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Educational Background
Dr. Fuhrman earned a B.A. in History, with highest honors, from Northwestern University in 1965; an M.A. in History from Northwestern University in 1966; and a Ph.D. in Political Economy from Teachers College, Columbia University in 1977. She wrote her dissertation at Teachers College on "The Classification of Roll Call Votes in New Jersey."
Scholarly Interests
Dr. Fuhrman's research interests include state policy design, accountability, deregulation, and intergovernmental relationships. She has also conducted research on state education reform, state-local relationships, state differential treatment of districts, federalism in education, incentives and systemic reform, and legislatures and education policy. She leads and conducts research through the Consortium for Policy Research in Education (CPRE), which receives significant support from the U.S. Department of Education, the National Science Foundation and private funding sources.
Selected Publications
Fuhrman, S., Cohen, D., & Mosher, F. (Eds.) (2007). The State of Education Policy Research. Routledge.
Fuhrman, S., & Lazerson, M. (Eds.) (2005). American institutions of democracy. The Institutions of American Democracy series. New York: Oxford University Press.
Fuhrman, S. (2004). "Less than meets the eye: Standards, testing and fear of federal control." In N. Epstein (Ed.), Who's in charge of the schools? The tangled web of education power and policy. Denver andWashington, DC: Brookings Institution Press.
Elmore, R. & Fuhrman, S. (Eds.). (2004). Redesigning accountability. New York: Teachers College Press.
Fuhrman, S. (2003). "Riding waves, trading horses. The twenty-year effort to reform education." In D.T. Gordon (Ed.), A nation reformed? American education 20 years after A Nation At Risk (pp. 7-22).Cambridge, MA: Harvard Education Press.
Fuhrman, S. (2003). Redesigning accountability systems in education. CPRE Policy Briefs. Philadelphia, PA: Consortium for Policy Research in Education.
Fuhrman, S. (Ed.). (2001). From the Capitol to the classroom: Standards-based reform in the States, One hundredth yearbook of the National Society for the Study of Education. Chicago: University of ChicagoPress.
Carr, M. & Fuhrman, S. (1999). "The politics of school finance." In Making Money Matter: Equity and Adequacy in Education Finance. National Academy of Sciences Press.
Fuhrman, S. & O'Day, J. (Eds.). (1996). Rewards and reform: Creating educational incentives that work. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass, Inc.
Biographical Information
Dr. Susan Fuhrman is Past-President of Teachers College, Columbia University, founding Director and Chair of the Management Committee of the Consortium for Policy Research in Education (CPRE), and immediate Past-President of the National Academy of Education. Dr. Fuhrman’s substantial leadership track record includes her term as Dean of the University of Pennsylvania’s Graduate School of Education from 1995-2006, where she was also the school’s George and Diane Weiss Professor of Education. Dr. Fuhrman was influential in creating a new university-assisted public school as part of Penn’s West Philadelphia improvement initiative. Similarly, the Teachers College Community School and an education and social services partnership with a number of other public schools are intended to bring University leadership for neighborhood school improvement to West Harlem.
Dr. Fuhrman serves on the Board of Directors of the Hawn Foundation and is a Trustee of the Committee on Economic Development and is a member of the Board of Governors of the Pardee RAND Graduate School. She is a former Vice President of the American Educational Research Association as well as a former Trustee Board member of the Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching. She served as a non-executive Director of Pearson plc, the international education and publishing company from 2004-2013.
Dr. Fuhrman received undergraduate and graduate degrees in history from Northwestern University and a Ph.D. in political science and education from Teachers College and Columbia University. Her work focuses on enhancing the quality of education research, accountability in education, intergovernmental relationships, and standards-based reform, and she has written widely on education policy and finance. Among recent books are The State of Education Policy Research (with David K. Cohen and Fritz Mosher, 2007); and The Public Schools (The Institutions of American Democracy Series, with Marvin Lazerson, 2005). Dr. Fuhrman’s work has been recognized by a wide variety of international, national, state, and local organizations.
Active Professional Organizations
Dr. Susan H. Fuhrman is Past-President of Teachers College, Columbia University, founding Director and Chair of the Management Committee of the Consortium for Policy Research in Education (CPRE), and past President of the National Academy of Education. She is a former Vice President of the American Educational Research Association as well as a former Trustee Board member of the Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching and a former non-executive Director of Pearson plc, the international education and publishing company.
