Eileen Boswell, Ph.D.
She/They
- Program Evaluator
Additional Information
STEPs History
Eileen Boswell (she/they) joined STEPs in 2022 to bring qualitative and mixed methods research skills to the Drug Overdose Prevention project, a collaboration with the Nebraska Department of Health and Human Services.Education
After two decades crisscrossing non-profit and university settings, Eileen earned a graduate certificate in Mixed Methods Research and a doctorate in education from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln. While a graduate student, Eileen taught educational ethics to undergraduates, qualitative research design to graduate students, and assisted with applied research and evaluation projects at the University of Nebraska Medical Center and the Buffett Early Childhood Institute. Previously, Eileen had earned a Master of Arts degree from the University of Iowa and a Master of Science degree from the Catholic University of America.
Professional Background
Eileen has served in teaching, training, and research capacities for organizations in Illinois, Iowa, Nebraska, Colorado, and Washington, DC. She first worked at UNO as an instructor in the International Professional Development program from 2015-2017.
Selected Publications
Boswell, E. and Babchuk, W.A. (2023). Philosophical and theoretical underpinnings of qualitative research: Introduction to the philosophical and theoretical underpinnings of qualitative research. For R. Tierney, F. Rizvi, K. Ercikan, & G. Smith (Eds). International Encyclopedia of Education Volume 4. Elsevier LTD: Oxford. https://doi.org/10.1016/B978-0-12-818630-5.11001-2
Babchuk, W.A. and Boswell, E. (2023). Qualitative research approaches and designs: Grounded theory. For R. Tierney, F. Rizvi, K. Ercikan, & G. Smith (Eds). International Encyclopedia of Education Volume 4. Elsevier LTD: Oxford. https://doi.org/10.1016/B978-0-12-818630-5.11013-9
Algahimi, N., Boswell, E., & Lowndes, B. R. (2022, September). Initial Steps to Assemble a Home Monitoring Kit Prototype for Parkinson’s Disease: Applications of Design Heuristics and Formative Usability Testing with Young Participants. In Proceedings of the Human Factors and Ergonomics Society Annual Meeting (Vol. 66, No. 1, pp. 18-22). Sage CA: Los Angeles, CA: SAGE Publications.
Lowndes, B. and Boswell, E. (2022). Human Factors and Ergonomics Opportunities for Nursing Workflow, report issued by the University of Nebraska Medical Center (in private circulation).
Boswell, E. (2022) “We’re Black, too”: A grounded theory of African students’ intersectional experiences of race at predominantly White institutions in Nebraska [Doctoral dissertation, University of Nebraska-Lincoln]. https://digitalcommons.unl.edu/dissertations/AAI29165906
Boswell, E. (2021). Again awake: A White researcher’s iterative positioning for entering Black spaces. The Nebraska Educator, 6(1). https://doi.org/10.32873/unl.dc.ne020
Selected Presentations
Leveraging CAQDAS Numbers to Ground a Theory. International Grounded Theory Alliance annual conference, September 2022.
Constructing Compatibility among Race, Reflexivity, and Grounded Theory: A Critical Methodological Analysis of Questionable Theory-Method Combinations. American Educational Research Association, SIG 025. Co-authored as Boswell, E. and Babchuk, W.A., April 2022.
Demystifying Grounded Theory Coding (invited workshop) with W.A. Babchuk. Ethnographic and Qualitative Research Conference, March 2022.
Interviews Are Data: Why I Transcribe into Excel and What This Means for NVivo Coding. NVivo Software conference, QSR International, https://youtu.be/b4poiM4RvKA, September 2021.
Practical Strategies for Designing and Conducting Grounded Theory Dissertations: Student and Faculty Perspectives. International Congress of Qualitative Inquiry. Co-presented as Boswell, E. and Babchuk, W.A., May 2021.
Member Check Interviews in Qualitative Research: Ethics, Procedures, and Practices. International Congress of Qualitative Inquiry. Co-presented as Boswell, E. and Perez, A., May 2021.
Positionality and Reflexivity in Mixed Methods Education Research: A Systematic Methodological Review. Presentation to the Division D (Measurement & Research Methodologies) Graduate Student InProgress Research Gala (finalist presentation), American Educational Research Association, April 2021.
The Qualitative Imperative: Searching for Positionality and Reflexivity in Mixed Methods-Grounded Theory Studies. American Educational Research Association SIG 158, April 2021.
Read Me First: Points of Entry to the Vast and Varied Literature on Social Capital. American Educational Research Association SIG 112, April 2021.
Considerations for Planning and Executing a Mixed Methods Dissertation: Wisdom from Current and Recent Doctoral Students (convenor and facilitator). Mixed Methods International Research Association, March 2021.
Getting Writing DONE: Developing a “Writing System” and Committing to It. 34th Women in Educational Leadership Conference, University of Nebraska-Lincoln, October 2020.
Leveraging Your Leadership Capital: An Intentional Networking Exercise. 33rd Women in Educational Leadership Conference, University of Nebraska-Lincoln, October 2019.
Leadership is a Disposition (Not a Position). 32nd Women in Educational Leadership Conference, University of Nebraska-Lincoln, October 2018.
Panel participant, Doctoral Research Strategy: Presentations to the Sybouts Student Research Seminar. Department of Educational Administration, University of Nebraska-Lincoln, June 2018.
Learning from Alums: Design Implications of Graduates’ Feedback. National Convening of the Carnegie Project on the Education Doctorate. Co-authored as Hamann, E.T., Boswell, E., and Trainin, G., June 2018.
Something Personal
Eileen’s favorite books are Black Swan Green by David Mitchell, The Omnivore’s Dilemma by Michael Pollan, and Sapiens by Yuval Noah Harari.
