Stephen J. Aguilar

Dr. Stephen J. Aguilar is an Associate Professor of Education in the Educational Psychology concentration at the USC Rossier School of Education. His research focuses on investigating how emerging and established educational technologies influence teaching, learning, and motivation. Dr. Aguilar studies the impact of generative AI in educational settings, the digital equity gap, and learning analytics applications. Currently, he is co-leading USC’s new Center for Generative AI and Society’s efforts to understand when and how generative AI is used by students and instructors in post-secondary settings. He is currently writing Authenticating Intelligence: Preventing AI from Hijacking Education (Bloomsbury Academic Inc).

His honors and awards include winning both the Wilbert J. McKeachie Early Career Award for Motivation in Education Research, and the AERA Division C Early Career Award. His work has been funded by the National Science Foundation, the American Educational Research Association (AERA), the National Institutes of Health, and the U.S. Army Research Office, among others. Dr. Aguilar’ has also given televised interviews on the digital equity gap in both English and Spanish, has been guest on NPR’s AirTalk, and has been interviewed by the Los Angeles Times, USA Today, Bloomberg, and The Washington Post. His digital equity work during the pandemic also informed California Assembly Bill No. 1176, which provided much needed subsides for families in need of broadband internet. The resulting Affordable Connectivity Program has helped over 1 million families afford reliable high-speed internet during the pandemic and beyond.

Dr. Aguilar received a B.A. in Philosophy and Psychology from Georgetown University, a M.A. in the Humanities (Philosophy) from the University of Chicago, and a Ph.D. in Education and Psychology from the University of Michigan. Previously, he taught sixth and seventh grade in East Palo Alto, California and served as a the Director of Institute Technology for Teach For America-Los Angeles’s summer institute.