Dr. Rocco is a Professor of Adult Education and Human Resource Development in the Department of Educational Policy Studies, Florida International University, USA. Dr. Rocco graduated from The Ohio State University with a Ph.D. in Adult Education & Human Resource Development. She is Editor-in-Chief of New Horizons in Adult Education and Human Resource Development, serves on a dozen editorial boards and is a founding board member for the Journal of Mixed Methods Research; Dialogues in Social Justice: An Adult Education Journal; Journal of Global Education and Research; New Directions in Adult and Continuing Education; and Nursing & Health Sciences Research Journal. She served as the director of the Office of Academic Writing and Publication Support, College of Education. She is a 2024-2026 Ewha Global Fellow, Ewha Womans University, Korea, one of only twenty-five Houle Scholars from the U.S., a member of the 2016 class of the International Adult and Continuing Education Hall of Fame, 2016 Outstanding HRD Scholar and recipient of more than 35 awards for scholarship, mentoring, and service. Dr. Rocco has published 14 books including The Routledge Handbook of LGBTQ Identity in Organizations and Society (2024; with Gedro) She has co-edited five special issues (transgender experiences in organizations; health and wellness concerns of racial, ethnic, and sexual minorities; sexual minority issues in HRD; critical perspectives and HRD; adults with disabilities and work). She has over 300 publications in journals, books, and proceedings on continuing professional education, equity and privilege (specifically in terms of race/critical race theory, sexual minorities/LGBT, disability, and age), employability/career development, fostering student research and professional writing, and qualitative methods. Twenty-three articles, chapters, and conference papers have won awards. Many of these publications are with students and beginning scholars. Dr. Rocco has received the FIU TOP Scholars recognition twice (Notable Awards/Honors; Award Winning Publications), CASE Award for research twice, the University Excellence in Mentorship Award, and the LGBTQA Faculty Member of the Year Award. She participates in the AHRD Faculty Mentoring Partner program, served as a Panther Life Mentor, a mentor with Educate Tomorrow, and the LGBTQ Mentoring program. She is still in contact with her mentees through these programs and also mentors informally (not through a program) scholars and scholar practitioners nationally and internationally.