UW-Madison Department of Educational Leadership & Policy Analysis (ELPA)

09/01/2026

It was great celebrating the start of the 2026-27 school year with everyone at the LEADS and HESAB Welcome Social last Thursday! We hope everyone has a great year, and good luck with your first day of classes tomorrow!

08/27/2026

08/21/2026

There were lots of familiar faces and ELPA alumni at the recent Wisconsin Association of School District Administrators (WASDA) New Superintendent Academy! Pictured from left to right:

Dr. Kathy Cooke (PhD ‘91), Director of the WASDA New Superintendent Academy and retired superintendent

Dr. Shannon Anderson (MS ’09, PhD ‘19), superintendent, Oregon School District

Dr. Francis Redmon (MS ’17, PhD ‘21), superintendent, Tomah Area School District

Dr. Neil O'Connell (PhD ‘22), superintendent, Johnson Creek School District

Jeremy Bilhorn (MS ‘01), superintendent, Milton School District

Dr. Kristin Jacobson (PhD ’26), Agency Administrator, Marathon County Special Education

Dr. Barb Sramek (PhD ‘07), ELPA Clinical Professor, Director of Professional Development and Member Services at WASDA, and former superintendent

08/19/2026

Congratulations to ELPA alum Dr. Erin Gill (PhD ’25), Dr. Mollie McQuillan, and doctoral candidate Benjamin Lebovitz, who were recently awarded a $50,000 Small Grant from the Spencer Foundation to examine how LGBTQ+-restrictive legislation affects student safety and well-being! The team’s research project was selected from approximately 1,300 grant proposals.

Their project, “The Educational Costs of Policy Erasure: Estimating the Impact of Escalating LGBTQ+-Restrictive Legislation on Student Safety and Mental Health,” examines how restrictive state policies shape the experience of le***an, gay, bisexual, q***r, and questioning (LGBQ+) students.

A research team led by UW–Madison alumna Erin Gill was recently awarded a $50,000 Small Grant from the Spencer Foundation to examine how LGBTQ+-restrictive legislation affects student safety and well-being. Gill, who earned her doctorate from the School of Education’s Department of Educational L...

08/18/2026

ELPA student orgs LEADS and HESAB would like to invite all ELPA students, faculty, and staff to our annual Welcome Social! Come celebrate the start of a new school year, see some familiar faces, and help us welcome our new students!

The social will take place next Thursday, August 27, from 5-7 pm, on the 3rd-floor Terrace of the Education Building. Our rain location will be room 290 in the Education Building.

If you plan to attend, please RSVP to help us ensure we have enough pizza for everyone and accommodate all dietary needs. Please RSVP using this link: https://tinyurl.com/elpasocial26

Please feel free to reach out to LEADS with any questions about the social. We hope to see you there!

08/17/2026

A new school year is quickly approaching, but ELPA students didn’t stop their learning over the summer!

Meet some of the students from our 2026 K-12 Leadership MS program cohort, who recently completed ELPA 832: Resource Allocation for Equity and Social Justice, with lecturer Dr. Steve Salerno.

08/14/2026

Big congratulations to GHE student Lily Frehner, who presented at the 2026 Global Ophthalmology Summit in Philadelphia this month! Her presentation, "Sustaining Sight: The Critical Role of Pre-Departure Orientation in Global Health Electives," made the case that strong pre-departure prep isn't just an international education checkbox — it's essential to how safely and ethically medical trainees serve communities abroad. It's a great example of what happens when global health and international higher education meet. Congrats, Lily! 👏

UW-Madison Department of Educational Leadership & Policy Analysis (ELPA)

07/29/2026

Congratulations to Dr. Francesca López, who was selected to serve on the William T. Grant Scholars Selection Committee!

Launched in 1982, the William T. Grant Scholars Program supports the professional development of promising early-career researchers in the social, behavioral, and health sciences. The Selection Committee, composed of accomplished senior scientists in their respective fields, is responsible for evaluating applicants and selecting new committee members.

UW–Madison’s Francesca López, the Jim and Georgia Thompson Distinguished Professor in the School of Education’s Department of Educational Policy and Leadership Analysis, has been selected to serve on the William T. Grant Scholars Selection Committee. Launched in 1982, the William T. Grant Sch...

07/27/2026

Dr. Frank Fernandez was recently featured in The EDU Ledger for his expertise on how artificial intelligence (AI) is reshaping higher education financing. The article, “Universities Are Betting Big on AI — and Some Are Already Cashing In,” examines how colleges and universities are investing in AI while navigating financial pressures, declining public funding, and shifting economic realities.

UW–Madison’s Frank Fernandez, an associate professor in the School of Education’s Department of Educational Leadership and Policy Analysis, was recently featured in The EDU Ledger for his expertise on how artificial intelligence (AI) is reshaping higher education financing. The article, “Uni...

07/23/2026

Happening tonight!

Dr. Kevin Henry will moderate a forum featuring the five Democratic candidates in the 2026 Wisconsin governor’s race. All candidates in the race were invited to participate.

The forum is hosted by the Wisconsin Public Education Network at the University of Wisconsin–Superior as part of the Wisconsin Public Education Network’s annual summer summit. If you're in the Northwoods, this is a great opportunity to hear from the gubernatorial candidates firsthand!

A School of Education faculty member will serve as moderator for a forum featuring the five Democratic candidates in the 2026 Wisconsin governor’s race. All candidates in the race were invited to participate. Kevin Lawrence Henry, Jr., an associate professor in the Department of Educational Leader...