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Ed.D. and Ed.L.D. Candidates Defend Dissertations

Students from the Ed.D. and Ed.L.D. programs will publicly present their dissertations and capstone projects April 11–22 as part of HGSE’s annual 2014 Dissertation and Capstone Defenses. The public is invited to these presentations showcasing the work of 41 students. This is the second time in HGSE history that students will defend their dissertations or capstone projects.

“By the time our doctoral students finish their dissertations and capstone projects, they are perhaps the foremost experts in the world on their particular subject,” said Dean James Ryan. “These defenses aren’t just an integral component of our doctoral training, they are an opportunity for this school to open up its most valuable resource — the knowledge of our students — to the world, so that the research conducted here is made accessible to practitioners and policymakers and can have a real and lasting impact on the field.”

The Ed.D. and Ed.L.D. program faculty consider this an opportunity for accountability and accomplishment among students. The Dissertation and Capstone Defenses provide an enriching and celebratory occasion to share the abundance of research interests and leadership initiatives being pursued within the doctoral communities.

Students will present before their committee members and the public for 60–75 minutes.

The following schedule includes the topics and locations of the presentation.

Friday, April 11

10:00–11:30 a.m., Longfellow 225
Sofía Bahena (Ed.D.). The Hope of Immigrant Optimism. Committee Members: Hiro Yoshikawa (Chair), New York University; Katherine Masyn, HGSE; Vivian Louie, CUNY Hunter College.

12:00–1:00 p.m., Gutman 302
Gislaine Ngounou (Ed.L.D.). Continuous Improvement and Excellence Through Teamwork: The Journey of the Senior Leadership Team of Montgomery County Public Schools. Committee Members: Robert Kegan (Chair), HGSE; Deborah Jewell-Sherman, HGSE; Joshua Starr, Superintendent, Montgomery County Public Schools.

1:00–2:30 p.m., Longfellow 225
Mary Catherine Savard (Ed.D.). Parent beliefs regarding defender behavior when children witness bullying situations: An exploratory study within an early childhood school context. Committee Members: Rick Weissbourd (Co-Chair), HGSE; Hirokazu Yoshikawa (Co-Chair), New York University; Stephanie Jones, HGSE; Kristen Bub, Auburn University.

Monday, April 14

8:30–9:30 a.m., Gutman Conference Center, Area 1
Justin May (Ed.L.D.). Measuring What We Care About: Confident Individuals Who Continuously Challenge Themselves. Committee Members: Elizabeth City (Chair), HGSE; Michael Tushman, HBS; Greg W. Baker, Superintendent, Bellingham Public Schools.

8:30–10:00 a.m., Gutman Conference Center, Area 3
Marcia Russell (Ed.D.). Implementation in an Era of Reform: Investigating the Voluntary Implementation of a Pilot Reading Program in a Supportive Context. Committee Members: Monica Higgins (Chair), HGSE; Kitty Boles, HGSE, Eileen McGowan, HGSE.

11:00 a.m.–12:00 p.m., Gutman Conference Center, Area 1
Ryan Stewart (Ed.L.D.). Increasing the Equity, Transparency, and Strategic Alignment of School Budgets: Weighted Student Funding in The School District of Philadelphia. Committee Members: Robert Kegan (Chair), HGSE; Bruce Harreld, (HBS); Stacy Holland, Chief of Strategic Partnerships, The School District of Philadelphia.

11:00 a.m.–12:00 p.m., Gutman Conference Center, Area 3
Alison Huguley (Ed.L.D.). Principal Supervisors as Agents for Both District-Wide Instructional Improvement and Central Office Cultural Change: A Bifurcated Strategy. Committee Members: Deborah Jewell-Sherman (Chair), HGSE; Richard Weissbourd, HGSE; Dr. Linda Lane, Superintendent, Pittsburgh Public Schools.

12:30–1:30 p.m., Larsen 106
David Rease (Ed.L.D.). Creating Inquiry Networks in Priority Schools: Introducing Data Wise in Prince George’s County. Committee Members: Kathy Boudett (Chair), HGSE; Elizabeth City, HGSE; Sito Narcisse, Associate Superintendent of High Schools, Prince George’s County.

