UNC School of Education

Associate Professor of Educational Leadership

Chair of Educational Leadership

T 919.966.1354
F 919.962.1533
brownk@email.unc.edu

119 Peabody Hall
CB 3500

Kathleen M. Brown is an associate professor and chair of the Educational Leadership Area in the School of Education. She brings 15 years of teaching and administrative experience to the professoriate, having served as a middle school teacher and elementary and middle school principal in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania and Camden, New Jersey.

A scholar-practitioner, Brown focuses her work on promoting effective, site-based servant leadership that connects theory, practice and issues of social justice to break down walls and build a unified profession of culturally aware educators working toward equitable schooling for all. She approaches education from an ethic of social care and works personally and professionally toward changing the metaphor of schools from hierarchical bureaucracies to nurturing communities. She is committed to fostering a more humane, more responsive and much less technocratic approach to educational leadership.

A skilled qualitative research methodologist, Brown conducts welcrafted empirical studies that employ intensive interviewing and/or case study techniques triangulated with survey, observation and/or document analysis data.

• Ed.D. 1999 - Temple University, Educational Leadership and Policy Studies
• M.A. 1995 - Rowan University, Educational Administration
• B.A. 1989 - Immaculata College, Psychology and Theology with an Elementary Education Concentration

• Social Justice and Equity
• Diversity and Cross-Cultural Understanding
• Principal Preparation Programs
• Social Foundations
• Middle Schools
• Research Overview

• Educational Leadership
• School Administration

• Nominated for Faculty Mentoring Award (2008), Carolina Women's Leadership Council
• Finalist for Distinguished Researcher Award AERA SIG TEA
• Elected to Executive Committee of UCEA (2007)
• EAQ Editorial Board (2005-Present)
• Area Chair (January 2005-Present) - Improved Ranking from 22nd to 10th in US
• UCEA Program Co-Chair (2004)
• Clark Scholar Advisor (Melissa Rasberry 2005, Chris Scott 2007)
• Jackson Scholar Mentor (Joe Lott LSU 2005, Karen Beard OSU 2007, Georjanne Williams PSU 2008)
• Graduate/Teaching/Research Assistantship Awards, Temple University (1997-1999)

• Co-Principal Investigator/Qualitative Team Leader - High School Resource Allocation Project with Gary Henry. NC Department of Education. [$300,000 over 12 months]
• Chair of the Education Enhancement Review Panel for the Louisiana Board of Regents Support Fund [$25 to 30 million to state colleges and universities - Spring 2008]
• Co-Director - Texas School Dropout Prevention and Reentry Program (TSDPRP) Eval. Texas Education Agency (TEA). (Decision Pending) [$225,000 over 18 months]
• Co-Investigator - Differentiated Staffing: Expanding Alternative Pathways to Teacher Certification. NC Quest Funding. (Decision Pending) [$600,000 over 5 years]
• External Reviewer for the Educational Leadership and Cultural Foundations Department at the University of North Carolina Greensboro (Spring 2006) [$600]
• Co-Investigator - Transition to Teaching: Expanding Alternative Pathways to Teacher Certification through Differentiated Staffing in High Need LEA NC Middle Schools. US Department of Education, Office of Innovation (Spring 2006, Not Funded) [$3,000,000 over 5 years]
• Principal Investigator - Good Leaders, Good Schools: Portraits of Excellence & Equity. UNC's University Research Council (Spring 2006, Not Funded) [$4,000]

