Educational administration and policy studies are fields in which the relationship between theory and practice is dialectic. That is why my courses incorporate elements of comparative social science, intellectual and social history, education theory, and research – with the consideration of fundamental issues, such as school reform, which apply theoretical and professional knowledge to the complexities of practice. Thus, my classes attempt to help students gain an appreciation for the complementarity between theory and practice in our field, and how the most promising efforts to improve the quality of education benefit from the close integration of theoretical understandings with practical applications.

This is also my philosophy in my role as academic advisor. I believe that students intending careers as educational leaders can best benefit from our program if they use their time here to develop three equally important things. First they should acquire a knowledge base to aid them in understanding the societal, political and economic forces affecting educational organizations. Second, they must perfect their abilities to question, analyze, and develop creative solutions to policy and administrative problems. Third, they need to develop the determination to make decisions in the face of ambiguity and conflict. I attempt to guide our students that intend careers in research and policy analysis similarly. It is important that such students acquire the conceptual and methodological tools essential to their intended roles as scholars or policy analysts. They must also gain an appreciation of the fact that the best scholarly inquiry in education contributes to our knowledge base as social scientists, and also informs public debate about education in ways that help improve educational policy and practice.