Johns Hopkins School of Education to launch education policy institute

The Johns Hopkins University School of Education will open a policy institute this summer led by David M. Steiner, a former New York state education commissioner.

Image caption: David M. Steiner

The Institute for Education Policy is set to open on August 1. Steiner has also been appointed a professor at the School of Education.

"We are very excited to be establishing this institute that will offer the latest research-based direction to policy makers to aid in the development of more effective approaches to educational practice," said David W. Andrews, dean of the school. "We are especially proud that Dr. Steiner has agreed to direct our efforts. He brings a unique record of achievement as a policy leader, education reformer, and scholar."

As commissioner of education for New York, Steiner took a lead role in the state's $700 million Race to the Top application to support the redesign of state standards, assessments, and charter school authorization. New York's bid included major funding for new curricula and a significant raising of standards for students and future teachers.

Steiner, the former dean at the Hunter College School of Education, achieved national recognition for clinically-rich teacher residencies, a teacher training partnership with charter school networks, and major innovation in the video analysis of teaching. Under his leadership, the Hunter College School of Education received the highest ratings in New York—and among the highest in the country—from the National Council on Teacher Quality, and the prestigious Christa McAuliffe Excellence in Teacher Education Award.

Steiner also founded The CUNY Institute for Education Policy, which has earned widespread credibility as a non-partisan, public space where educational leaders from diverse organizations engage with important research and innovative ideas. The new institute at Johns Hopkins is expected to continue this work in New York City in partnership with Hunter College.

"I am honored to be joining Dean Andrews and the highly distinguished faculty at the Johns Hopkins School of Education," Steiner said. "The opportunity to create an Institute for Education Policy dedicated to education reform through research-based practice is immensely exciting, and Hopkins provides the ideal environment to undertake this critically important work."