Alena N Alegrado
Alena N Alegrado
Graduate Teaching Assistant
Predictors and outcomes of in-school music enrollment
Alenamie is a fith-year PhD student in the Applied Developmental Psychology program. She graduated from George Mason University in 2016 with a B.S. in Psychology and concentration in Applied Developmental Psychology. Prior to starting the PhD Program, she worked as a research specialist for the University of Virginia Curry School of Education. She conducted child and classroom assessments at the pre-K and kindergarten level for a longitudinal study that explores long-term effects of pre-K programs.
Her current research focuses on predictors and outcomes of in-school arts enrollment among low-SES, ethnically diverse students with primary interest in the unique differences between music classes (Band, Chorus, Guitar, Orchestra).
Selected Publications
Alegrado, A., & Winsler, A. (2020). Predictors of taking elective music courses in middle school among low- SES, ethnically diverse students. Journal of Research in Music Education
Winsler, A., Gara, T., Alegrado, A., Castro, S., & Tavassolie, T. (2019). Selection into, and academic benefits from, arts-related courses in middle-school among low-income, ethnically diverse youth. Psychology of Aesthetics, Creativity, and the Arts.
Winsler, A., Gara, T., Alegrado, A., Castro, S., & Tavassolie, T. (2016). Selection into, and academic benefits from, arts-related elective courses in middle-school among low-income, ethnically diverse youth. Final research report submitted to the National Endowment for the Arts. NEA award #15-3800-7015. Available soon on the NEA website as a research report / white paper.
Courses Taught
PSYC 300: Statistics in Psychology, Lab Section
PSYC 300: Statistics in Psychology
PSYC 211: Developmental Psychology
PSYC 313: Child Development
Education
M.A., Psychology, George Mason University
B.S., Psychology, George Mason University
Recent Presentations
Alegrado, A., Winsler, A. (2022, February). Music and academic performance: Does music make kids smarter or do smart kids select into music? Presentation given at the Osher Life-Long Learning Center, Fairfax, VA
Alegrado, A., Winsler, A. (2021, November). Music and academic performance: Does music make kids smarter or do smart kids select into music? Insights from the Miami School Readiness Project. Presentation given at George Mason University Applied Developmental Psychology Program Colloquia Series. Fairfax, VA
Alegrado, A., & Winsler, A. (2021, April), Academic Benefits of Middle School Music Enrollment Among Low-Income, Ethnically Diverse Youth. Paper presented at the Society for Research in Child Development, conference. Online.
Winsler, A., Alegrado, A., & Tucker, T. (2021, April), Arts in Middle School Predict High School Academic Outcomes: More Years of Arts are Better. Paper presented at the Society for Research in Child Development, conference. Online.
Tucker, T., Alegrado, A., & Winsler, A. (2021, April), Who Takes Music With Them When They Transition to High School? Paper presented at the Society for Research in Child Development, conference. Online.
Elpus, K., Prichard, S., Winsler, A., Alegrado, A., Tucker, T., & Abril, C. R. (2020, August). Using large-scale data to understand music student outcomes in diverse school contexts [Conference symposium paper]. International Society for Music Education 33rd World Conference. Helsinki, Finland. (Conference canceled)
Alegrado, A. (2019). Inferential Statistics. Guest lecture given at George Mason University undergraduate statistics in psychology, Fairfax, VA
Alegrado, A., & Winsler, A. (2019, March), Who Stops the Music?: Predicting Persistence in Middle School Music Elective Courses. Poster presented at the Society for Research in Child Development, conference. Baltimore, MD.
Winsler, A., Alegrado, A., & Gara, T. (2018, November). Even controlling for large selection effects, there are academic benefits from art elective courses in middle-school for low-income, ethnically diverse youth. In M. Menzer (Chair). Arts education in the United States: National education policies for arts education and studies on the impact of arts education experiences for youth development using cross-sectional, longitudinal, and randomized control methods. Symposium presented at the Association for Public Policy Analysis and Management annual conference. Washington, DC.
Alegrado, A., Gara, T., Tavassolie, T., & Winsler, A. (2017, April), Predictors of music class participation and persistence in middle school among low-income, ethnically diverse students. Poster presented at the Society for Research in Child Development, conference. Austin, TX.
Alegrado, A., Gara, T., & Winsler, A. (2016, April). Predictors of music class enrollment and persistence in middle school among low-SES, ethnically diverse students. Paper and poster presented at the National Collegiate Undergraduate Research (NCUR) conference. Asheville, NC.
