About

Ani N. Shabazian Ed. M., Ph.D.

School of Education, Professor Children’s Center, Director – Loyola Marymount University

Born and bred in Southern California, Ani attended UCLA for her undergraduate studies receiving her B.A. degrees in History and Psychology and her minor in Applied Developmental Psychology.   She continued her studies in Human Development and Psychology at Harvard University attaining her first Masters degree.  Following this program, Ani returned to UCLA to obtain a Masters and then PhD in Urban Schooling, thus solidifying her scholarly knowledge in practice, theory, and education. From early on, Ani worked at marrying these different parts of academia—she served on faculty but always maintained her connection to practice by either serving in a volunteer capacity or professionally.  This ensured Ani could both teach future educators, yet still contribute directly to elevating the quality of care for young children.  Additionally, Ani has trained internationally in orphanages in Budapest, Hungary, and early childhood centers in Reggio Emilia, Italy.   After serving as a faculty member in the Applied Developmental Psychology Department at UCLA and simultaneously serving as the Executive Director of the UCLA Infant Development Program, Ani accepted a newly created position at Loyola Marymount University (LMU).   Continuing to bridge research and practice, Ani’s dual appointment at LMU includes serving as a tenured Professor at LMU’s School of Education focusing in Early Childhood Education as well as serving as the Director of the LMU Children’s Center, an on-campus laboratory school.   

She has also shared her research and expertise with fellow educators, researchers, and administrators through numerous trainings, national and international conference presentations, and various peer-reviewed journal publications as well as authored three books and co-authored the development of an international orphanage assessment took that is currently being validated as an international research tool and developed into an APP by Duke University.  Further, Ani has traveled extensively through her work with Whole Child International (an international NGO founded by Countess Karen Spencer based in the UK), which involves developing high-quality training programs for those working with vulnerable children residing in limited resource countries and helping to assess and establish country specific regulations for orphanages globally. Ani serves on several educational boards as well as was elected to serve on the Board of Directors of Child360 (formerly Los Angeles Universal Preschool), a non-profit dedicated to improving the quality of early learning, continuing her commitment to education and the support of youth within and outside the academic community.