• Member of the Executive Committee of UCEA (2007-Present)
• Editorial Board Member for Educational Administration Quarterly (EAQ) 2005-Present
• Editorial Board Member for Leadership and Policy in Schools (LPS) 2008-Present
• Board of Directors, The Social Justice Academy, East Chapel Hill High School
• External Reviewer for Tenure (Dr. C.P. Gause, UNC Greensboro, 2008)
• External Reviewer for Tenure (Dr. Rose Ylimaki, University of Arizona, 2008)
• UCEA Site Visitor to Florida Atlantic International (Spring 2007)
• UCEA Clark Seminar Proposal Reviewer (2007-Present)
• UCEA Day on the Hill Workshop Presenter (2007)
• LSJ Elections Committee for President and Secretary (2007)
• External Reviewer for Tenure (Dr. Meredith Mountford, Florida Atlantic, 2007)
• External Reviewer of UNC Greensboro’s Educational Leadership Program 05
• UCEA Culbertson Awards Committee 2006
• UCEA Elections Nominating Committee 2006
• AERA Division A Graduate Student Scholarship Committee 2006
• External Reviewer for Reappointment (Dr. Rose Ylimaki, Buffalo, SUNY)
• Development Advisory Board – Cardinal Gibbons High School Strategic Planning Team
• Diversity Workshop for Duke University (2005, 2006)
• Awards Selection Committee for North Carolina School Boards Association – November 2005
• Search Committee for Assistant Superintendent of Curriculum and Instruction for Chapel Hill-Carrboro City Schools – UNC Faculty Rep – July 2005
• Group Leader for Principal Fellows Program Orientation – August 2005
• Volunteered as a Peer Reviewer for the US Department of Education’s FY 2005 Grant Competition for the School Leadership Program
• Board of Directors – Building Skills to Build Communities, Durham 2005
• UCEA Program Co-Chair (Kansas City, November 2004)
• UNC-CH Plenum Session Representative to the University Council of Educational Administration (UCEA) 2002-Present
• UCEA Session Chair, Discussant and Proposal Reviewer 2002-Present
• UCEA Barbara L. Jackson Mentor 2004-Present
• UCEA Program Center Advisory Board 2004-Present
• AERA Division A Awards Committee 2004-Present

• Chair Educational Leadership Program, January 2005 to Present
• Chair of Search Committee for Hussman Policy Chair 2007-2008
• Member of Search Committee for Dean of the School of Education, 2007-2008
• Senior Faculty Tenure Review Subcommittee Member for Dr. Kathleen Gallagher
• UNC-CH Faculty Member for Saudi Arabian Educational Delegation, 2008
• Presenter at UNC-CH Annual SOE GSA Symposium Panel, May 2008
• Faculty Panel Member on Equity Issues in Rural Schools with Art Levine
• GA University-School Partnership Committee, Spring 2007
• Carolina Summit on Community Economic Development Planning Committee, Spring 2007
• IRB Review Board for School of Education, Fall 2004 to Present
• Member of Search Committee for the Walter Hussman Professor of Education, Spring 2007
• Doctoral Affairs Committee, Fall 2004 to Present
• Research Review Committee, Spring 2007
• Chair of Search Committee for New Assistant Professor in Educational Leadership, Fall 2006
• Carolina Online Lateral Entry (COLE) Curriculum Design Team
• Faculty Experts Database – UNC News Services Office
• School of Education Advisory Board
• School of Education Policy and Procedures Review Committee
• Senior Faculty Review Subcommittee Member for Dr. Olof Steinthorsdottir
• Guest Lecturer – Human Development Class (Spring 2005)
• On-Campus MSA Coordinator 2001-2005 (MSA Program Evaluation, Revision, and Manual, NCATE Program Accreditation Reports, Internship Orientation, Program Management, MSA Reception, and Daily Operations

Brown, K., (2008, In Press). Preparing Future Leaders for Social Justice, Equity, and Excellence: Bridging Theory and Practice through a Transformative Andragogy. Christopher-Gordon Publishers, Inc. (School Leadership Series) (398 pages)

Scott, C., & Brown, K. (2008, In Press). Rising Above My Raisin? Using Heuristic Inquiry to Explore the Effects of the Lumbee Dialect on Ethnic Identity Development. American Indian Quarterly, 32(4).

Brown, K. & Wynn, S. (2008, In Press). Teacher Retention Issues: How Some Principals are Supporting and Keeping New Teachers. Journal of School Leadership.

Schainker, S., & Brown, K. (2008, In Press). Preparing Educational Leaders for the Ivory Tower or the Real World? Leadership. NCASA.

