Assistant Professor
Early, Elementary & Reading Education

Dr. Chris Hass is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Early, Elementary, and Reading Education at JMU. His teaching and scholarship focus on culturally relevant teaching, social justice education, and student activism. He serves on the Executive Board of the Early Childhood Education Assembly and is a column editor for Language Arts where his "Civic Literacy" column supports educators to promote civic engagement in k-5 classrooms. Additionally, he co-created the Equity thru Education Collaborative, a diverse group of educators, students, and advocates working together to use education as a means of addressing issues of injustice and inequity in their communities.

Academic Degrees

• Ph.D. Language and Literacy, Cognate: Foundations of Education, University of South Carolina
• M.Ed. Language and Literacy, University of South Carolina
• B.A. Elementary Education, Southern Illinois University at Edwardsville

Research and Teaching Interests

• Culturally Relevant Teaching
• Social Justice Education
• Student Activism
• Inquiry-Based Learning

Courses taught at JMU

• ELED 450 Planning Instruction and Assessment
• ELED 485 Guiding Student Behavior
• LED 462 Disciplinary Literacy for Diverse Classrooms PK-6

Selected publications

Hass, C. (2024). Learning to stand up for ourselves: Using literacy as a vehicle for change. Language Arts.

Hass, C. (2024). Combating misinformation: Inquiry as a tool for civic literacy. Language Arts.

Hass, C. (2023). Using issue-based books to prompt action. Talking Points.

Hass, C. (2022). Being brave: Using issue-based literature to disrupt oppressive beliefs and practices. Perspectives and Provocations, 11, 1-9. 

Hass, C. (2020). Social justice talk: Strategies for teaching critical awareness. Portsmouth, NH: Heinemann.