1:30–2:30 p.m., Gutman Conference Center, Area 1
Paul Perry (Ed.L.D.). Shift, Share, and Design: Building Capacity to Improve Student Learning Environments in New York City. Committee Members: Deborah Jewell-Sherman (Chair), HGSE; Andrés Alonso, HGSE; John Duval, Architect, Expanded Success Initiative School Design Fellowship

1:30–2:30 p.m., Gutman Conference Center, Area 3
Joshua Klaris (Ed.L.D.). The Beginning of a Beautiful Relationship: America’s Principals and the United States Department of Education. Committee Members: Richard Elmore (Chair), HGSE; Michael Tushman, HBS; Brad Jupp, Special Advisor to the Secretary, United States Department of Education.

4:00–5:00 p.m., Gutman Conference Center, Area 1
Paola Peacock Friedrich (Ed.L.D.). Disruptive Innovation in Education: Building Organizational Culture to Create an Effective Network of Leadership High Schools. Committee Members: Monica Higgins (Chair), HGSE; Robert Peterkin, HGSE; Tony Monfiletto, Director, New Mexico Center for School Leadership.

4:00–5:30 p.m., Gutman Conference Center, Area 3
Edward Clapp (Ed.D.). Reframing Creativity as the Biography of an Idea: Developing Learning Narratives that Describe Creativity as a Distributed and a Participatory Process. Committee Members: Steve Seidel (Chair), HGSE; Shari Tishman, HGSE; Michael Hanchett Hanson, Teachers College, Columbia University.

Tuesday, April 15

8:30–9:30 a.m., Gutman Conference Center, Area 1
Lucia Moritz (Ed.L.D.). Developing Leadership Capacity Through Strategic Action: A Campaign Approach to Transforming High Schools in Los Angeles Unified School District. Committee Members: Deborah Jewell-Sherman (Chair), HGSE; Marshall Ganz, HKS; Esther Soliman, Linked Learning Administrator, Los Angeles Unified School District.

11:00 a.m.–12:00 p.m., Gutman Conference Center, Area 1
Andrew Frishman (Ed.L.D.). The Future of Big Picture Learning: A Strategy to Spread Student-Centered Personalized Education. Committee Members: Mark Moore (Chair), HGSE/HKS; Clayton Christensen, HBS; Elliot Washor, Co-Director, Big Picture Learning.

11:00 a.m.–12:00 p.m., Gutman Conference Center, Area 3
Janis Ortega de Gomez (Ed.L.D.). Unbundling Capital: A Venture Philanthropy Firm’s Exploration of Non-Monetary Investments & the Organizational Components That Influence Them. Committee Members: Monica Higgins (Chair), HGSE; Michael Tushman, HBS; Deborah McGriff, Managing Director, NewSchools Venture Fund.

1:30–2:30 p.m., Gutman Conference Center, Area 3
Liliana Polo-McKenna (Ed.L.D.). Leading and Learning in Transformation: Exploring the Relationship Between Team Development and School Reform Plan Implementation in Rhode Island. Committee Members: Elizabeth City (Chair), HGSE; Andrés Alonso, HGSE; Kathy Nadurak, Executive Vice President of Programs, NYC Leadership Academy.

1:30–3:00 p.m., Gutman Conference Center, Area 1
John McLaughlin (Ed.D.). The Effect of Test-Optional Policy on Application Choice. Committee Members: Richard Light (Chair), HGSE/HKS; Bridget Terry Long, HGSE; Stephen Minicucci, Consortium on Financing Higher Education (COFHE).

4:00–5:00 p.m., Gutman Conference Center, Area 1
Kimberley Ednie (Ed.L.D.). Organizing to Learn While Managing Transition: BPE's Path to Designing and Supporting Teaching Academies. Committee Members: Jal Mehta (Chair), HGSE; Richard Elmore, HGSE; Shoma Haque, Chief Operations Officer, BPE.

4:00–5:00 p.m. Gutman 303
Jason Lustig Yamashiro (Ed.L.D.). Equity in Action: Implementing the Voluntary Resolution Plan to Eliminate Disproportionality in Exclusionary Discipline in Oakland, California. Committee Members: Deborah Jewell-Sherman (Chair), HGSE; Andrés Alonso (HGSE); Maria Santos, Deputy Superintendent, Oakland Unified School District.

