2020 outstanding dissertation awardees
PHILLIP A. SMITH
TEACHERS COLLEGE, COLUMBIA UNIVERSITY
AWARDEE
Dissertation title: Leading While Black and Male: A Phenomenology of Black Male School Leadership
Smith's research interests include education leadership and policy studies, critical race theory (CRT) and humanizing research approaches, Black male principals, Black educational leadership, and African-centered approaches to school leadership. His dissertation, as well as his research agenda more broadly, is framed by the following two research questions: 1. What experiences inform the leadership philosophies of Black male principals and heads of school regarding leadership and Black education? 2. What experiences do Black male principals and heads of school encounter related to the principalship? Study findings described the essence of what it means to lead “while Black and male” through the lived experiences and perspectives of Black male leaders representing a range of leadership contexts and length of service. These included the following four co-constructed themes of Black male leadership: (a) Growing up as a Black Boy; (b) Leadership as Ministry; (c) When a Black Man is in the Principal’s Office; and (d) Safeguarding the Village. These themes reflected shared phenomena among their experiences as Black male leaders in White-dominant educational systems and spaces. The study contributes to our understanding of educational leadership from the perspective of the Black male school leader, disrupting the normative and traditional educational leadership axiology with a theory of Black male school leadership.
On gratitude... "I would like to thank Division A for establishing the opportunity for graduate students/ emerging scholars to present their work through the Outstanding Dissertation Award process. In particular, I would like to thank Dr. Melissa Martinez, Chair and other members of the Dissertation Award Committee for their review of all of the dissertation submissions, and for their service and commitment to the division and field. Immense thank you and appreciation to Dr. Sonya Douglass Horsford, Associate Professor of Education Leadership, Teachers College, Columbia University, my faculty advisor, dissertation sponsor, who nominated me for this award. I have benefited greatly from Professor Horsford’s mentoring and “frientoring,” which has been invaluable in helping me to think more critically on issues of race, Black education, leadership, policy, and practice. I would also like to acknowledge and say thank you to the other members of my dissertation committee, Professors Mark A. Gooden, Michelle Knight-Manuel, Ernest Morrell, and Kofi Lomotey."
On significance... "This award is a significant acknowledgment of the research, work and contribution to the field of education leadership. I consider this a shared award for members of my village, and community, both seen and unseen, who have covered me with love, support, encouragement, and guidance throughout my doctoral journey and dissertation work. My dissertation is dedicated in loving memory of my father, Alton Philemon Smith, and my brother, Trevor Alton Smith who both transitioned to rest during the period of my doctoral studies and dissertation. Both, in their individual ways epitomized what it means to be living while Black and male with dreams deferred and promises unrealized. I also dedicate this narrative and scholarly contribution on leading while Black and male to the foremost Black woman in my life, my mother, Hyacinth Eunice Smith. The Dissertation Award and recognition has significant meaning for me and those within my village community for it serves as a tangible acknowledgement that “I am because we are”. And so the award of one, is in fact the award of the many....The Division A community has played an important role throughout my doctoral journey. To be recipient of the Outstanding Dissertation Award in recognition of my research and work on Black male school leadership is a significant acknowledgment. I aim to continue exploring the intersection of race and gender in educational leadership, and development of a Black leadership epistemology—located in a theory of knowledge grounded in the social and historical context of the Black experience. This supports a move toward increased and improved understanding of the range of educational leadership paradigms, experiences, and practices that is reflective of leading while Black and male, and provides a significant contribution to educational leadership theory, research, and practice.
On advice... "Have a clear vision of your intended research focus • Use critical research approaches as a means to bring about impactful change through your research and scholarship Constantly seek opportunities for feedback, critique, and mentoring support to further refine your vision and research focus. Develop a robust and rigorous research methodological approach that is intentionally relevant to your line of inquiry, research problem, purpose, and research questions. Be fully invested in the communities that you engage with—research with as opposed to research on communities.
On self-care... "Staying connected with my church community. Turning off my video during zoom meetings, as needed, and remain fully engaged."
MOLLIE MCQUILLAN
UNIVERSITY OF WISCONSIN - MADISON
HONORABLE MENTION
Dissertation title: Beyond Bathrooms: The Educational Policies, Practices, and Health of Gender-Expansive Students
McQuillan's research takes a mixed-methods approach to examine the intersection of educational policy, social relationships, and health of LGBTQ+ students and educators. Her work describes local districts’ policy and procedural responses to state legislative mandates, the processes involved in shaping educators’ understanding of policies concerning gender-expansive students, the experiences of transgender K12 workers and students, and the physical health consequences of poor school climates.
