practice: A handbook of applied research (APA Div. 15). Guilford Press. (Invited; forthcoming)
Ha, C.
2027
Transcendent thinking in adolescence
In K. C. Christoff & A. Zamani (Eds.), The Cambridge handbook of thought. Cambridge University Press. (Invited; forthcoming)
Immordino-Yang, M. H., Yang, X., & Ha, C.
Dec 2025
School program uses hip-hop to teach social-emotional skills
PBS NewsHour.
Public Broadcasting Service (PBS).
Dec 2025
The 10 most significant education studies of 2025
Edutopia.
George Lucas Educational Foundation.
Oct 2025
Research shows social-emotional learning can boost grades and test scores
NPR.
Turner, C.
Oct 2025
Social-emotional learning linked to higher Math and Reading test scores
Education Week.
Prothero, A.
Oct 2025
SEL improves student grades, test performance
K-12 Dive.
Modan, N.
Oct 2025
Social and emotional learning programs linked to academic gains
AERA Newsroom.
American Educational Research Association (Press release).
Refereed papers & oral presentations
Apr 2026
Student validation of barriers to and solutions for SEL
Stoffers, M., McCarthy, M., Ha, C., Rappolt-Schlichtmann, G., & Cipriano, C. AERA Annual Meeting, Los Angeles, CA.
Apr 2026
Educator validation of barriers to social and emotional learning
McCarthy, M., Stoffers, M., Ha, C., Rappolt-Schlichtmann, G., & Cipriano, C. AERA Annual Meeting, Los Angeles, CA.
Apr 2026
A barrier analysis of Tier 1 SEL programming in the United States
Cipriano, C., McCarthy, M., Rappolt-Schlichtmann, G., Stoffers, M., & Ha, C. AERA Annual Meeting, Los Angeles, CA.
Apr 2026
Development of the Compass Checklist for Elementary Schools: A teaching tool to scaffold students' social and emotional development
Meyer, J., Zieher, A., Bailey, C., Strambler, M., Ha, C., Van Straten, A., Soeters, Z., Torv, L., & Cipriano, C. National Council on Measurement in Education, Los Angeles, CA.
Apr 2026
Validation of the Compass Checklist: An educator observation tool for social and emotional pedagogy in elementary schools
Zieher, A., Bailey, C., Strambler, M., Ha, C., Barnes, S., Meyer, J., Van Straten, A., & Cipriano, C. National Council on Measurement in Education, Los Angeles, CA.
Apr 2025
The effects of universal social and emotional learning on students' academic achievement: A meta-analysis study
Ha, C., McCarthy, M., Strambler, M., & Cipriano, C. AERA Annual Meeting, Denver, CO.
Sep 2024
Understanding the efficacy of social and emotional learning programs across development: An exploration of stage-environment fit
Cipriano, C., Ha, C., & Zieher, A. Society for Research on Educational Effectiveness, Baltimore, MD.
Apr 2024
Meta-analysis of the effects of USB SEL programs for marginalized students in the United States
Ha, C., McCarthy, M., Wood, M., Sehgal, K., Ahmad, E., & Cipriano, C. AERA Annual Meeting, Philadelphia, PA.
Apr 2024
Methodological guidance paper: Conducting a high-quality evaluation of an SEL intervention
Cipriano, C., & Ha, C. AERA Annual Meeting, Philadelphia, PA.
Apr 2024
The state of the evidence for social and emotional learning: A contemporary meta-analysis of universal school-based SEL interventions
Cipriano, C., Strambler, M., Ha, C., Kirk Chang, M., Wood, M., Sehgal, K., McCarthy, M., Eveleigh, A., Zieher, A. K., & Chow, J. AERA Annual Meeting, Philadelphia, PA.
Apr 2023
The Freedom School way: A model for intergenerational research training partnership among universities and Freedom Schools
Rawls, E., Roehrig, A. D., Turner, J. E., Mesa, M. P., McClarey, M., Lewis, C., Ha, C., Auman, P., Bertrand Jones, T., & Garri, D. AERA Annual Meeting, Chicago, IL.
Apr 2023
Culturally relevant reading for equitable summer education of underserved students in elementary and middle schools
Ha, C., Roehrig, A. D., Turner, J. E., Phillips, B. M., & Dennis, L. AERA Annual Meeting, Chicago, IL.
Mar 2023
The state of evidence for social and emotional learning: A contemporary systematic review of universal school-based SEL interventions
Cipriano, C., Naples, L.H., Zieher, A., Durlak, J., Strambler, M., Eveleigh, A., Wood, M., Ha, C., Sehgal, K., Kirk Chang, M., Ponnock, A., Funaro, M., & Chow, J. Society for Research in Child Development, Salt Lake City, UT.
Apr 2022
Returning to teaching during COVID-19: The role of administrators, self-efficacy, and anxiety on burnout
Pressley, T., & Ha, C. AERA Annual Meeting, San Diego, CA.
Apr 2022
Prosocial classroom climates for promoting students' social-emotional competencies and academic outcomes: A path model analysis
Ha, C. AERA Annual Meeting, San Diego, CA.
Apr 2022
Students' social and emotional development and academic achievement trajectories: A 3-year longitudinal study
Ha, C. AERA Annual Meeting, San Diego, CA.
Apr 2022
The first month of teaching during a pandemic: Teacher stress and anxiety
Pressley, T., & Ha, C. AERA Annual Meeting, San Diego, CA.
Apr 2021
Social justice in child literacy: How family socioeconomic status influence on children's literacy development
Ha, C. AERA Annual Meeting, Virtual.
