Joshua Childs

Ph.D. in Learning Sciences and Policy, The University of Pittsburgh

M.A. in Educational Foundations, Policy, and Practice, University of Colorado-Boulder

B.A. in History and Elementary Education, University of Tulsa

Examines collaborative approaches involving community organizations and stakeholders that improve academic achievement and reduce opportunity gaps for students.

Childs, J. & Grooms, A.A.. (2018). Improving School Attendance through Collaboration: A Catalyst for Community Involvement and Change. Journal of Education for Students Placed at Risk (JESPAR), 23(1-2), 122–138. (View)

Childs, J. (2017). Unfinished business: State education agencies and their capacity to lead school turnaround. Enduring Myths That Inhibit School Turnaround.

Childs, J. (2017). What Pittsburgh Is Doing to Ensure Every Child Has a Fighting Chance to Succeed.. National Civic Review, 106(2), 3–9.

Childs, J. & Russell, J.L. (2017). Turning around low-achieving schools: Building state capacity to support improvement through Race to the Top.. Urban Education.

Jimerson, J.B.. & Childs, J. (2017). Signal and symbol: How state and local polices address data-informed Practice.. Educational Policy.

Milner, H.R.., Laughter, J.. & Childs, J.. (n.d.). Developing teacher leadership for equity in urban schools.. Handbook for Urban Educational Leadership..

Russell, J.L.., Meredith, J.., Childs, J.., Stein, M.K.. & Prine, D.W.. (n.d.). Designing inter-organizational networks to implement education reform: An analysis of state Race to the Top applications.. Educational Evaluation and Policy Analysis.

University of Pittsburgh School of Education Outstanding Dissertation Award, University of Pittsburgh School of Education (2016)

Minority Dissertation Fellowship (Declined), American Educational Research Association (2015 - 2016)

David L. Clark Scholar, University Council for Educational Administration (2013 - 2014)

Barbara Jackson Scholar, University Council for Educational Administration (2011 - 2013)

Sissi D O'reilly (Supervisor)
My current dissertation research seeks to understand and interpret how principal leadership intersects with social network theory in order to effectively enact school improvement and changes through development of culture, communication, and leadership behaviors in a network context using qualitative research methods and social network analysis of principal ego-networks. These investigations will participate in the discourse regarding the manifestations of power dynamics in school leadership, the contexts in which school reform decisions are made, and...