Pin-Hsuan Tseng, a doctoral candidate in the Penn State College of Arts and Architecture's art education program, has received the 2026 United States Society for Education through Art (USSEA) Award for Outstanding Student Dissertation.
The award is presented to a student whose creative project, thesis or dissertation, reflects the mission of USSEA: to foster teamwork, collaboration and communication among diverse constituencies in order to achieve greater understanding of the social and cultural aspects of the arts and visual culture in education. The recognized work should promote pluralistic perspectives, deepen human and cultural understanding, and/or build respect for diverse learners.
Tseng's dissertation, "Transnational Tent/Tensions: Feminist Tenting Art Pedagogy with Immigrant Women in the United States from East Asia," develops a participatory arts-based methodology that centers a mobile yellow tent as a transnational feminist space for what she refers to as "storytenting."
Through collaborative artmaking and story sharing that take place within the yellow tent, the project highlights how participants negotiate identity, belonging and resistance within and beyond national boundaries, Tseng explained.
The yellow tent, which began as a personal refuge for Tseng, has expanded into a shared space where Tseng invites participants to make art and to articulate their transnational tensions.
"I am honored to be the recipient of the USSEA award, which affirms the value of arts-based, feminist and community-engaged research, especially work that centers immigrant women's voices and lived experiences," Tseng said.
The dissertation also extends into a digital platform, tentart.org, which Tseng said serves as a form of public instruction to amplify underrepresented narratives and make visible the complexities of transnational women's lives.
"The recognition resonates deeply with my own journey as a Penn State international Ph.D. student navigating multiple difficulties," Tseng said. "The dissertation carries both vulnerability and strength, and this award honors not only my work but also the courage and generosity of the women who shared their vulnerable but powerful stories with me."
Karen Keifer-Boyd, professor of art education and of women's, gender, and sexuality studies, is Tseng's doctoral adviser. Keifer-Boyd said Tseng's dissertation importantly examines both the tension and porousness between private and public life.
"Her tent art pedagogy unpacks East Asian immigrant women's experiences of (un)belonging, daily discrimination, and persistent stereotypes and builds transnational feminist communities," Keifer-Boyd said.
Tseng plans to graduate this summer and to continue her work as a researcher, artist and educator, while bringing the project to different states and countries and engaging diverse communities across borders.
