Desire Tossoukpe

Hailing from Togo (West Africa), Desire Baba Tossoukpe is a doctoral student in the Educational Psychology program. As a recipient of the Fulbright Scholarship in 2022, he earned an M.A in Teaching English as a Second Language from the University of Arizona in 2024. Desire has taught English to learners of various backgrounds and ages from K-12 students in Togo to adults at Literacy Connects in Tucson, Arizona. Additionally, his volunteer work includes teaching holistic development courses to children at Compassion International Togo. Desire's research interests focus on three primary areas: 1) analyzing how program evaluation findings shape educational policy and practice at the local, national, and international levels; 2) investigating how early academic specialization influences identity formation and career decision-making; and 3) examining the impact of adult literacy and parenting styles on student academic success. He looks forward to continuing his work at the Center for Educational Assessment, Research, and Evaluation (CEARE) in the College of Education. Beyond academics, Desire enjoys songwriting, traveling, and geopolitics.