Our Department
The Department of Educational Policy Studies at the University of Wisconsin–Madison deepens and expands the understanding of educational policy and practice, past and present, at local, national, and international levels. We examine educational policies, movements, outcomes, dilemmas, and controversies — as well as the forces shaping them — through the lenses of history, sociology, anthropology, political economy, philosophy, policy analysis, and international comparative education.
Our efforts are guided by the conviction that as a diverse community of faculty, staff, and students committed to furthering socially just visions of education, we honor the intellectual and moral ideals of the School of Education and the university, and more effectively achieve our educational and scholarly aspirations.
Meet Our Students

Ariel Borns
Ariel Borns is a PhD student in the Department of Educational Policy Studies. With a concentration in Comparative and International Education, her ethnographic research focuses on the various intersections of migration, international development, youth, and gender. She is a recipient of the Fulbright-Hays Doctoral Dissertation Abroad Fellowship to conduct dissertation research in Guatemala and the Foreign Language and Area Studies Fellowship to learn the K’iche’-Maya language and culture.
Meet Our Faculty

Bianca Baldridge
Bianca J. Baldridge is an associate professor in the Department of Educational Policy Studies. Dr. Baldridge explores the socio-political context of community-based youth work and afterschool education. Her research critically examines the confluence of race, class, and gender, and how they impact educational reforms that shape community-based spaces that engage Black and Latinx youth in the U.S. Dr. Baldridge’s book, Reclaiming Community: Race and the Uncertain Future of Youth Work, examines how market-based reforms (with their emphasis on privatization and accountability), race, and paternalism work together to undermine Black community-based organizations’ efforts to support comprehensive youth development opportunities. Her book received the 2019 American Educational Studies Association Critic’s Choice Book Award. Dr. Baldridge’s research is featured in the American Educational Research Journal, Review of Research in Education, Teachers College Record, Educational Researcher, and Race, Ethnicity, and Education.
News
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Search underway for new chief diversity officer
April 7, 2021
Events
- April
- April 14Facilitating Feedback for Mathematical Reasoning (Online)This event is brought to you by PLACE | Professional Learning and Community Education. place.education.wisc.edu12:00 AM, Online
- April 14
- April 15