On gratitude... "I'd like to thank my nominator, Jim Spillane, who has been influential in how I think about policy implementation and my overall development as a scholar. I appreciate you not holding all the Proseminar cat memes against me, Jim, and your always thoughtful, continued mentorship."
On significance... "So many people shared their talents, beliefs, time, and, in one study, blood, with me. This speaks to the generosity of educational leaders, my mentors, the LGBTQ community, my students, and my family. I appreciate the recognition of these collaborations."
On advice... "Some of the best advice I received was to reflect upon my own identity and experiences as I considered what unique insight I wanted to make. This is especially true if you don't see yourself reflected in the scholarship you are reading."
On self-care... "I've tried to take advantage of the beautiful nature preserves surrounding Madison, be as present as possible for my children, and removed the Twitter app from my phone."
UNIVERSITY OF WISCONSIN - MADISON
HONORABLE MENTION
Dissertation title: Beyond Bathrooms: The Educational Policies, Practices, and Health of Gender-Expansive Students
McQuillan's research takes a mixed-methods approach to examine the intersection of educational policy, social relationships, and health of LGBTQ+ students and educators. Her work describes local districts’ policy and procedural responses to state legislative mandates, the processes involved in shaping educators’ understanding of policies concerning gender-expansive students, the experiences of transgender K12 workers and students, and the physical health consequences of poor school climates.
On gratitude... "I'd like to thank my nominator, Jim Spillane, who has been influential in how I think about policy implementation and my overall development as a scholar. I appreciate you not holding all the Proseminar cat memes against me, Jim, and your always thoughtful, continued mentorship."
On significance... "So many people shared their talents, beliefs, time, and, in one study, blood, with me. This speaks to the generosity of educational leaders, my mentors, the LGBTQ community, my students, and my family. I appreciate the recognition of these collaborations."
On advice... "Some of the best advice I received was to reflect upon my own identity and experiences as I considered what unique insight I wanted to make. This is especially true if you don't see yourself reflected in the scholarship you are reading."
On self-care... "I've tried to take advantage of the beautiful nature preserves surrounding Madison, be as present as possible for my children, and removed the Twitter app from my phone."
SHANEÉ A. WASHINGTON
UNIVERSITY OF WASHINGTON
HONORABLE MENTION
Dissertation title: Family-School-Community (Dis)engagement: An Indigenous Community's Fight for Educational Equity and Cultural Reclamation in a New England School District
Washington's dissertation was an exploratory, qualitative case study of family-school-community dis/engagement in a small New England school district and town that is home to the Wampanoag people, a federally recognized Tribe that has inhabited the area for 12,000 years. This study explored the ways in which Wampanoag and other local Native parents and community leaders, as well as school and district teachers and administrators, were conceptualizing and practicing family-school-community engagement, and whether or not conceptualizations and practices were aligned and culturally sustaining/revitalizing (McCarty & Lee, 2014). This study was conducted using decolonizing and Indigenous protocols and methodologies that included relational accountability, individual semi-structured conversations, talking circles, and participant observation.
On gratitude... "Many thanks to Lauri Johnson, for being the best dissertation chair and mentor that an early career researcher could hope for. Thank you for nominating me for this award. Also, many thanks to the selection committee for taking the time to read my application and for honoring my work with this honorable mention!"
On significance... "I feel deep gratitude for this recognition and this opportunity to share this labor of love and contemporary example and context of Indigenous survivance and self-determination with a broader audience."
On advice... "I would not be the researcher that I am today without strong mentors, supportive peers, and personal commitments to cultivate and remain in good relations with the communities that have made and continue to make my research possible."
On self-care... "Hiking and long meditative walks in my neighborhood have been my sources of peace and care during this difficult year."
UNIVERSITY OF WASHINGTON
HONORABLE MENTION
Dissertation title: Family-School-Community (Dis)engagement: An Indigenous Community's Fight for Educational Equity and Cultural Reclamation in a New England School District
Washington's dissertation was an exploratory, qualitative case study of family-school-community dis/engagement in a small New England school district and town that is home to the Wampanoag people, a federally recognized Tribe that has inhabited the area for 12,000 years. This study explored the ways in which Wampanoag and other local Native parents and community leaders, as well as school and district teachers and administrators, were conceptualizing and practicing family-school-community engagement, and whether or not conceptualizations and practices were aligned and culturally sustaining/revitalizing (McCarty & Lee, 2014). This study was conducted using decolonizing and Indigenous protocols and methodologies that included relational accountability, individual semi-structured conversations, talking circles, and participant observation.
