Dr. Dean Cantù currently serves as Dean of the College of Health, Education, and Human Sciences at the University of Arkansas – Fort Smith. He holds a PhD in Curriculum and Instruction from Southern Illinois University, as well as an EdS in Community College Education, MA in History, and BS in Social Science Education from Arkansas State University. He has also attended educational leadership institutes at the College of William & Mary and Yale University.
​
Dr. Cantù has over 30 years of experience in education, both as a high school teacher and university professor and administrator. Professor Cantù is also the author of numerous research articles, book chapters, and books on history/social studies education and technology integration in K-12 education. In addition to serving as the educational curriculum writer for a national African American history K-12 curriculum, Virtual Learning Social Studies, Dr. Cantù has also served as a curriculum writer for a Sac and Fox Nation history curriculum unit sponsored by the Chicago Blackhawks. Professor Cantù has also served as a curriculum writer for The History Channel and The Wall Street Journal Classroom Edition, as well as the editor of The International Journal of Social Education, for nearly a decade.
​
Dr. Cantù has also been quoted in articles published in HuffPost, Univision, and the U.S. News & World Report, as well interviewed by NPR Illinois, Texas Public Radio, and local ABC, NBC, CBS, and PBS television news affiliates on topics relative to history/social studies education and teacher education. Finally, Dr. Cantù has served in a variety of leadership positions including as the former Executive Director of the Illinois Council for the Social Studies and President of the American Association for History and Computing, and currently serves as a member of the Governing Board of the National Social Science Association.