Deanne K. Unruh, Ph.D.
Deanne K. Unruh, Ph.D., Senior Research Associate, Secondary Special
Education & Transition (SSET), 204 Clinical Services Building, 5260 University
of Oregon, Eugene, Oregon 97403.
In addition to her work at the SSET, Dr. Unruh is Director of the Post-School Outcome Center
at the University of Oregon (UO), with research
expertise in high-risk adolescents involved in the juvenile justice system.
She has received $6.1 million in research, model demonstration, and personnel
preparation funding from the U.S. Department of Justice, Office
of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention; the U.S. Department
of Education, Office of Special Education Programs; and the Institute
of Educational Sciences.
Dr. Unruh’s research interests include 1) developing facility-to-community
transition programming for adolescents involved in the juvenile
justice system, 2) improving employability social skills for highrisk
adolescents, and 3) developing employment-ready measures for
adolescents with disabilities. Dr. Unruh contributes to the doctoral
training in transition and research methods in the College of Education.
She teaches the Program Evaluation doctoral research methods sequence
within the UO College of Education. Prior to coming to UO, she
was a teacher and administrator in alternative education schools for
high-risk youth in urban settings for more than 12 years. During this
tenure, Dr. Unruh was a certified trainer for the National Diffusion Network
and trained state, district, and school staff nationwide on effective
instructional strategies for working with at-risk youth.
When Dr. Unruh is not at work, her interests include acting on and
advocating for food sustainability and equity. She is an avid gardener
and grows most of the vegetables and fruits she eats year-round. Dr.
Unruh also serves on the board of her local food bank, which distributes
food, operates dining rooms for the homeless, educates individuals in
food self-sufficiency, and supports community gardening to disseminate
fresh, organic food to those in need within her county.