Brown, K., & Wynn, S. (2008, In Press). Finding, Supporting, and Keeping: The Role of the Principal in Teacher Retention Issues. Leadership and Policy in Schools.

Brown, K. (2008, In Press). Using Equity Audits to Identify Schools of Excellence AND Equity. Journal of Contemporary Educational Issues, 4.

Brown, K. (2006, December). Leadership for Social Justice and Equity: Evaluating a Transformative Framework and Andragogy. Educational Administration Quarterly, XLII(5), 700-745.

Brown, K. (2006, December). The Educational Benefits of Diversity: The Unfinished Journey from Mandate in Brown to Choice in Grutter and Comfort. Leadership and Policy in Schools, 5(4), 325-354.

Wynn, S., & Brown, K. (2006, November). Teaching Versus School Administration:The Choice Leadership-Skilled Women Teachers Make. National Forum of Applied Educational Research Journal, 20(1), 3-39.

Brown, K., & Schainker, S, (2006, September). A Diamond in the Rough: Carat’sOrganizational and Administrative Leadership (COAL) Program. Journal of Cases in Educational Leadership, 9(3), 74-83.

Brown, K. (2006, August). New Educational Injustices in the New South Africa: A Call for Justice in the Form of Vertical Equity. Journal of Educational Administration, 44(5), 509-519.

Tillman, L., Brown, K., CampbellJones, F., & Gonzalez, M. (2006, March). Transformative Leadership for Social Justice: Guest Editor’s Introduction. Journal of School Leadership, 16(2), 122-125.

Tillman, L., Brown, K., CampbellJones, F., & Gonzalez, M. (2006, March). Transformative Leadership for Social Justice: Concluding Thoughts. Journal of School Leadership, 16(2), 207-209.

Brown, K. (2005, Fall). Democratic and Moral Educational Leadership: What Is? What Might Be? National Forum of Applied Educational Research Journal, 19(1), 3-19.

Brown, K. (2005, Spring). Transformative Learning Strategies: Assessing the Impact on Pre-Service Administrators’ Beliefs. Educational Considerations, XXXII(2), 17-26.

Brown, K. (2005, May). Social Justice Education for Pre-service Leaders: Evaluating Transformative Learning Strategies. Equity & Excellence in Education, 38(2), 155-167.

Brown, K. (2004, November). Assessing Preservice Leaders’ Beliefs, Attitudes, and Values Regarding Issues of Diversity, Social Justice and Equity: A Review of Existing Measures. Equity & Excellence in Education, 37(4), 1-11.

Brown, K., & Wynn, S. (2004, November). Why Leadership-Skilled Women Teachers Are Saying No to the Principal’s Role: Using a Career Development Approach to Address the Principal Shortage. Journal of School Leadership, 14(6), 686-712.

Brown, K. (2004, Winter). Weaving Theory into Practice: Preparing Transformative Leaders for Social Justice. Scholar-Practitioner Quarterly, 2(2), 13-37.

Brown, K., Anfara, V., & Roney, K. (2004, August). Student Achievement in High Performing and Low Performing Middle Schools: Plausible Explanations for the Difference? Education and Urban Society, 36(4), 428-456.

Roney, K., Brown, K., & Anfara, V. (2004, March/April). Middle Level Reform in High and Low Performing Middle Schools: A Question of Implementation? The Clearing House, 77(4), 153-159.

Brown, K. (2004). Leadership for Social Justice and Equity: Weaving a Transformative Framework and Pedagogy. Educational Administration Quarterly, 40(1), 79-110.

Brown, K., & Anfara, V. (2003, June). Paving the Way for Change: Visionary Leadership in Action at the Middle Level. NASSP Bulletin, 87(635), 16-34.

Brown, K., Roney, K., Anfara, V. (2003, May). The Relative Importance of the Middle School Concept, Student SES, and Organizational Health to the "Black Box" of Student Achievement. Middle School Journal, 34(5), 5-15.

Brown, K., & Roney, K. (2003, January). Turning Points to Success: A Case Study of Reform Implementation in a Charter Middle School. Middle School Journal, 34(3), 38-46.

