Madison Kellenberger

Profile

Madison Kellenberger is an Assistant Professor of Literacy Education in the Department of Curriculum & Instruction. Her research broadly focuses on how children develop word-reading and spelling abilities, with a particular interest in how targeted instruction can accelerate learning for students at risk for or identified with dyslexia. Prior to her doctoral studies, she was an elementary special and general education teacher in Florida public schools.

Dr. Kellenberger’s research centers on three interconnected strands examining the processes underlying the development of written language skills. These strands include: (1) investigating child- and item-level factors that predict individual differences in word reading and spelling abilities; (2) designing theory-driven interventions for children at risk for or diagnosed with reading disabilities; and (3) examining conditions that support the implementation and sustainability of effective interventions across diverse school contexts. Her current work uses quantitative methods to examine these mechanisms and inform intervention design. Dr. Kellenberger’s scholarship is grounded in a commitment to establishing and maintaining research-practice partnerships, supporting her overarching goal of serving schools and students with the most significant needs in reading.

Education

Ph.D. in Curriculum & Instruction (Special Education), Florida State University
M.Ed. in Special Education, University of Florida
B.A.E. in Elementary Education, University of Florida

Activities and Honors

Researcher-in-Residence, Florida A&M University Developmental Research School and Florida A&M University Research-Practice Partnership (2025–2026)

Office of Special Education Programs (OSEP) Interdisciplinary Training Fellow, Florida Center for Reading Research (2022–2026)

Selected Publications

Steacy, L. M., Kellenberger, M. G., Dozier, J., & Compton, D. L. (2025). Exploring theoretically relevant word reading instructional elements: Moving beyond component training toward building strong lexical representations in children with dyslexia. Mind, Brain and Education. https://doi.org/10.1111/mbe.70022

Kellenberger, M. G., Steacy, L. M., Cooper Borkenhagen, M. J., Dozier, J., & Compton, D. L. (2024). Modeling item-level variance of polysyllabic word reading in developing readers: Exploring semantically related child, word, and child-by-word predictors. Journal of Experimental Child Psychology, 246, 105998. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jecp.2024.105998

Steacy, L. M., Kellenberger, M. G., Dozier, J. D., Marencin, N. & Compton, D. L. (2023). Word reading instruction in the late elementary grades. International Literacy Association Literacy Today, 41(2), 22–24.