I am a PhD student in the Curriculum, Instruction and the Science of Learning program at the University at Buffalo! I specialize in early childhood special education and have been teaching for several years. My husband and I live in the City of Buffalo where we're currently building our life. My goal is to create an additional teacher preparation program in early childhood special education in Western NY to address the need for providers to service young children.
In a whirlwind of energy and excitement, I can proudly say that on May 15th, I graduated from the University at Buffalo with my PhD in Curriculum, Instruction and the Science of Learning! It was a moment that I’ve been trying to envision for years. It honestly felt surreal that the day finally came and … More Graduation and Life after UB!
As it’s been this entire academic year, I’ve been pretty quiet on the blog. I’ve been finishing up interviews, analyzing quantitative and qualitative data, and writing (and re-writing) my final chapters to my dissertation. It’s my pleasure to announce that on March 11th, 2026, I passed my final defense. I won’t lie, I was pretty … More Introducing: Dr. Samantha Didrichsen, PhD
On November 10th, 2025, I took my first flight in several years solo from Buffalo to Kansas City, MO. It wasn’t a direct flight, no; I had to make a connecting flight from Denver. But eventually I made it to Kansas City. As I said in previously blog posts (1, 2), I was preparing to … More My Thoughts on TED (CEC) 2025!
Hello readers! It’s been a while since I last updated the blog, but I’ve been making minor changes to the research website here and there. Life has been particularly busy as I’ve started up my candidacy year at U.B! First, I finished up on data collection for my dissertation in September! While I haven’t actively … More Where Have You Been? Everywhere!
Hello everyone! First things first—I am officially recruiting for my dissertation! If you’re reading this and meet the eligibility criteria for my study, please email me at srdidric@buffalo.edu . Second, I’ve kindly been invited to become an editor for the Journal of Early Childhood Development and Education. It’s an open access journal that seeks to … More Recruitment for Dissertation and Editor Position
It’s my pleasure to present a new piece written in collaboration with Dr. Kristen Smigielski for the Forum of the American Journal of Education. This peer-reviewed work encapsulates the issues that higher education faculty members may have when trying to reach all students and support their growth in an online format, and suggestions on how … More Forum of the American Journal of Education Publication!
Hello everyone! It’s been a little bit since I wrote an actual post beyond me announcing my dissertation proposal defense. To anyone that’s reading this and knows me in my personal life, you know how incredibly busy these last five months have been. Writing the equivalent to half a novel in such a short amount … More End of Spring ’25 (and I passed my defense!)
I am pleased to announce that on Wednesday, April 16th at 11:00 AM, I will be defending my dissertation proposal in a public forum on Zoom! My dissertation is currently titled, “Losing Joy: Understanding the Phenomenon of Burnout in Early Childhood Special Educators.” If you are interested and would like to attend, please reach out … More Dissertation Proposal Announcement
Hello everyone! It’s been quite some time since I last updated the blog. Life has been hectic, both in good ways and in I-could-have-done-without-this-ways. I think that’s the norm though, we all have ups and downs, and whatever happens, you are absolutely allowed to feel how you feel but process it and figure out next … More Life and Reflection
It took me giving one of my students my research website for me to realize that it’s been a few months since I’ve updated my blog! Better get to it then! Well, the summer was a wild one. It was just honestly jam packed. I finished up my VERY LAST CLASS EVER. Unless I need … More “What’s it like not taking classes anymore?”
Samantha Didrichsen, PhD. 