Torri D Hart
Research Associate, Texas Education Leadership Lab
Ph.D. in Educational Policy & Planning, University of Texas at Austin, expected 2026
M.A. in English, George Mason University, 2019
B.A. in English, Secondary Education, Radford University, 2016
Email: torri.hart@austin.utexas.edu
View Curriculum Vitae (pdf)
Ph.D. in Educational Policy & Planning, University of Texas at Austin, expected 2026
M.A. in English, George Mason University, 2019
B.A. in English, Secondary Education, Radford University, 2016
Email: torri.hart@austin.utexas.edu
View Curriculum Vitae (pdf)
Torri Danny Hart is a doctoral student in the Educational Policy and Planning program at The University of Texas at Austin. She holds a Bachelor of Arts in English and Secondary Education from Radford University and a Master of Arts in English from George Mason University. Currently, Hart is a research associate for the Texas Education Leadership Lab.
Hart began her career as an eighth-grade English teacher in Southern Virginia where she became passionate about providing equitable educational resources and opportunities to students in rural spaces. After completing her first year of teaching, she moved to Northern Virginia where she completed her M.A. while working as a technical writer and secondary English teacher. She taught at the middle and high school levels, including collegiate composition courses, for six years before pursuing doctoral studies. Prior to beginning her work with UT, Hart served as a government-contracted Strategic Communications Analyst for the United States Coast Guard. Each position has contributed to her skillset as a Teaching and Research Assistant in Educational Leadership & Policy.
Hart's research aims to investigate and illustrate the nuances associated with educational leadership (e.g., educational policy and politics, school-community culture, district needs, resource availability from local-, state-, and federal-levels) to identify useful, adaptable leadership practices to create equitable schools for all students. Specifically, she is interested in better understanding how educational leadership functions to create inclusive schools, socially and instructionally, for students with disabilities in rural schools. The goal of her work is to identify and develop leadership practices and educational policies that are responsive to a wide-range of contextual demands, particularly in rural spaces.
Hart is pursuing her doctorate in Educational Policy and Planning with the intention to contribute to the development of equity-oriented superintendents, principals, and teacher leaders through her research and instruction in educational leadership programs.
Hart began her career as an eighth-grade English teacher in Southern Virginia where she became passionate about providing equitable educational resources and opportunities to students in rural spaces. After completing her first year of teaching, she moved to Northern Virginia where she completed her M.A. while working as a technical writer and secondary English teacher. She taught at the middle and high school levels, including collegiate composition courses, for six years before pursuing doctoral studies. Prior to beginning her work with UT, Hart served as a government-contracted Strategic Communications Analyst for the United States Coast Guard. Each position has contributed to her skillset as a Teaching and Research Assistant in Educational Leadership & Policy.
Hart's research aims to investigate and illustrate the nuances associated with educational leadership (e.g., educational policy and politics, school-community culture, district needs, resource availability from local-, state-, and federal-levels) to identify useful, adaptable leadership practices to create equitable schools for all students. Specifically, she is interested in better understanding how educational leadership functions to create inclusive schools, socially and instructionally, for students with disabilities in rural schools. The goal of her work is to identify and develop leadership practices and educational policies that are responsive to a wide-range of contextual demands, particularly in rural spaces.
Hart is pursuing her doctorate in Educational Policy and Planning with the intention to contribute to the development of equity-oriented superintendents, principals, and teacher leaders through her research and instruction in educational leadership programs.
