By Rachel Sampson of the School of Education
Young-Suk Grace Kim, professor at the UC Irvine School of Education, has received the Carol Connor Mid-Career Award from the Society for the Scientific Study of Reading (SSSR). The award, presented at the society’s annual conference in July, recognizes a mid-career researcher with a distinguished record of scholarship and broader contributions to the science of reading.
Established in 2022, the award honors the late Carol Connor, a former UC Irvine School of Education professor and influential literacy scholar who was serving as vice president of the society at the time of her passing. Recipients are recognized for the strength of their research as well as their contributions to advancing reading science, connecting disciplines, and supporting early-career researchers.
“Carol Connor was my colleague at UC Irvine, and receiving an award that bears her name is deeply meaningful,” said Kim. “She cared about rigorous science and about the people doing it, and I hope to honor her by mentoring the next generation of reading researchers. I am grateful to SSSR and to the students and collaborators whose work is inseparable from this recognition.”
Kim’s research examines how children develop language and literacy skills, with a focus on reading, writing, and the connections between them. She is particularly known for developing and testing the Direct and Indirect Effects models of Reading and Writing, and her work spans multiple languages and writing systems.
Kim previously served as editor-in-chief of Scientific Studies of Reading and is the incoming editor of the Journal of Educational Psychology. In 2012, she received the Presidential Early Career Award for Scientists and Engineers from President Barack Obama.
Learn more about the Carol Connor Mid-Career Award