Grants
Honors and Awards
Education Update Distinguished Leader in Education Award, 2013.
National Academy of Education, elected to membership in 2002; elected Secretary-Treasurer, 2005; elected President-elect 2008, assumed Presidency, 2009
Ronald F. Campbell Award for a Distinguished Career of Scholarship and Action, Politics of Education Association, 1994
Rutgers University, Supplemental Salary Adjustment awarded in June 1988 in recognition of quality of service to the University; Distinguished Educator Award, 2009.
Northwestern University, B.A. with Highest Honors; Phi Beta Kappa; 1965; Distinguished Alumni award, 2008.
Crain’s NY Business, 100 Most Influential Women in Business, 2007
Professional Experiences
International
2009 Co-convenor, U.S./France Policy Roundtable
2009 C.J. Koh Visiting Professor, National Institute of Education, Singapore
2009 Participant in inauguration of the Columbia University Global Centers in Beijing and Amman
2005-2006 Coordinator, Sino-US Education Policy Roundtable
2004 Coordinator, US/UK Bilateral Conference on Urban Education
2004-2013 Non-Executive Director, Pearson plc
2003 Chair, OECD Study of Education Research in Mexico
2003-2007 Coordinator, US/NZ Educational Policy Roundtable
2002- Coordinator, CPRE/ National Institute for Research on Pedagogy (INRP), France Roundtable
2001-2007 Coordinator, US/Thai Education Roundtable
2001-2006 Chair, Steering Committee, Eight Nation Research Project
1999-2003 Member of the Research Grants Council, University Grants Commission, Hong Kong
1996 Counselor to the Shanghai Municipal Education Commission
1996 Expert Consultant to OECD to review country reviews on policy
1995-2000 Chair, Steering Committee, Six Nation Educational Research Project
1993-95 Member of Expert Panel, OECD project on Educational Research and Development
1991 Coordinator, US/Australia Education Policy Project
National
2014- Member, Rand Graduate School Board
2014- Member, Goldie Hawn MindUP Foundation Board
2009 Co-Chair, Roundtable on Education System Accountability, National Research Council
2003-2008 Member, Board of Trustees, the Center for Civic Responsibility
2002-2006 Member, National Coalition on Asia and International Studies in the Schools
2002-2006 Member, Board of Trustees, the Fund for New Jersey
2001-2009 Member, Board of Trustees, Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching
2001-2005 Member, Council for Corporate and School Partnerships, Coca-Cola
2000-2005 Member, Advisory Committee, Standard and Poor’s School Evaluation Service
1999-2001 Co-Chair, National Advisory Panel, Third International Mathematics and Science Study-Replication.
1998-2001 Member, Board of Overseers, Center for Education, National Research Council, National Academy of Sciences.
1997-98 Member, Education Nominating Committee, Charles A. Dana Foundation
1997- 2000 Advisory Board, National Institute for Science Education
1996- 2000 Chair, Technical Advisory Panel, Mid-Atlantic Regional Educational Laboratory
1996-98 Member, Education Commission of the States/NASDAC/Annenberg Advisory Committee
1996-99 Member, Committee on Education Finance: Equity, Adequacy, and Productivity, National Research Council, National Academy of Science
1995-2003 Member, Board of Directors, Public/Private Ventures
1995-2001 Member, Congressionally Mandated Independent Review Panel on Title I
1994-98 Member, Education Advisory Panel of New American Schools Development Corporation
1992-93 Member, National Education Support System for Teachers and Schools Committee; National Academy of Sciences' National Research Council
1992 Member, K-12 Task Force of the Clinton/Gore Education Department Transition Team
1991 Member, Standards Task Force, National Council on Educational Standards and Testing, National Education Goals Panel
1991-95 Member, National Advisory Board, National Center for Research on Teacher Learning, Michigan State University
1990-93 Member, National Advisory Panel, National Center for Educational Leadership, Harvard University
1988-89 Chair, Policy Analysis and Use Panel, National Assessment of Educational Progress
1974-83 Consultant in Management and Financing of Education, Education and Public Policy Program, The Ford Foundation, New York City
State
2005-6 Co-Chair, Governor-elect Jon Corzine’s Education Policy Transition Panel
1993-95 Chair, National Advisory Council, Delaware’s New Directions Reform Initiative
1991 Member, State of New Jersey Task Force on Educational Assessment and Monitoring
1984 Consultant to Connecticut General Assembly Study of the Program Review Committee
1975 Consultant to Governor Carey's Task Force on School Finance Reform
1974 Consultant to the Connecticut Commission to Study School Finance and of Educational Opportunity
Local
2000 Member, I Had A Dream Project Advisory Committee, Plainfield, NJ
1999 Co-Chair, Philadelphia Mayor-Elect John Street’s Education Program Transition Team
1998- Co-Chair, West Philadelphia and University City Public School Cluster Resource Boards, Philadelphia
1998- Member of Coordinating Committee for new University of Pennsylvania-assisted Neighborhood Public School, West Philadelphia.