Anfara, V., Brown, K., & Mangione, T. (2002, October) Qualitative Analysis on Stage: Making the Research Process More Public. Educational Researcher, 31(7), 28-38.

Brown, K., & Anfara, V. (2002). From the Desk of the Middle School Principal: Leadership Responsive to the Needs of Young Adolescents. Lanham, MD: Scarecrow Education, Rowman & Littlefield Publishing. (204 pages)

Brown, K. (2008, March). Leading Schools of Excellence AND Equity: Exploring Best Practices and Documenting Effective Strategies. Proposal accepted for paper presentation at the American Education Research Association (AERA) Annual Meeting, New York.

Brown, K., & Wynn, S. (2008, March). Teacher Retention: Discussing the Issues with Principals and New Teachers. Proposal submitted for paper presentation at the American Education Research Association (AERA) Annual Meeting, New York, [Division A].

Wynn, S., & Brown, K. (2007, November). Keys to Teacher Retention: Beginning Teachers’ Perceptions of Principal Leadership. Paper presented at the University Council for Educational Administration (UCEA) Annual Convention, Washington, DC.

Beard, K., & Brown, K. (2007, November). African American Parents’ Trust (or Distrust) in Public Schools? Paper presented at the University Council for Educational Administration (UCEA) Annual Convention, Washington, DC.

Brown, K., & Orr, M. (2007, November). Quality Leaders are Prepared in Quality Leadership Preparation Programs. Day on the Hill workshop presented at the University Council for Educational Administration (UCEA) Annual Convention, Washington, DC.

O’Malley, M., Allen, L., Slattery, P., Brady, J., and Brown, K. (2007, November). (Re)Imagining Curriculum Leadership through Postcolonial and Queer Analyses of Educational Discourses. Innovative session presented at the University Council for Educational Administration (UCEA) Annual Convention, Washington, DC.

Wynn, S., & Brown, K. (2007, April). Keys to Teacher Retention: Beginning Teachers’ Perceptions of Principal Leadership and Professional Learning Communities. Proposal submitted for paper presentation at the American Education Research Association (AERA) Annual Meeting, Chicago, IL [Division A].

Brown, K. (2007, April). Mentoring Early Career Scholars. Mentoring and Affirmative Action Panel presented at the American Education Research Association (AERA) Annual Meeting, Chicago, IL [Division A].

Marshall, C., Grogan, M., Lugg, C., Mutchler, S., Brooks, J., Murtadha, K., Black, B., English, F., Tillman, L., Brown, K., & Lesane, A. (2007, April). A Networkshop on Administrator Licensure: Leading for Social Justice. Symposium presented at the American Education Research Association (AERA) Annual Meeting, Chicago, IL [Division A].

Brown, K. (2006, November). Good Schools, Good Leaders: Portraits of Excellence and Equity. Paper presented at the University Council for Educational Administration (UCEA) Annual Convention, San Antonio, TX.

Brown, K., & Wynn, S. (2006, November). Leading, Supporting, and Keeping: The Role of the Principal in Teacher Retention Issues. Paper presented at the University Council for Educational Administration (UCEA) Annual Convention, San Antonio, TX.

Brown, K. (2006, April). New Educational Injustices in the New South Africa: A Call for Justice in the Form of Vertical Equity. Proposal submitted for paper presentation at the American Education Research Association (AERA) Annual Meeting, San Francisco, CA [Division A].

Brown, K. (2005, November). The Educational Benefits of Diversity: The Unfinished Journey from Mandate in Brown to Choice in Grutter. Paper presented at the University Council for Educational Administration (UCEA) Annual Convention, Nashville, TN.

Hafner, M., & Brown, K. (2005, November). Teaching for Social Justice. Workshop presented at the University Council for Educational Administration (UCEA) Annual Convention, Nashville, TN.

Brown, K., Rasberry, M., Nowlin, T., Collins, L., & Grillo, L.M. (2005, November). Changing Contexts of Educational Leadership: The Principal’s New Roles. Symposium session chaired at the University Council for Educational Administration (UCEA) Annual Convention, Nashville, TN.