Dr. Geleana D. Alston is the Inaugural Associate Dean for Research and Community Engagement in the College of Education. She is also a Professor in the Department of Leadership Studies and Adult Education. Dr. Alston’s work focuses on the sociocultural intricacies of women, minorities, and disenfranchised groups as adult learners. She is the author or co-author of over 30 scholarly publications. In addition to her scholarship, Dr. Alston has more than 10 years experience with academic journal editorship. She is the past immediate Co-Editor in Chief for New Directions for Adult and Continuing Education, a top-tier refereed academic journal. Dr. Alston has collaborated on research projects as principal investigator, co-principal investigator, or evaluator, and collectively these research teams have successfully secured more than 13 million dollars in funding from various federal agencies, the University of North Carolina System, and corporate foundations. ​