Wednesday, April 16

1:30–2:30 p.m. Gutman Conference Center, Area 1
Laura Shubilla (Ed.L.D.). Designing a Competency Based Educational Innovation in Partnership with the School District of Philadelphia. Committee Members: Robert Schwartz (Chair), HGSE; Marshall Ganz, HKS; William Hite, Superintendent, School District of Philadelphia.

4:00–5:00 p.m., Gutman Conference Center, Area 1
Charles Linehan (Ed.L.D.). Reimagining Secondary Education: A Turn Towards the "Who." Committee Members: Lisa Lahey (Chair), HGSE; Richard Elmore, (HGSE); Stacy Holland, Chief of Strategic Partnerships, School District of Philadelphia.

4:00–5:30 p.m., Gutman Conference Center, Area 3
Adrienne Keene (Ed.D.). “College Pride, Native Pride” and Education for Native Nation Building: Portraits of Native Students Navigating Freshman Year. Committee Members: Sara Lawrence-Lightfoot (Chair), HGSE; Dennis Norman, HGSE/HKS/HUNAP; Bryan Brayboy, Arizona State University.

Thursday, April 17

8:30–9:30 a.m., Gutman Conference Center, Area 1
Katherine Casey (Ed.L.D.). Innovation and Inclusion by Design: Reimagining Learning, Remembering Brown. Committee Members: Robert Kegan (Chair), HGSE; Richard Elmore, HGSE; Alyssa Whitehead-Bust, Chief of Innovation and Reform, Denver Public Schools.

8:30–9:30 a.m., Gutman Conference Center, Area 3
Morgan Camu (Ed.L.D.). A Community-Based Approach to Strategy Development in the Knox County Schools. Committee Members: Martin West (Chair), HGSE; John Kim, HBS; Dr. James McIntyre, Superintendent, Knox County Schools.

11:00 a.m.–12:00 p.m., Gutman Conference Center, Area 1
Christine DeLeon (Ed.L.D.). From Seed to Scale: Building the Foundation to Personalize Learning Within Denver Public Schools. Committee Members: Elizabeth City (Chair), HGSE; Chet Huber, HBS; Peter Piccolo, Executive Director of Innovation Lab, Denver Public Schools

11:00 a.m.–12:00 p.m., Gutman Conference Center, Area 3
Vaishali Dharmadhikari Joshi (Ed.L.D.). Creating Coherent Systems of Data Collection and Analysis: A Case Study in the Collection, Analysis, and Use of Client Feedback Data at Expeditionary Learning. Committee Members: Eileen McGowan (Chair), HGSE; Jal Mehta, HGSE; Tom Van Winkle, Managing Director of School Services, Expeditionary Learning.

1:30–2:30 p.m. Gutman Conference Center, Area 3
Laura Kanter Fellows (Ed.L.D.). Organizing for Innovation in Denver Public Schools: Stimulating Empowered Problem Solving through Design Thinking. Committee Members: Richard Elmore (Chair), HGSE; Eileen McGowan, HGSE; Alyssa Whitehead-Bust, Chief of Innovation and Reform, Denver Public Schools.

1:30–2:30 p.m. Gutman Conference Center, Area 3
Eva Mejia (Ed.L.D.). Walking the Talk, Teaching the Walk: Developing a Collective Learning System for The Carnegie Foundation for The Advancement of Teaching. Committee Members: Jal Mehta (Chair), HGSE; Kathryn Boudett, HGSE; Paul LeMahieu, Senior Vice President for Programs and Administration, The Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching.

1:30–3:00 p.m., Larsen 203
Parker Goyer (Ed.D.). Utilizing Psychological “Small Wins” to Help Adolescents in Developing Countries Increase Their Perception of Their Educational and Life Possibilities: A Randomized Controlled Trial of the Coach for College Program, in Two Provinces of Vietnam. Committee Members: John Willett (Chair), HGSE; Hunter Gehlbach, HGSE; Stephanie Jones, HGSE; Fernando Reimers, HGSE.