On gratitude... "Many thanks to Lauri Johnson, for being the best dissertation chair and mentor that an early career researcher could hope for. Thank you for nominating me for this award. Also, many thanks to the selection committee for taking the time to read my application and for honoring my work with this honorable mention!"
On significance... "I feel deep gratitude for this recognition and this opportunity to share this labor of love and contemporary example and context of Indigenous survivance and self-determination with a broader audience."
On advice... "I would not be the researcher that I am today without strong mentors, supportive peers, and personal commitments to cultivate and remain in good relations with the communities that have made and continue to make my research possible."
On self-care... "Hiking and long meditative walks in my neighborhood have been my sources of peace and care during this difficult year."
2019 outstanding dissertation awardees
JENNIFER NELSON
EMORY UNIVERSITY
AWARDEE
Dissertation title: Nonsymmetrical Effects of Racial Diversity on Organizational Minority Members: Evidence from the Teaching Profession
Currently an IES Postdoctoral Fellow in the Department of Leadership, Policy, and Organizations at Vanderbilt University, Jennifer recently received her PhD in Sociology from Emory University (Spring 2018). Prior to graduate school, Jennifer taught in a public, urban high school for three years. Her dissertation project is an ethnography of five high schools that incorporates mixed methods and contributes to the literature on the effects of leadership practices, demographic composition, and spatial arrangements in schools on teacher coworker support. Her work focuses on how these aspects of the organizational environment produce social inequality among teachers' working conditions. Her previous research examines urban teachers’ job reward bundles as predictors of turnover (published in Qualitative Sociology 2017); early childhood teachers’ identity strategies for safeguarding dignity at work (published in Research in the Sociology of Work 2016); and the role of organizational justice in predicting teacher trust (published in Work and Occupations 2019). At Vanderbilt, Jennifer is working with Jason Grissom on projects concerning gender pay gaps among principals and principal attitudes about their evaluation systems. More about her work can be found at http://jennifernelson.org.
EMORY UNIVERSITY
AWARDEE
Dissertation title: Nonsymmetrical Effects of Racial Diversity on Organizational Minority Members: Evidence from the Teaching Profession
Currently an IES Postdoctoral Fellow in the Department of Leadership, Policy, and Organizations at Vanderbilt University, Jennifer recently received her PhD in Sociology from Emory University (Spring 2018). Prior to graduate school, Jennifer taught in a public, urban high school for three years. Her dissertation project is an ethnography of five high schools that incorporates mixed methods and contributes to the literature on the effects of leadership practices, demographic composition, and spatial arrangements in schools on teacher coworker support. Her work focuses on how these aspects of the organizational environment produce social inequality among teachers' working conditions. Her previous research examines urban teachers’ job reward bundles as predictors of turnover (published in Qualitative Sociology 2017); early childhood teachers’ identity strategies for safeguarding dignity at work (published in Research in the Sociology of Work 2016); and the role of organizational justice in predicting teacher trust (published in Work and Occupations 2019). At Vanderbilt, Jennifer is working with Jason Grissom on projects concerning gender pay gaps among principals and principal attitudes about their evaluation systems. More about her work can be found at http://jennifernelson.org.
MEREDITH WRONOWSKI
UNIVERSITY OF OKLAHOMA
HONORABLE MENTION
Dissertation title: De-professionalized and Demoralized: A longitudinal Examination of Teachers’ Perception of their Work and Teacher Turnover During the Accountability Policy Era
UNIVERSITY OF OKLAHOMA
HONORABLE MENTION
Dissertation title: De-professionalized and Demoralized: A longitudinal Examination of Teachers’ Perception of their Work and Teacher Turnover During the Accountability Policy Era
CHELSEA TRACY-BRONSON
SYRACUSE UNIVERSITY
HONORABLE MENTION
Dissertation title: Inclusive Education in Practice: District-Level Special Education Administrators' Leadership
SYRACUSE UNIVERSITY
HONORABLE MENTION
Dissertation title: Inclusive Education in Practice: District-Level Special Education Administrators' Leadership