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
Abigail Beneke
Abigail Beneke is a PhD candidate in the Department of Educational Policy Studies at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. Her research examines the politics and practice of education policy with a focus on school discipline and efforts to reform punitive and inequitable disciplinary practices. Using a critical sociocultural approach, Beneke traces the relationships between large-scale systems, state and corporate investment, ideologies, and local practice. Given this, she focuses on a diverse array of actors—from government agencies and non-profit organizations to local district and school staff to the children, families, and communities most impacted by equity-oriented reforms, particularly those who have been historically marginalized. Beneke is recipient of the 2021-2022 Michael W. Apple Fellowship and 2021-2022 Philanthropic Educational Organization Scholar Award.
Meet Our Faculty
Amy Claessens
Amy Claessens is the Gulbrandsen Distinguished Chair in Early Childhood Education, and she serves as the associate director for the Center for Research on Early Childhood Education (CRECE). With a doctorate in human development from Northwestern University’s School of Education and Social Policy, her research aims to understand how policies and programs affect young children’s development and opportunities to learn. She is a member of the Development and Research in Early Math Education (DREME) network in which she works on enhancing opportunities for young children to learn math both in schools and at home. She is also leading a partnership with the Department of Children and Families to understand child care supply changes in Wisconsin. She has received funding from the Administration for Children and Families, W.T. Grant Foundation, and the Heising-Simons Foundation.
Events
- January
- January 25Policy in Palimpsestic Time: Researching Education in the SouthLunch and Learn Talk by Rachel Williams1:00 PM, 159 Education Building
Also offered online - January 26
- January 26