4:00–5:30 p.m., Gutman Conference Center, Area 1
Melissa Fern Matarazzo (Ed.D. ). Exploring Accountability through Performance Evaluation: How Do School and District Leaders in Three U.S. School Districts Experience Results-Based Evaluations? Committee Members: Deborah Jewell-Sherman (Chair), HGSE; Eileen McGowan, HGSE; Elizabeth City, HGSE.

4:00–5:30 p.m., Gutman Conference Center, Area 3
Janet Kwok (Ed.D.). Be true to your polity: A mixed methods secondary data analysis of youth perceptions of civic engagement and the role of school culture. Committee Members: Robert L. Selman (Chair), HGSE; Helen Haste, HGSE; Terry Tivnan, HGSE.

4:00–5:00 p.m., Larsen 203
Hueling Lee (Ed.L.D.). The Power of Meaningful Work: Facilitating District Learning and Ownership of Sacramento's NCLB Waiver to Promote Social Emotional Learning. Committee Members: Robert Kegan (Chair), HGSE; Richard Weissbourd, HGSE; Koua Franz, Chief of Staff, Sacramento City Unified School District.

Friday, April 18

8:30–9:30 a.m., Larsen 106
Jeron Campbell (Ed.L.D.). The Use of Data to Drive Decisions and Instruction in Chesterfield County Public Schools. Committee Members: Robert Kegan (Chair), HGSE; Deborah Jewell-Sherman, HGSE; Marcus Newsome, Superintendent, Chesterfield County Public Schools.

8:30–10:00 a.m., Longfellow 225
Rebecca Givens Rolland (Ed.D.). Exploring Early Childhood Teachers’ Professional Experiences in a High-Risk Setting: Generating Hypotheses for Enhanced Professional Development. Committee Members: Nonie K. Lesaux (Chair), HGSE; Stephanie Jones, HGSE; Richard Weissbourd, HGSE.

1:30–3:00 p.m., Gutman 302
Andres Molano (Ed.D.). Peer Effects in the Elementary School Classroom: Socialization of Aggressive and Prosocial Behavior and its Consequences for Academic Skills. Committee Members: Stephanie M. Jones (Chair), HGSE; John B. Willett, HGSE; Robert L. Selman, HGSE.

1:30–2:30 p.m., Larsen G08
Sarah Johnson (Ed.L.D.). Developing Leadership Capacities in Central Office Managers in Service of Learning at Every Level. Committee Members: Mark Moore (Chair), HGSE/HKS; Deborah Jewell-Sherman, HGSE; Justin Tyack, CEO of the Office of School Support, New York City Department of Education.

1:30–3:00 p.m., Larsen 203
Vanessa Beary (Ed.D.). Not Doing Business in Tajikistan: The Impact of an Entrepreneurship Education Program for Youths and Young Adults. Committee Members: Fernando Reimers (Chair), HGSE; Andrew Ho, HGSE; Monica Higgins, HGSE.

4:00–5:30 p.m., Larsen 203
Jed Lippard (Ed.D.). Adult Developmentally Oriented Instructional Leadership: An Exploratory Qualitative Study of Two Principals’ Efforts to Support Instructional Improvement Among Teachers Whose “Ways of Knowing” Differ. Committee Members: Robert Kegan (Chair), HGSE; Lee Teitel, HGSE; Eleanor Drago-Severson, Teachers College, Columbia University.

Tuesday, April 22

1:00–2:30 p.m., Larsen 513
Ayana Campoli (Ed.D.). Retaining Black Teachers in Public Schools: What Roles do Interpersonal Bonds and Racial Match Play? Committee Members: John B. Willett (Chair), HGSE; Susan Moore Johnson, HGSE; John B. Diamond, University of Wisconsin.

4:00–5:30 p.m., Gutman 302
North Cooc (Ed.D.). Teacher Perceptions of Student Disabilities: Racial Disparities and Consequences. Committee Members: John Willett (Co-Chair), HGSE; Vivian Louie (Co–Chair), CUNY Hunter College; James Kim, HGSE.

Thursday, April 24

4:10–5:25 p.m., Larsen 203.
Jennifer Wallace Jacoby (Ed.D.). Teaching and Working in Linguistically Diverse Early Childhood Education Programs: Three Studies in Head Start. Committee Members: Nonie K. Lesaux (Chair), HGSE; Paola Uccelli, (HGSE); Susan Moore Johnson, (HGSE).

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