Before joining the Cal U faculty, Dr. Armitage worked for about 10 years as a public school teacher in various school districts in New York and Pennsylvania. She then worked as a reading specialist for an additional three years before assuming a position in administration. She concluded her work in public school districts by serving for nine years as an elementary school principal.

As a faculty member, she supervises student teachers and teaches graduate courses in the reading specialist program, which she coordinates. She also coordinates the Summer Urban Field Experience, which takes place in Pittsburgh and Philadelphia.

Dr. Armitage is active in professional organizations and currently serves as secretary to the Pennsylvania Teachers of Reading Educators, a subgroup of the Keystone State Reading Association. She is a member of the International Reading Association and its local branch, Keystone Corners, the National Council for Exceptional Children, and the National Association Early Childhood Educators.

She continues to study language and literacy. Her current research involves the improvement of comprehension in adolescent struggling readers. She and her colleagues have presented their research at professional conferences and have submitted articles to professional journals. She and her colleagues also continue to pursue grants to develop web-based reading support for content area reading.