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Molly Ott

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MLF Teachers College
Associate Professor
Faculty, TEMPE Campus, Mailcode 1811
Center for Organizational Research & Design (CORD)
Associate Professor
Faculty, TEMPE Campus, Mailcode 1811
Global Sport Institute Affiliated Faculty
Associate Professor
Faculty, TEMPE Campus, Mailcode 1811
Biography: 

Molly Ott is an associate professor in the Mary Lou Fulton Teachers College.  Her research, teaching, and service focus on higher and postsecondary education. She is a faculty affiliate with MLFTC's Center for Advanced Studies in Global Education, the Center for Organizational Research and Design, located in ASU's School of Public Affairs, and the Global Sports Institute. From Fall 2012 to Spring 2019, she coordinated ASU's higher and postsecondary education master's degree.  Under her leadership, ASU's program went from being unranked to recognized among the top 20 in the United States by U.S. News & World Report.

Dr. Ott earned her doctorate in higher education from the University of Michigan and also holds a master’s degree in educational policy and leadership from Marquette University as well as a bachelor’s of business administration degree from the University of Notre Dame. Prior to joining ASU, Dr. Ott was a lecturer in the higher education program at the University of Miami, and earlier in her career, she worked in residential life at Alverno College and DePauw University. 

Among other outlets, her scholarship has been published in Research in Higher Education, Review of Higher Education, and the Journal of Higher Education. Dr. Ott is a reviewer for the Journal of Higher Education, Research in Higher Education, American Educational Research Journal, and Educational Policy.  She is an associate editor for Educational Policy Analysis and Archives and was the 2015-17 program chair for AERA's Sports and Education SIG.

Education: 
  • Ph.D. Higher Education, University of Michigan 2011
  • M. Ed. Educational Policy and Leadership, Marquette University 2004
  • B.B.A. Finance and Computer Applications, University of Notre Dame 2000
Google Scholar: 
Google Scholar Profile
Research Interests: 

My research considers administrative, leadership, and organizational issues confronting colleges and universities. Currently, I am pursuing two lines of inquiry:

  1. Workplace experiences and careers of faculty and administrators in the postsecondary context, with a particular focus on a) why recruiting and retaining talented and diverse professionals is critical for institutional success, and b) ways that the colleges and universities can better support, and create equitable conditions for, their workforces.    
  2.  Higher education and the public good.  Over the past several decades, the tradition of direct public investment in educational institutions has declined, and I am interested in a) what is the public role of colleges and universities going forward, especially how is the definition of “public good” changing and b) how can higher education be a conduit to work with communities to address the major challenges confronting the public now & in the future.
Publications: 
  • Ott, M., Bozeman, B. and Taggart, G. (2018). Risks and rewards of playing college football: Who would accept a scholarship knowing the chances of physical harm?  Social Science Quarterly.
  • Ott, M. and Dippold, L. (2018). Part-time faculty involvement in decision-making. Community College Journal of Research & Practice, 42(6), 452-455.
  • Fischman, G. and Ott, M.  (2018). Access, equity and quality trends in Latin America’s public universities.  International Journal of Educational Development, 58(1), 86-94.
  • Ott, M. and Dippold, L. (2018). Adjunct employment preference: Who wants to be full-time faculty? Community College Journal of Research & Practice, 42(3), 190-203. 
  • Ott, M. and Cisneros, J.  (2015). Understanding the changing faculty workforce in higher education: A comparison of full-time non-tenure track and tenure line experiences. Education Policy Analysis Archives, 23 (95) http://dx.doi.org/10.14507/epaa.v23.1934.
  • Ott, M. and Bates, E. (2015). Leadership in intercollegiate athletics.  In E. Comeaux (Ed.), Introduction to Intercollegiate Athletics in American Higher Education. Baltimore, MD:Johns Hopkins University Press.
  • Ott, M.(2015). Models of athlete development.  In M. Dodds and J. Reeves (Eds.), Sports Leadership: A Reference Guide. Santa Barbara, CA:Mission Bell Media.
  • Ott, M.  (2015). Alumni networks. In F. Wherry (Ed.), The SAGE Encyclopedia of Economics and Society (Volume 1). Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage.
  • Lawrence, J., Celis, S. and Ott, M. (2014). Is the tenure process fair? What faculty think. Journal of Higher Education, 85(2), 155-192. 
  • Ott, M., Baca, E., Cisneros, J., and Bates, E. (2014). A competency-based approach to the master’s degree preparation of higher education professionals. Journal of Case Studies in Accreditation and Assessment, 4, 1-19.   
  • Lawrence, J. and Ott, M. (2013). Organizational politics and university faculty. Review of Higher Education, 36(2), 145-178. 
  • Lawrence, J., Ott, M. and Bell, A. (2012). Faculty organizational commitment and citizenship. Research in Higher Education, 53(3), 325-352.
  • Ott, M. (2011). Faculty satisfaction with intercollegiate athletics. Journal of Issues in Intercollegiate Athletics, 4, 370-395.
  • DesJardins, S., McCall, B., Ott, M. and Kim, J. (2010). A quasi-experimental investigation of how the Gates Millennium Scholars program is related to college students’ time use and activities.  Educational Evaluation & Policy Analysis, 32(4), 456-475.
  • Lawrence, J., Ott, M., and Hendricks, L. (2009). Athletics reform and faculty perceptions.  New Directions in Higher Education, 148, 73-81.
  • Finelli, C., Ott, M., Gottfried, A., Hershock, C. and O’Neal, C. (2008). Improving the teaching performance of engineering faculty: The impact of consultations based upon different kinds of data.  Journal of Engineering Education, 97(4), 397-411.
  • Burkard, A., Cole, D., Ott, M. and Stoflet, T. (2005).  Entry-level competencies of new student affairs professionals: A Delphi study.  NASPA Journal, 42(3), 283-309.
Fall 2020
Course NumberCourse Title
EPA 792Research
EPA 799Dissertation
Spring 2020
Course NumberCourse Title
HED 573Applied Inquiry in Higher Ed
TEL 790Reading and Conference
EPA 792Research
Fall 2019
Course NumberCourse Title
HED 590Reading and Conference
HED 688Organizational Theory
EPA 792Research
EPA 799Dissertation
Spring 2019
Course NumberCourse Title
TEL 780Practicum
TEL 790Reading and Conference
TEL 791Seminar
EPA 792Research
TEL 799Dissertation
Fall 2018
Course NumberCourse Title
HED 590Reading and Conference
HED 598Special Topics
TEL 780Practicum
TEL 791Seminar
EPA 792Research
TEL 799Dissertation
EPA 799Dissertation
Summer 2018
Course NumberCourse Title
TEL 780Practicum
TEL 791Seminar
Spring 2018
Course NumberCourse Title
HED 573Applied Inquiry in Higher Ed
TEL 780Practicum
TEL 790Reading and Conference
TEL 791Seminar
TEL 792Research
EPA 792Research
Fall 2017
Course NumberCourse Title
HED 590Reading and Conference
HED 598Special Topics
TEL 792Research
EPA 792Research
Spring 2017
Course NumberCourse Title
HED 573Applied Inquiry in Higher Ed
TEL 790Reading and Conference
Fall 2016
Course NumberCourse Title
HED 573Applied Inquiry in Higher Ed
HED 590Reading and Conference
HED 598Special Topics
Spring 2016
Course NumberCourse Title
HED 573Applied Inquiry in Higher Ed
HED 593Applied Project
TEL 790Reading and Conference
Expertise Areas: 
Higher and Postsecondary Education
Quantitative Analysis
Organizational Leadership
Community Sports
Organizational Behavior