Her research focuses on historical and contemporary challenges of equity and treatment in American higher education. She has presented her work at major conferences, including the American Educational Research Association and the Critical Race Studies in Education Association. Dr. Cobb-Roberts’ publications include multiple book chapters and articles in the History of Education Quarterly, American Educational Research Journal, NASPA Journal about Women in Higher Education, amongst others. She was a recipient of the McKnight Faculty Fellowship (2003) and the Distinguished Alumni Award-University of Illinois (2011).