Biography
Rachel Lauren Storm has worked in educational programming and advocacy for over 10 years, focusing on women’s rights/gender equity, youth programming, social justice education, and international development. She received her Ph.D. in Educational Policy, Organization and Leadership with a concentration in Global Studies in Education (GSE) and Gender Relations in International Development (GRID).
Dr. Storm holds a B.A. in International Studies and M.Ed. in Educational Policy Studies at the University of Illinois where she previously held a full-time appointment as the Assistant Director of the Women’s Resources Center in the Office of Inclusion and Intercultural Relations within Student Affairs. In her 8 years of service, she oversaw the center’s educational programs, as well as, offered counseling, support, and advocacy for survivors of violence and trauma. She is currently working with Women and Gender in Global Perspectives' Migration and Game Design grant, in addition to ongoing programs support.
In addition to her work with WGGP, she serves as the Arts and Culture Coordinator for the City of Urbana, directing the Urbana Arts and Culture Program's various initiatives including managing the City's arts grant programs and curating programs and events designed to foster artistic and cultural learning, engagement, and activity. She has worked on arts, social service, and education initiatives for the past ten years in public, nonprofit, and higher education sectors.
She previously received awards for her research on the effects of state restructuring on the work of feminist organizing in Ecuador, including the the Tinker Fellowship for Latin American Field Research, the Barbara A. Yates Award, the Due and Ferber Award, and the Illinois International Graduate Achievement Award. She was also named the 2013 National Women’s Studies Association Women’s Centers Committee Emerging Leader and received the prestigious Campus Award for Excellence in Public Engagement (CAEPE).
She has taught within the Departments of Educational Psychology and Gender and Women’s Studies at the University of Illinois where her course on U.S./International Dialogue explores development narratives, solidarity vs. charity, and international dynamics of power. Her current research interests include restorative and transformative justice, international development, and gender-based violence.
Research Interests
restorative and transformative justice, international development, gender-based violence, women's issues, educational policy, arts-based education, violence/trauma, social justice education, grassroots community organizing
Research Description
While restorative justice practices in the United States are increasingly used in primary and secondary schools, universities, juvenile and criminal justice systems, their usage within the context of higher education has been largely limited to “minor” violations or offenses that impact campus climate. As heightened attention to the problem of campus sexual assault has given way to new federal mandates, institutions of higher education have begun to re-examine their response protocol, improve upon existing polices, and introduce new resources to ensure federal compliance. Some campus sexual misconduct experts are interested in examining what restorative justice may offer campus policy. In this research study, qualitative semistructured interviews were conducted with victims’ rights advocates and feminist practitioners at colleges, universities, and community-based women's centers across the United States in order to identify common considerations for limiting revictimization and supporting survivors within restorative justice models of conflict resolution in higher education.
Awards and Honors
2021 Diversity and Social Justice Outstanding Alumni Award
2018 Awardee, Sheroes of Champaign County Women’s Awards
2018 Humanitarian Award, Mom’s Association at the University of Illinois
2018 Best Presentation Award, 9th Annual Graduate Conference in Education, University of Illinois
2017 Graduate Student Award, Honorable Mention, Graduate College at the University of Illinois
2017 Nominee, ACE (Art, Culture, and Education) Awards, 40 North Champaign County Arts Council
2017 Diversity and Social Justice Outstanding Staff Award, University of Illinois at Urbana-
2015 Strategic Initiatives Grant Recipient, Feminist Activist Academy & Domestic Violence Training
2015 Focal Point Grant, “Women’s Empowerment and International Development,” The Graduate College
2015 Teacher Scholar Certificate, Center for Innovation in Teaching and Learning (CITL)
2015 Campus Award for Excellence in Public Engagement (CAEPE)
2015 Urbana Public Arts Commission, Arts Grants Recipient, Creative Mix, Here and Now
2014 Strategic Initiatives Grant Recipient, Feminist Activist Academy
2014 Urbana Public Arts Commission, Arts Grant Recipient Envision 365
2013 List of Teachers Ranked as Excellent, Center for Innovation in Teaching and Learning
