Lesaux Named to Kargman Chair

On July 1, Dean Kathleen McCartney announced that Assistant Professor Nonie Lesaux has been named the Max and Marie Kargman Assistant Professor in Human Development and Urban Education Advancement.

“Nonie is an outstanding young scholar, whose research on language interventions for at-risk children has already had a great impact on the field of education,” said McCartney. “She is a star in the making and very deserving of this chair.”

Lesaux’s research focuses on the reading development and the health and well-being of children who are at risk for learning difficulties, including children from language-minority and low socioeconomic backgrounds, and children with language impairments.

Currently, Lesaux is the principal investigator on multiple research projects that look at language diversity and literacy development in urban schools and two studies examining reading comprehension difficulty for Spanish-speakers reading in English.

“This appointment supports my deep commitment to generating knowledge to advance the field’s ability to promote the academic achievement for all students in urban schools, especially English-language learners,” Lesaux said. “As Kargman Chair, I intend to make significant strides conducting developmental research with understudied and underserved populations of children.”

In April 2007, Lesaux was named a William T. Grant Scholar earning a $350,000 award to be given over five years in support of her research on English-language learners in urban public schools. Lesaux was one of only five researchers awarded this prestigious scholarship.

The professorship was endowed by Harvard University graduates Marie Kargman and the late Max Kargman in 1998. The Kargmans are longtime supporters of public education and the Harvard Graduate School of Education.