1995-6 Member, Board of Directors, Philadelphia Education Fund
1986-92 Member and Vice-President, Board of Education, Westfield, NJ
Editorial Boards
2003-2004 Member, Editorial Board of Educational Administration Quarterly
1999-2002 Member, Editorial Advisory Board of American Education Research Journal
1996-97 Member, Editorial Advisory Board of Review of Research in Education
1997-2003 Member, Editorial Board of Educational Evaluation and Policy Analysis
1993-96 Member, Editorial Board of Educational Administration Quarterly
1991- Member of the Editorial Board, Education Policy
1990-95 Member of the Editorial Board, Phi Delta Kappan
1990 Section editor for Education Policy, The Encyclopedia of Educational Research
Professional Associations
Association for Public Policy Analysis and Management
- Policy Council, 1996-2001(elected)
- 1992 and 1993 Dissertation Award Committee
- 1990 Program Committee
American Educational Research Association
- Member, Research Advisory Committee, 2005-
- Member, Consensus Panel on Research on Teacher Education, 2000-2005
- Vice President, Division “L” -- Policy and Politics, 1998-2000 (elected)
- Member, ad hoc committee on AERA public policy positions, 1994
- Chair, Organization of Institutional Affiliates, 1992
- Chair, Organization of Research Centers, 1988-89
- Member, Government and Professional Liaison Committee, 1988-93
- Politics and Education Association, (Special Interest Group of AERA), member-at-large, 1989-90
American Educational Finance Association
- Member, Board of Trustees, 1981-83
Professional Presentations
SELECTED SPEECHES/PAPER PRESENTATIONS
Lessons Learned about Connecting Research to Policy: Making the Most of Evaluation Findings,” Eastern Evaluation Research Society, April 15, 2013.
“Lessons Learned about Connecting Research to Policy,” Society for Research on Educational Effectiveness, September 6, 2012.
“Preparing Quality Teachers in the 21st Century: The Preparation Challenge,” Universidad Torcuato Di Tella, Buenos Aires, Argentina, May 30, 2012.
“What Makes Effective Teaching (and Effective Teacher Preparation)?,” ACS Cobham International School, February 2, 2012.
“Creating Quality Teachers in the 21st Century,” Pearson Foundation, Santiago, Chile. November 12, 2011.
“Challenges and Opportunities in Education Reform,” Citizens’ Committee for Children, NYC, October 29, 2009
“US Education Reform,” Lyons France, June, 2009
‘Teacher Quality,” East China Normal University, Shanghai, China and National Institute of Education, Singapore, March, 2009
“Policy Implementation,” Catholic University, Milan, Italy, March, 2009
“Education Policy in the United States,” Sino-US Education Policy Roundtable, Shanghai, China, December 12, 2005.
“The Influence of Standards and Accountability Systems on Curriculum Policy in the United States.,” with Margaret Goertz, at a meeting of the National Institute for Research on Pedagogy, Lyon, France, May 24, 2005.
“Education Policy in the United States,” East China Normal University, Shanghai, China, March 14, 2005.
“Education Policy in the United States,” at the Beijing University, Beijing China, March 8, 2005.
“Standards and Accountability in the United States,” US/UK Bilateral Conference on Urban Education, London, England, December 13, 2004.
“Accountability: How is it Working?” at the Summer Institute of New Leaders for New Schools, Philadelphia, PA., July 27, 2004
“Education Research in Mexico,” at the Center for Education Research and Improvement’s governing board, Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development. Paris, France, May 27, 2004
“A Culture of Evaluation: the Use of Assessment Data in the US,” at the CPRE/ French National Institute for Research on Pedagogy (INRP) Roundtable. Philadelphia, PA. January 23, 2004.