2013 Emerging Leader in Women’s Centers, National Women’s Studies Association
2013 Emerging Leader, YWCA Annual Women’s Awards
2013 Urbana Public Arts Commission, Arts Grant Recipient Envision 365
2013 Strategic Initiatives Grant Recipient, Campus Body Image Initiative
2012 Mix IT Up Youth Advocacy Librarianship Grant, Gender Barred Symposium
2012 Gender and Women’s Studies Outstanding Student Award
2012 Due and Ferber Award for International Field Research
2012 Goodman Fellowship, Women and Gender in Global Perspectives
2012 Keynote Speaker/Honoree, Soroptimist International Midwest Conference
2011 Barbara A. Yates Award for International Field Research
2011 Tinker Fellowship for Latin American Field Research
2011 Virginia M. Wagner Award, Soroptimist International Bloomington-Normal
2009 Global Engagement Summit Delegate, Northwestern University
Courses Taught
Instructor, EPSY 203: Race, Ethnicity, and Power, University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign (2015-present)
Instructor, GWS150: Contemporary Issues in Women’s Studies, University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign (2013-2014)
Instructor, EPSY 203: U.S./International Dialogue, University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign (2009-2015)
Instructor, Our Whole Lives Comprehensive Sex Education Grades 7th & 8th, 9th & 10th
Instructor, Creative Writing: Poetry, Champaign County Jail Books2 Prisoners Education Classes
Guest Lectures/Teaching
SW 550: Women’s Issues
GLBST 199: Global Studies-Intercultural Horizons
PSYCH 239: Clinical Community Psychology
GLBL 100: Intro to Global Studies
ANTH 262: Women’s Lives
ANTH 262 Honors: Advanced Women’s Studies
GWS 100: Introduction to Gender & Women’s Studies
CH199B: First Year Campus Acquaintance Rape Education
ARTS 299: (Re)Making Matter(s)
GWS Gender Studies, University High School
TAG Teen Awareness Group Parapro Training Curriculum Development
Additional Campus Affiliations
Planning Committee, Sexual Assault Awareness Month Programming
University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, Student Affairs Office of Inclusion and Intercultural Relations, 2009-present
Chair, Planning Committee for University of Illinois Domestic Violence Awareness Month Programming
University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, Student Affairs Office of Inclusion and Intercultural Relations, 2009-present
Planning Committee, Racial Justice Training Task Force
University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, Student Affairs, 2015-present
Student Affairs-Student Parent Advisory Committee, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
Office of Inclusion and Intercultural Relations, Student Affairs,, 2010-present
Awards Committee, Student Affairs Leadership Awards
University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, Student Affairs, 2014-present
Planning Committee for National Eating Disorders Awareness Week
University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, Student Affairs Office of Inclusion and Intercultural Relations, 2011-present
Planning Committee for Friday Forum Series, University YMCA
“Beyond Mass Incarceration,” “Alternative Economies,” “Faith in Action,” and “Food Justice” Lecture Series
Semester-Long Friday Forum Lecture Series, 2013-2015
Coach, Leadership Certificate Program, The Leadership Center®
University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, Student Affairs, 2010-2015
Planning Committee for 20th Anniversary Celebration of the LGBT Resource Center
University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, Student Affairs Office of Inclusion and Intercultural Relations, 2013
Planning Committee for NASPA Men and Masculinities Conference, “(Man)ifesting Change, Taking Root”
Western Illinois University, NASPA-V East Men and Masculinities Knowledge Community, 2012
Planning Committee for Annual SMART Girls Conference, “Sharing Myself, Training Myself, Expressing Myself”
University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, Student Affairs Office of Inclusion and Intercultural Relations, 2011
Planning Committee for 5th Annual University of Illinois Women’s Career Conference
University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, Student Affairs Office of Inclusion and Intercultural Relations, 2009-2012
Recruitment and Civic Engagement Committee, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, Student Affairs Office of Inclusion and Intercultural Relations, 2009-2012
Focal Point (2015-2016), Women’s Empowerment & International Development, University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign
Focal Point (2011-2012), The Nongovernmental Impulse, The Graduate College, University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign
International Field Research (2008; 2011), Cotacachi, Imbabura, Ecuador
Manuscript Editing, The Gift of Freedom: War, Debt, and Other Refugee Passages, Dr. Mimi Thi Nguyen