Dr. Unal is a Professor in the College of Education at the University of South Florida. During his time at USF, he has taught undergraduate and graduate courses in standards-based education, classroom management, and technology and data. He received the College Teaching Excellence Award in 2010. He currently serves as a certified Quality Matter course reviewer, evaluating online university courses. His research focuses on the assessment and accreditation of teacher preparation programs, technology use in education, and classroom management strategies. He has presented at national and international conferences and published in leading education journals. His work has been recognized with multiple awards, including the 2021 AERA Distinguished Paper Award, 2020 EERA Best Professional Paper Award, 2019 AERA Distinguished Paper Award, 2018 GERA Best Paper Award, and 2004 TLC Best Paper Award. During his career at USF, he has developed various technology projects. He created the "FolioData" assessment system to collect and analyze data on applicant qualifications, candidate and graduate performance, and program operations (University of South Florida Patent & Copyright Office, 2005, Tech ID #14B166). He also developed a web-based application that provides demographic data on schools and school districts across the United States. This tool is publicly available and used for research purposes. Dr. Unal serves as a program reviewer for teacher education programs across the United States (CAEP) and in Florida (FLDOE).