Marcia Shirilla holds a Master’s degree in Leisure Studies from Penn State and a Bachelor’s degree in Forestry from Virginia Tech. She has 17 years of experience working in the recreation industry including summer camp and after-school programming, health and wellness programming, and facility management. She also taught as an adjunct instructor at North Carolina Central University’s Department of Physical Education and Recreation. Her research interests include investigating how children perceive learning and play, how children learn through play, and how physical activity is related to the development of executive function.
Education
- B.S. in Forestry, Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University, Blacksburg, VA
- M.S. in Leisure Studies, Pennsylvania State University, PA
Selected Professional Experience
- Research Assistant, School of Education, University of Delaware (2015-present)
- Associate Executive Director, YMCA of the Brandywine Valley, Jennersville YMCA (2013–2014)
- Recreation and Aquatics Supervisor, City of Durham Parks and Recreation Department (2009–2012)
- Recreation Assistant Supervisor, City of Durham Parks and Recreation Department (2007–2009)
- Recreation Specialist, City of Durham Parks and Recreation Department (2006–2007)
- Ropes Course Facilitator, Town of Cary Parks, Recreation, and Cultural Resources (2006–2012)
Honors and Awards
- University of Delaware Woman of Promise, March 2017
- University of Delaware Steele Symposium, 2nd place research poster, April 2017
- National Swimming Pool Foundation Board Fellowship Award, 2017
Selected Publications
- Dore, R. A., Sawyer, J., Schlesinger, M.A., Shirilla, M., Golinkoff, R., & Hirsh-Pasek, K. (2018). Playful learning: A way to maximize after school time. AfterSchool Today, 9(1), 14-15.
- Dore, R. A., Shirilla, M., Verdine, B. N., Zimmermann, L., Golinkoff, R. M., & Hirsh-Pasek, K. (2018). Developer meets developmentalist: Improving industry-research partnerships in children’s technology. Journal of Children and Media, 12(2), 227-235.
Selected Presentations
- Shirilla, M & Dore, R.A. (2018, April). Navigating a digital world: Supporting young children’s learning from educational media. The 6th Annual Chester County Single Mothers’ Conference, West Chester, PA.
- Shirilla, M. (2018, April). Is it play? Is it learning? A mixed-methods, cross-cultural study of children’s and mothers’ perceptions. The Play Coalition 2018 Conference on the Value of Play: The Many Faces of Play, Clemson, SC.
- Shirilla, M., Dore, R. A., Hopkins, E., Toub, T.S., Collins, M. F., Schatz, J., Scott, M., Lawson, J., Hadley, E.B., Dickinson, D., Hirsh-Pasek, K., and Golinkoff, R.M. (2017, October). Self-Regulation and General Vocabulary Knowledge in a Guided Play Intervention. Biennial Meeting of the Cognitive Development Society: Portland, OR.
- Dore, R. A., Shirilla, M., Saunders, T., Foster, L., Hopkins, E., Toub, T.S., Collins, M. F., Schatz, J., Scott, M., Lawson, J., Hadley, E.B., Golinkoff, R.M., Hirsh-Pasek, K., and Dickinson, D. (2017, October). Time to go on a space adventure! Using digital games to support early vocabulary learning. Biennial Meeting of the Cognitive Development Society: Portland, OR.
- Walpole, S., Strong, J., Pasquarella, A., Coker, D., & Shirilla, M. (2017, November). The relationship of fluency and comprehension to persuasive writing quality. Talk accepted for presentation at the Literacy Research Association Conference: Tampa, FL.