Additional Information
STEPs History
Eileen Boswell (she/they) joined STEPs in 2022 to bring qualitative and mixed methods research skills to the Drug Overdose Prevention project, a collaboration with the Nebraska Department of Health and Human Services.Education
After two decades crisscrossing non-profit and university settings, Eileen earned a graduate certificate in Mixed Methods Research and a doctorate in education from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln. While a graduate student, Eileen taught educational ethics to undergraduates, qualitative research design to graduate students, and assisted with applied research and evaluation projects at the University of Nebraska Medical Center and the Buffett Early Childhood Institute. Previously, Eileen had earned a Master of Arts degree from the University of Iowa and a Master of Science degree from the Catholic University of America.
Professional Background
Eileen has served in teaching, training, and research capacities for organizations in Illinois, Iowa, Nebraska, Colorado, and Washington, DC. She first worked at UNO as an instructor in the International Professional Development program from 2015-2017.
Selected Publications
Boswell, E. and Babchuk, W.A. (2023). Philosophical and theoretical underpinnings of qualitative research: Introduction to the philosophical and theoretical underpinnings of qualitative research. For R. Tierney, F. Rizvi, K. Ercikan, & G. Smith (Eds). International Encyclopedia of Education Volume 4. Elsevier LTD: Oxford. https://doi.org/10.1016/B978-0-12-818630-5.11001-2
Babchuk, W.A. and Boswell, E. (2023). Qualitative research approaches and designs: Grounded theory. For R. Tierney, F. Rizvi, K. Ercikan, & G. Smith (Eds). International Encyclopedia of Education Volume 4. Elsevier LTD: Oxford. https://doi.org/10.1016/B978-0-12-818630-5.11013-9
Algahimi, N., Boswell, E., & Lowndes, B. R. (2022, September). Initial Steps to Assemble a Home Monitoring Kit Prototype for Parkinson’s Disease: Applications of Design Heuristics and Formative Usability Testing with Young Participants. In Proceedings of the Human Factors and Ergonomics Society Annual Meeting (Vol. 66, No. 1, pp. 18-22). Sage CA: Los Angeles, CA: SAGE Publications.
Lowndes, B. and Boswell, E. (2022). Human Factors and Ergonomics Opportunities for Nursing Workflow, report issued by the University of Nebraska Medical Center (in private circulation).
Boswell, E. (2022) “We’re Black, too”: A grounded theory of African students’ intersectional experiences of race at predominantly White institutions in Nebraska [Doctoral dissertation, University of Nebraska-Lincoln]. https://digitalcommons.unl.edu/dissertations/AAI29165906
Boswell, E. (2021). Again awake: A White researcher’s iterative positioning for entering Black spaces. The Nebraska Educator, 6(1). https://doi.org/10.32873/unl.dc.ne020
Selected Presentations
Leveraging CAQDAS Numbers to Ground a Theory. International Grounded Theory Alliance annual conference, September 2022.
Constructing Compatibility among Race, Reflexivity, and Grounded Theory: A Critical Methodological Analysis of Questionable Theory-Method Combinations. American Educational Research Association, SIG 025. Co-authored as Boswell, E. and Babchuk, W.A., April 2022.
Demystifying Grounded Theory Coding (invited workshop) with W.A. Babchuk. Ethnographic and Qualitative Research Conference, March 2022.
Interviews Are Data: Why I Transcribe into Excel and What This Means for NVivo Coding. NVivo Software conference, QSR International, https://youtu.be/b4poiM4RvKA, September 2021.
Practical Strategies for Designing and Conducting Grounded Theory Dissertations: Student and Faculty Perspectives. International Congress of Qualitative Inquiry. Co-presented as Boswell, E. and Babchuk, W.A., May 2021.
Member Check Interviews in Qualitative Research: Ethics, Procedures, and Practices. International Congress of Qualitative Inquiry. Co-presented as Boswell, E. and Perez, A., May 2021.
Positionality and Reflexivity in Mixed Methods Education Research: A Systematic Methodological Review. Presentation to the Division D (Measurement & Research Methodologies) Graduate Student InProgress Research Gala (finalist presentation), American Educational Research Association, April 2021.
The Qualitative Imperative: Searching for Positionality and Reflexivity in Mixed Methods-Grounded Theory Studies. American Educational Research Association SIG 158, April 2021.
Read Me First: Points of Entry to the Vast and Varied Literature on Social Capital. American Educational Research Association SIG 112, April 2021.
Considerations for Planning and Executing a Mixed Methods Dissertation: Wisdom from Current and Recent Doctoral Students (convenor and facilitator). Mixed Methods International Research Association, March 2021.
Getting Writing DONE: Developing a “Writing System” and Committing to It. 34th Women in Educational Leadership Conference, University of Nebraska-Lincoln, October 2020.
Leveraging Your Leadership Capital: An Intentional Networking Exercise. 33rd Women in Educational Leadership Conference, University of Nebraska-Lincoln, October 2019.
Leadership is a Disposition (Not a Position). 32nd Women in Educational Leadership Conference, University of Nebraska-Lincoln, October 2018.
Panel participant, Doctoral Research Strategy: Presentations to the Sybouts Student Research Seminar. Department of Educational Administration, University of Nebraska-Lincoln, June 2018.
Learning from Alums: Design Implications of Graduates’ Feedback. National Convening of the Carnegie Project on the Education Doctorate. Co-authored as Hamann, E.T., Boswell, E., and Trainin, G., June 2018.
Something Personal
Eileen’s favorite books are Black Swan Green by David Mitchell, The Omnivore’s Dilemma by Michael Pollan, and Sapiens by Yuval Noah Harari.