Our Faculty - Overview

The faculty in the new Department of Education Policy Studies (EDPS) bring the disciplines of economics, political science, history, philosophy, sociology, cultural studies, and curriculum theory to the study of education. They are committed to the preparation of professionals who are able to apply a range of theories and disciplinary perspectives to the enterprise of education in governmental and non-governmental agencies.

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Robert Croninger: Associate Professor and Director of the Center for Education Policy and Leadership, Dr. Croninger's research and teaching focuses on quantitative methods, the social organization of schools, and how education policies and practices influence the distribution of educational opportunities to children and their families. Most recently, Dr. Croninger and colleagues, as part of a study funded by the National Science Foundation, have been investigating the teaching of reading and mathematics in the upper grades of high-poverty elementary schools. Dr. Croninger is an affiliate associate professor in the Department of Measurement, Statistics, and Evaluation and in the Joint Program in Survey Methods.

Barbara Finkelstein: Professor and Founding Director of the International Center for Transcultural Education, Dr. Finkelstein has done extensive work in the historical and transcultural studies of teaching, learning, childhood, youth and diversity policies and practices in the United States, Japan, Mexico, and more recently on Easter Island and in Tibet. She has published and lectured extensively on the role of teachers as cultural mediators, the uses of literacy among minority groups, the shape of diversity policies in various educational settings, and the historical roots of child abuse. Dr. Finkelstein is a UMCP Distinguished Scholar Teacher and the recipient of numerous prestigious awards.

Dennis Herschbach: As Associate Professor and Departmental Director of Undergraduate Studies, Dr. Herschbach's teaching and research interests fall into three overlapping areas: educational history, work and society, and international development. He brings historical dimension to the study of industrial and vocational education. He is a regular advisor in the field of human resource development to governmental and non-governmental agencies in Central and Eastern Europe and an expert in the area of workforce preparation within the larger educational and social context. Recently he has been involved in establishing a technical high school and community college in Albania.

Francine Hultgren: Professor and Interim Chair of EDPS, Dr. Hultgren is a curriculum theorist, a philosopher and a well-known and distinguished phenomenologist who has educated a generation of students in the art and craft of phenomenology and curriculum theory. As a researcher her interest is decidedly pedagogic, drawing upon the foundations of phenomenology and hermeneutics to make interpretive sense of the lifeworlds of teachers and students and the broader educational community. A central root metaphor or world view that grounds Dr. Hultgren's orientation as a researcher and teacher is that of narrative and story.

Betty Malen: Professor and the recipient of the prestigious Stephen K. Bailey Award for her scholarly contributions to the politics of education field and the Outstanding Teaching Award for her work as an instructor, mentor and advisor, Dr. Malen studies the micro-politics of schools and the broad political forces that shape the design, implementation and impact of education reforms. An experienced case study researcher and a former school administrator, she has developed field-based research partnerships and apprenticeships that enable students interested in education policy and leadership to conduct research that is relevant to school systems, policy makers and academia.

Jennifer King Rice: Associate Professor and the current President of the American Education Finance Association, Dr. Rice's research draws on the discipline of economics to explore education policy questions concerning the efficiency, equity, and adequacy of U.S. public education, and her current work focuses on teachers as a critical resource in the education process. Her book, Teacher Quality: Understanding the Effectiveness of Teacher Attributes, was recognized with the 2005 American Association of Colleges for Teacher Education writing award. She frequently is called upon to consult with a numerous state and federal agencies and policy research organizations.

Steven Selden: Professor, curriculum theorist and historian, Dr. Selden is known worldwide for a body of work that reveals the power and influence of Eugenics in the forming of education policy and practice. He is the founder of the Department's Colloquium Series on Community and Diversity in Education and has brought major public intellectuals to lecture and teach on the campus. His most recent book, Inheriting Shame: The Story of Eugenics and Racism in America (Teachers College Press, 1999) received the Gustavus Meyer Award for books contributing to anti-racist thought.

John Splaine: Associate Professor Emeritus, is known throughout the United States as a consultant to C-SPAN television, and for assisting in the preparation of historical and educational materials for C-SPAN's documentary history series. A beloved teacher on the University of Maryland campus, he was chosen in 2005 by the University's undergraduate student body to deliver the university-wide commencement address -- a distinct and unique honor. Dr. Splaine's interests include the effects of television on young people, the use of media in teaching, politics and policy development relative to educational technology, and humanistic aspects of educational media.

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