Kathleen McCartney, the Gerald S. Lesser Professor in Early Childhood Development, was named Dean of the Harvard Graduate School of Education in 2006. In collaboration with a dedicated faculty and administrative team, she has implemented a strategic plan that has resulted in the creation of two new degree programs, the doctorate in education leadership (Ed.L.D.), and a new interfaculty Ph.D. in education; a 25 percent growth in core faculty; a doubling of financial aid for Ed.M. students; a dramatic increase in fellowship support for doctoral students; and the establishment of a partner network with over 30 districts and non-profit organizations.
McCartney’s research program concerns early experience and development, and she has published more than 150 articles and chapters on child care, early childhood education, and poverty. She is a member of the NICHD Early Child Care Research Network, which summarized the results of their longitudinal study in Child Care and Child Development. She also co-edited Experience and Development, The Blackwell Handbook of Early Childhood Development, and Best Practices in Developmental Research Methods.
McCartney received her B.S. in psychology summa cum laude from Tufts University, where she now serves as a trustee, and her M.S. and Ph.D. in developmental psychology from Yale University. In 2012 she was inducted as a member of the American Academy of Arts & Sciences, and in 2009 she received the Distinguished Contribution Award from the Society for Research in Child Development. McCartney is also a Fellow of the American Education Research Association, the American Psychological Association, and the American Psychological Society.
She was elected to the Tufts University Board of Trustees in 2007.
Last updated: November 2012