Jun 2020
Increasing children's knowledge of pattern detection and skip counting using a tablet-based math activity
Ha, C., Hou, X., Nguyen, A. H., & Uchidiuno, J. O. International Conference of the Learning Sciences (ICLS), Nashville, TN.
DOI
Dec 2019
K–8 students' motivation to read in a culturally-relevant, literacy-focused summer camp
Roehrig, A. D., Craig, M., Ha, C., & Freedom Schools Team. Literacy Research Association Annual Meeting, Tampa, FL.
Nov 2019
Developing researcher-identities with PURPOSE: Partners united for research pathways oriented to social justice in education
Roehrig, A. D., Tani, N. Y., Talpau-Joos, M., Diaz, J., Rawls, E., Turner, J. E., Davis, C., Ha, C., Auman, P., & Hernandez, J. Florida Educational Research Association, St. Petersburg, FL.
Nov 2018
Changes in children's reading skills, motivation, and prosocial beliefs following a culturally relevant summer camp
Mesa, M., Roehrig, A. D., Robinson, C., Davis, C., Durtschi, S., Funari, C., Ha, C. Y., & Craig, M. Florida Educational Research Association, St. Petersburg, FL.
Apr 2018
Teachers' belief and perspective on smart learning in South Korea
Ha, C. Y., & Lee, S. Y. AERA Annual Meeting, New York, NY.
Nov 2017
Reading is cool in Freedom School: Demonstrating a collaborative model for meaningful literacy engagement with underserved populations
Roehrig, A. D., Barnes, A., Chancy, C., Diaz, J., Grainer, M., Ha, C. Y., Hayes, S., Matthews, T. A., Maxion, A., Mesa, M., Pan, Y., Pressley, T., Roberts, S., Robinson, S., Rawls, E., & Smittle, M. Florida Educational Research Association, Cocoa Beach, FL.
Poster presentations
Apr 2026
Caring for community: Exploring the connections among ethnic-racial identity, prosociality, critical consciousness, and civic engagement in early adolescence
Harris, J., Carlo, G., Ha, C., & Hwang, S. Society for Research on Adolescence, Toronto, Canada.
Sep 2024
The impact of open science policy on study quality
Chuter, C., Ha, C., Li, L., Polanin, J., & Cipriano, C. Society for Research on Educational Effectiveness, Baltimore, MD.
Nov 2022
How are students with disabilities represented in universal school-based social and emotional learning interventions?
Sehgal, K., Ahmad, E., Wood, M., Ha, C., Naples, L., & Cipriano, C. Yale Postgraduate Association Symposium, Yale University.
Nov 2022
Understanding prosocial emotions and burnout: A cross-cultural replication of educators
Wood, M., Sehgal, K., Ha, C., & Cipriano, C. Yale Postgraduate Association Symposium, Yale University.
May 2021
Teachers' well-being in the online teaching and learning contexts during the out-of-school time (COVID-19 pandemic)
Ha, C. Association for Psychological Science Annual Meeting, Virtual.
Apr 2021
Game-based learning (GBL) on learning motivation and science achievement in K–12 education: Robust meta-analysis study
Ha, C., & Sun, C. AERA Annual Meeting, Virtual.
Nov 2020
Students' social and emotional development and academic achievement: 3-year longitudinal study
Ha, C. Psychonomic Society Annual Meeting, Virtual.
Nov 2020
Effects of students' self-regulated learning strategies on math achievement: With hierarchical linear modeling
Ha, C. Psychonomic Society Annual Meeting, Virtual.
May 2020
The contribution of students' prosocial efficacy to children's reading motivation and summer reading performance
Ha, C., & Roehrig, A. D. Association for Psychological Science Annual Meeting, Virtual (originally Chicago, IL).
May 2020
Analyzing elementary students' learning motivation aspects and their literacy achievement with multilevel linear modeling
Ha, C., & Zhang, Q. Association for Psychological Science Annual Meeting, Virtual (originally Chicago, IL).
Feb 2020
Elementary students' science beliefs and science achievement: Analysis of structural equation modeling using TIMSS 2015 data in the United States
Huh, I., & Ha, C. Eastern Educational Research Association Annual Meeting, Orlando, FL.
Aug 2019
Students' social and emotional experiences in the classroom and their changes in prosocial efficacy
Ha, C., & Roehrig, A. D. American Psychological Association Annual Meeting, Chicago, IL.
Aug 2019
The effects of emotional intelligence and self-regulated learning on students' academic performance
Ha, C. American Psychological Association Annual Meeting, Chicago, IL.
May 2019
How the social and emotional experiences of Freedom Schools (FS) students impact their summer camp outcomes
Ha, C., & Roehrig, A. D. Association for Psychological Science Annual Meeting, Washington, DC.
Apr 2018
The fierce urgency of now: Children's Defense Fund Freedom Schools and culturally relevant pedagogy
Roehrig, A. D., Clemons, K. M., Mesa, M., Ha, C., Durtschi, S., Funari, C., & Norris, K. AERA Annual Meeting, New York, NY.
May 2013
The science class design for team-based learning
Ha, C. Korean Society for Educational Technology Annual Meeting, Seoul, Korea.
Editorial board
2026 — Now
Consulting Editor
Journal of Research on Adolescence
2024 — 2026
Editorial Board Member
Social and Emotional Learning: Research, Practice, and Policy
2025
Guest Editor, Special Issue
SEL: Research, Practice, and Policy — "Integrating Social, Emotional, and Academic Learning: Knowledge, Innovation, and Transformation" (with Drs. Sara Rimm-Kaufman, Sophia Hwang, and Helen Watt)
Grant reviewer
Journal peer reviewer
Conference reviewer