Teachers College, Columbia University

Founding and early history

Russell Hall

Teachers College was the first graduate school in the United States whose curriculum focused specifically on teacher education.^[9]

In 1880, the Kitchen Education Association (KEA) was founded by philanthropist Grace Hoadley Dodge, the daughter of wealthy businessman William Dodge. The association's focus was to replace miniature kitchen utensils for other toys that were age-appropriate for kindergarten-aged girls.^[10][9] In 1884, the KEA was rebranded to the Industrial Education Association (IEA), in the spirit of widening its mission to boys and parents. Three years later, it moved to the former Union Theological Seminary building on University Place, as well as founded a coeducational private school called the Horace Mann School.^[11]

In 1887 William Vanderbilt Jr. offered a substantial financial sum to the IEA.^[9] With the support of Dodge, Vanderbilt appointed Nicholas Murray Butler, the future longest-serving president of Columbia University and Nobel Peace Prize recipient, as new president of the IEA. The IEA decided to provide schooling for the teachers of the poor children of New York City. Thus, in 1887–1888, it employed six instructors and enrolled 36 juniors in its inaugural class as well as 86 special students.^[9] To reflect the broadening mission of education beyond the original philanthropic intent set forth by Dodge, the IEA changed its name to the New York School for the Training of Teachers,^[9][11] and received its temporary charter from the New York State Board of Regents.^[11]

Teachers College buildings on Broadway and 120th St., looking northwest

By October 1890, the school's trustees were looking for a new campus, as the University Place campus was considered too small. After discussion with Columbia University president Seth Low, the trustees settled on a site in Morningside Heights, near where Columbia's campus was being built.^[12] In 1892, the name of the New York School for the Training of Teachers was again changed to Teachers College.^[9] The next year, Teachers College and Columbia University were merged (affiliated) with each other, and the trustees acquired land for the new college campus in Morningside Heights.^[13] The buildings for the campus of the college were designed by William Appleton Potter.^[13][14] The first structure in the original complex, Main Hall, was completed in late 1894; the last, Milbank Memorial Hall, was finished three years later.^[15]

The curriculum combined a humanitarian concern to help others with a scientific approach to human development. The college was affiliated with Columbia University in 1898 as the university's Graduate School of Education.^[4][13] A new building for Horace Mann was erected in 1899,^[16] followed by the Frederick Ferris Thompson Memorial Hall in 1902–1904.^[17] Additionally, a four-wing dormitory building, called Whittier Hall, was built in 1900–1901.^[18] Enrollment increased quickly: the graduating class of 1911 contained 686 students, as opposed to the 26 students in the first graduating class.^[19]

Expansion of scope

John Dewey

The founders early recognized that professional teachers need reliable knowledge about the conditions under which children learn most effectively. As a result, the college's program from the start included such fundamental subjects as educational psychology and educational sociology. The founders also insisted that education must be combined with clear ideas about ethics and the nature of a good society; consequently, programs were developed in the history of education and in comparative education.

As the number of school children increased during the twentieth century, the problems of managing the schools became ever more complex. The college took on the challenge and instituted programs of study in areas of administration, economics, and politics. Other programs developed in such emerging fields as clinical and counseling psychology, organizational psychology, developmental psychology, cognitive psychology, curriculum development, instructional technology, media studies, and school health care.

Teachers College, Columbia University, was also associated with philosopher and public intellectual John Dewey, who served as president of the American Psychological Association and the American Philosophical Association, and was a professor at the facility from 1904 until his retirement in 1930.^[20]

Presidents

Nicholas Murray Butler

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Grace Hoadley Dodge

Grace Hoadley Dodge

Grace Hoadley Dodge was an American philanthropist who was the first woman appointed a member of the New York Board of Education.

Horace Mann School

Horace Mann School

Horace Mann School is a private, independent college-preparatory school in the Bronx, founded in 1887. Horace Mann is a member of the Ivy Preparatory School League, educating students from the New York metropolitan area from nursery school to the twelfth grade. The Upper, Middle, and Lower Divisions are located in Riverdale, a neighborhood of the Bronx, while the Nursery School is located in Manhattan. The John Dorr Nature Laboratory, a 275 acres (111 ha) campus in Washington Depot, Connecticut, serves as the school's outdoor and community education center. Tuition for the 2021–22 school year from pre-kindergarten through grade twelve is $57,200 per annum, not including some additional fees, one of which exceeds $1,000. The 2020 Niche survey ranked HM as the 3rd best K–12 private school in the country and the 12th best private high school in the country.

