Dr. Irby's primary research interests center on issues of social responsibility for womens' issues, bilingual and English as- a-second-language education, administrative structures, curriculum, and instructional strategies. Additionally, Dr. Irby is an expert in theory development and published the first theory published in the 21st Century in a peer-reviewed journal that is inclusive of women's voices. She has championed women's leadership issues via her commitment of her own time for those universities and individuals who cannot afford journals, not pay for their work to be published in journals that are open access. She has accomplished this via the Advancing Women in Leadership Journal, a journal now co-supported/sponsored by the AERA Research on Women and Education SIG and the International Council of Professors of Educational Leadership. Dr. Irby has been a mentor to 100s of women teachers, leaders, and masters and doctoral students and has expertise in this area as she continues to serve the Mentoring and Tutoring: Pathways to Learning Journal as Editor Emerita. She also serves as the Research on Women in Education SIG's Book Series. Dr. Irby was awarded the AERA Research on Women in Education SIG's Willystine Goodsell Award, and she was awarded the International Council of Professors of Educational Leadership Living Legend in 2015.