“Accountability in the United States: How is it Working?” at the US/Australia Education Policy Roundtable. Melbourne, August 5, 2003.
“Accountability: What are We Learning?” at the National Conference of State Legislatures Annual Meeting. San Francisco, Ca. July 23, 2003.
“The Impact and Use of Institutional Assessment,” at a workshop of the Board of International and Comparative Studies in Education, National Research Council, National Academy of Sciences, Washington, DC, March 3, 2003.
“Accountability: What are We Learning?” at the Annual Meeting of the National Academy of Education, Toronto, Canada, Oct 18, 2002.
“School Reform in the U.S.,” at the Annual Meeting of Eduventures, Philadelphia, PA, July 27, 2002.
“Where is the Federal Power in Education Likely to Lead,” at an Education Commission of the States’ National Forum, Los Angeles, CA, July 11, 2002.
“Issues in Federal Education Research Policy,” at the anniversary meeting of the Spencer Foundation, Chicago, IL, June 26, 2002.
“Accountability in the States: What is Research Showing,” at the annual meeting of the Education Writers’ Association, Washington, DC, April 26, 2002.
“What We Know about Standards Reforms” at the Annual Meeting of the American Educational Research Association (Mathematics Special Interest Group), New Orleans, LA, April 3, 2002.
“Accountability: Is it Working?” at the Annual Meeting of the American Association of School Administrators, San Diego, CA, February 15, 2002.
“Urban Educational Challenges: Is Reform the Answer?” The Penn Graduate School of Education’s Annual Clayton Lecture in Urban Education, Philadelphia, October, 2001.
“Measuring Comprehensive Reform Model Effectiveness: Schools, Student Learning, and Responsibility” at the annual meeting of the American Educational Research Association, New Orleans, LA. April 25, 2000.
Division L Vice Presidential address, “Education Policy: What Role for Research?” at the annual meeting of the American Educational Research Association, New Orleans, LA, April 26, 2000.
Publications
Books and Monographs
The State of Education Policy Research, co-edited with David K. Cohen and Frederick Mosher, Mahwah, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates, 2006 forthcoming.
American Institutions of Democracy: The Public Schools, co-edited with Marvin Lazerson. New York: Oxford University Press, 2005.
Redesigning Accountability Systems for Education, co-edited with Richard Elmore. New York: Teachers College Press, 2004.
From the Capitol to the Classroom: Standards-Based Reform in the States, One Hundredth Yearbook of the National Society for the Study of Education, edited book. Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 2001.
Rewards and Reform: Creating Educational Incentives that Work, co-edited with Jennifer O'Day. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass, Inc., 1996.
The Governance of Curriculum, co-edited with Richard F. Elmore. Washington, D.C.: Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development, 1994.
Designing Coherent Education Policy: Improving the System, edited book. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass, Inc., 1993.
The Politics of Curriculum and Testing, co-edited with Betty Malen. Philadelphia: Falmer Press, 1991.
Selected Articles and Book Chapters
“Urban Education Challenges: Is Reform the Answer?” In "Messages for Educational Leadership: The Constance E. Clayton Lectures 1998-2007" by Peter Lang Academic Publishing Group, 2011.
“Educational governance in the US.: Where are we? How did we get here? Why should we care?,” with Margaret E. Goertz and Elliot H. Weinbaum, in The State of Education Policy Research, edited by Susan Fuhrman, David K. Cohen and Frederick Mosher. Mahwah, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates, forthcoming, 2006.“The 10th Amendment: Standards, Testing, and Accountability,” in Who’s in Charge of the Schools? The Tangled Web or Education Power and Policy, edited by Noel Epstein, Brookings Institution Press, May 2004.
“Slow Down, You move Too Fast: The Politics of Making Changes in High-Stakes Accountability Policies for Students,” with Margaret E. Goertz and Mark C. Duffy, in Redesigning Accountability Systems for Education, co-edited with Richard Elmore. New York: Teachers College Press, 2004.
“Riding waves, trading horses. The twenty-year effort to reform education.” in D.T. Gordon (Ed.), A nation reformed? American education 20 years after A Nation At Risk. Cambridge, MA: Harvard Education Press, 2003
“The district role in instructional improvement.” with Thomas B. Corcoran and Catherine Belcher, Phi Delta Kappan, 83 (1): 78-84, 2001
“Holding schools accountable – is it working?” with Richard F. Elmore, Phi Delta Kappan, 83(1): 67-72, 2001.
