Featured grants
- Martinez, Melissa A (Principal). Increasing college readiness and creating a college going culture: A case study of successful Texas high schools that predominantly serve low-income students and students of color, Greater Texas Foundation, State, $90000. (Submitted: January 1, 2013, Funded: December 2016). Grant.
- Martinez, Melissa A (Principal). University starts at home: A pilot program to help parents guide their children to college, Texas State University - College of Education Faculty Pilot Research Grant, Institutional (Higher Ed), $5000. (Funded: 2013). Grant.
- Miller, Trey (Principal), Andrews, Rodney (Co-Principal), Kosiewicz, Holly (Co-Principal), Martinez, Melissa A (Co-Principal). Part-time college students in Texas: Characterizing enrollment patterns, understanding the issues they face, and identifying promising approaches to promote their success, Greater Texas Foundation, Private / Foundation / Corporate, $295852.6. (Submitted: September 17, 2021, Funded: December 2021 - December 2023). Grant.
- Martinez, Melissa A. Latina educational administrators nationwide (LEAN)., Research Enhancement Program. Texas State University, Texas State University, $6000. (Submitted: October 2016, Funded: January 2017 - May 2018). Grant.
Featured scholarly/creative works
- Buchanan, M., Martinez, M. A., & Pena, R. M. (2025). Mean girls in educational leadership: Overcoming incivility among women. In Incivility and Workplace Toxicity in P-12 Schools: The Causes, Costs, and Solutions for Educational Leaders. Routledge.
- Martinez, M. A., Enyioha, J. C., Marquez, J. G., & Baker, A. M. (2024). “I get Emotional About it”: Teachers’ (Com)Passion in College-Going Efforts at Three Urban High Schools. Urban Education, 59(6), 1905–1934. https://doi.org/10.1177/00420859221089544
- Arar, K., Guajardo, M., Martinez, M. A., & Straubhaar, R. J. (Eds.). (2026). Transformative Praxis through Doctoral Educational Leadership Programs: A Blueprint for Fostering Resilient, Future-ready Leaders. Routledge. Retrieved from https://www.routledge.com/Transformative-Praxis-through-Doctoral-Educational-Leadership-Programs-A-Blueprint-for-Fostering-Resilient-Future-ready-Leaders/Arar-Guajardo-Martinez-Straubhaar/p/book/9781041128199
- Arar, K., Straubhaar, R. J., Martinez, M. A., Guajardo, M., Vigil, I. A. M., & Bryant, D. (2026). A global landscape of educational management and leadership in action (EMLA). In Transformative Praxis through Doctoral Educational Leadership Programs: A Blueprint for Fostering Resilient, Future-ready Leaders (pp. 1–25). Routledge. Retrieved from https://www.routledge.com/Transformative-Praxis-through-Doctoral-Educational-Leadership-Programs-A-Blueprint-for-Fostering-Resilient-Future-ready-Leaders/Arar-Guajardo-Martinez-Straubhaar/p/book/9781041128199
- Arar, K., Straubhaar, R. J., Guajardo, M., & Martinez, M. A. (2026). Beyond the case study: Leadership education in a changing world — Connecting micro context to the macro world. In Transformative Praxis through Doctoral Educational Leadership Programs: A Blueprint for Fostering Resilient, Future-ready Leaders (pp. 258–265). Routledge. Retrieved from https://www.routledge.com/Transformative-Praxis-through-Doctoral-Educational-Leadership-Programs-A-Blueprint-for-Fostering-Resilient-Future-ready-Leaders/Arar-Guajardo-Martinez-Straubhaar/p/book/9781041128199
Featured awards
- Award / Honor Recipient: Journal of Research on Leadership Education Best Article of the Year, University Council for Educational Administration. November 2018
- Award / Honor Recipient: 2025 Outstanding Mentorship Award, Conference of Southern Graduate Schools. 2025
- Award / Honor Recipient: College Achievement Awardee, College of Education Award for Excellence in Service, Texas State University. 2025
- Award / Honor Recipient: The Graduate College Outstanding Mentor Award 2024-2025, Texas State University. October 31, 2024 - 2025
- Award / Honor Recipient: Friends of JCEL Awardee, Journal of Cases in Educational Leadership. November 2024
Featured service activities
- Editorial Review Board Member
The Urban Review
- Editorial Review Board Member
Leadership & Policy in Schools
- Member
COERO Advisory Committee
- Graduate Advisor
Director of PhD in School Improvement Program
- Member
The Education Institute
- Member
HSI Community Council