“Introduction” with Allan R.Odden, Phi Delta Kappan, 83 (1): 59-61, 2001.
"Improving Primary and Secondary Education," in Planning for a New Century, The Metropolitan Agenda, edited by Jonathan Barnett, Island Press, Washington, D.C., 2000.
“The Politics of School Finance,” with Melissa Carr, in Making Money Matter: Equity and Adequacy in Education Finance, National Academy of Sciences Press, 1999.
“Commentary on Reform Up Close,” in Diane Ravitch, ed. Education Policy, Brookings, 1998.
“Educational Research in the USA.” In The Role of Research in Mature Education Systems, edited by Seamus Hegarty. Wales, U.K.: National Foundation for Educational Research in England, 1997, pp. 28-31.
“Education Outcome-based Accountability Systems: Challenges and Lessons.” In The Evaluation Exchange: Emerging Strategies in Evaluating Child and Family Services, 1996, 2 (1): 8, 11.
"The New Accountability in State Education Reform: From Process to Performance," with Richard F. Elmore and Charles H. Abelmann. In Holding Schools Accountable: Performance-Based Reform in Education, edited by Helen Ladd. Washington, D.C.: The Brookings Institution, 1996, pp. 65-98.
“Ruling Out Rules: The Evolution of Deregulation in State Educational Policy,” with Richard F. Elmore. In Teachers College Record, 1995, 97 (2): 279-309.
"Challenges for Education Policy at the Turn of the Century." In Seventy-Five Years of Progress: Prospects for School Mathematics, edited by Iris M. Carl. National Council of Teachers of Mathematics 75th Anniversary Volume, 1995, pp. 308-321.
"Opportunity-to-Learn Standards and the State Role in Education," with Richard F. Elmore. In Teachers College Record, 1995, 96 (3): 432-457.
"Clinton's Education Policy and Intergovernmental Relations in the 1990's." In Publius: 1994 Annual Review of Federalism, 1994, 24 (3): 83-97.
"Lessons from Victoria," with Susan Moore Johnson. In Phi Delta Kappan, 1994, 75: 770-774.
"National Education Standards," with Marshall S. Smith and Jennifer O'Day. In The Governance of Curriculum, edited by Richard F. Elmore and Susan H. Fuhrman. Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development, 1994.
"Legislatures and Education Policy." In The Governance of Curriculum, edited by Elmore and Fuhrman, ASCD, 1994.
"Governors and Education Policy," with Richard F. Elmore. In The Governance of Curriculum, edited by Elmore and Fuhrman, ASCD, 1994.
"School Reform in the United States: Putting it into Context," with Richard F. Elmore and Diane Massell. In Reforming Education: The Emerging Systemic Approach, edited by Stephen L. Jacobson and Robert Berne. Corwin Press, 1993, pp. 3-27.
"The Politics of Coherence." In Designing Coherent Policy: Improving the System, edited by Susan H. Fuhrman. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass, 1993, pp. 1-34.
"The Center for Policy Research in Education: An Overview." In Institutions for Policy Advice, edited by Carol H. Weiss. Sage Publications, 1991, pp. 81-97.
"An Overview of Curriculum and Testing," with Betty Malen. In The Politics of Curriculum and Testing, edited by Susan H. Fuhrman and Betty Malen. Philadelphia: Falmer Press, 1991, pp. 1-9.
"State Educational Reform Since 1983: Appraisal and the Future," with William A. Firestone and Michael W. Kirst. In Education Policy, 1991, 5 (3): 233-250.
"An Overview of Education Reform Since 1983," with William A. Firestone and Michael W. Kirst. In The Educational Reform Movement of the 1980’s: Themes and Cases, edited by J. Murphy. Berkeley, CA: McCutchan, 1990, pp. 349-363.
"The National Interest and the Federal Role in Education," with Richard Elmore. In Publius: 1990 Annual Review of Federalism, 1990, 20 (3): 149-62.
"Diversity Amidst Standardization: State Differential Treatment of Districts," with the assistance of Patti Fry. In Choice and Control in American Education, Vol. 2, edited by William Clune and John Witte. London: Falmer Press, 1990, pp. 251-82.
"Understanding Local Control in the Wake of State Education Reform," with Richard Elmore. InEducational Evaluation and Policy Analysis, 1990, 12 (1): 82-96.