Nicholas Murray Butler

Nicholas Murray Butler

Nicholas Murray Butler was an American philosopher, diplomat, and educator. Butler was president of Columbia University, president of the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, a recipient of the Nobel Peace Prize, and the deceased James S. Sherman's replacement as William Howard Taft’s running mate in the 1912 United States presidential election. He became so well known and respected that The New York Times printed his Christmas greeting to the nation every year.

Nobel Peace Prize

Nobel Peace Prize

The Nobel Peace Prize is one of the five Nobel Prizes established by the will of Swedish industrialist, inventor and armaments manufacturer Alfred Nobel, along with the prizes in Chemistry, Physics, Physiology or Medicine and Literature. Since March 1901, it has been awarded annually to those who have "done the most or the best work for fraternity between nations, for the abolition or reduction of standing armies and for the holding and promotion of peace congresses".

Board of Regents of the University of the State of New York

Board of Regents of the University of the State of New York

The Board of Regents of the University of the State of New York is responsible for the general supervision of all educational activities within New York State, presiding over University of the State of New York and the New York State Education Department.

Columbia University

Columbia University

Columbia University is a private Ivy League research university in New York City. Established in 1754 as King's College on the grounds of Trinity Church in Manhattan, it is the oldest institution of higher education in New York, the fifth-oldest in the United States, and one of nine colonial colleges founded prior to the Declaration of Independence.

John Dewey

John Dewey

John Dewey was an American philosopher, psychologist, and educational reformer whose ideas have been influential in education and social reform. He was one of the most prominent American scholars in the first half of the twentieth century.

Educational psychology

Educational psychology

Educational psychology is the branch of psychology concerned with the scientific study of human learning. The study of learning processes, from both cognitive and behavioral perspectives, allows researchers to understand individual differences in intelligence, cognitive development, affect, motivation, self-regulation, and self-concept, as well as their role in learning. The field of educational psychology relies heavily on quantitative methods, including testing and measurement, to enhance educational activities related to instructional design, classroom management, and assessment, which serve to facilitate learning processes in various educational settings across the lifespan.

History of education

History of education

The history of education extends at least as far back as the first written records recovered from ancient civilizations. Historical studies have included virtually every nation.

Comparative education

Comparative education

Comparative education is a discipline in the social sciences which entails the scrutiny and evaluation of different educational systems, such as those in various countries. Professionals in this area of endeavor are absorbed in advancing evocative terminologies and guidelines for education worldwide, enhancing educational structures and producing a context to which the success and effectivity of education programs and initiatives can be assessed.

Business administration

Business administration

Business administration, also known as business management, is the administration of a commercial enterprise. It includes all aspects of overseeing and supervising the business operations of an organization. From the point of view of management and leadership, it also covers fields that include office building administration, accounting, finance, designing, development, quality assurance, data analysis, sales, project management, information-technology management, research and development, and marketing.

Psychology

Psychology

Psychology is the scientific study of mind and behavior in humans and non-humans. Psychology includes the study of conscious and unconscious phenomena, including feelings and thoughts. It is an academic discipline of immense scope, crossing the boundaries between the natural and social sciences. Psychologists seek an understanding of the emergent properties of brains, linking the discipline to neuroscience. As social scientists, psychologists aim to understand the behavior of individuals and groups. Ψ (psi), the first letter of the Greek word psyche from which the term psychology is derived, is commonly associated with the science.

The school offers Master of Arts (M.A.), Master of Education (Ed.M.), Master of Science (M.S.), Doctor of Education (Ed.D.), and Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) degrees in over sixty programs of study. Despite the college's name, less than one-third of students are preparing to become teachers. Graduates pursue careers, for example, in the social sciences, health and health promotion, educational policy, technology, international and comparative education, as well as educational leadership. The college's Counseling Psychology Ed.M. is accredited by the Masters in Psychology and Counseling Accreditation Council (MPCAC).^[23]

According to Teachers College former president Susan Fuhrman,^[24] the college provides solutions to the difficult problems of urban education, reaffirming its original mission in providing a new kind of education for those left most in need by society or circumstance. The college continues its collaborative research with urban and suburban school systems that strengthen teaching in such fundamental areas as reading, writing, science, mathematics, and the arts; prepares leaders to develop and administer psychological and health care programs in schools, businesses, hospitals and community agencies; and advances technology for the classroom, developing new teaching software and keeping teachers abreast of new developments.

Dwight D. Eisenhower, 13th President of Columbia University

Teachers College also houses a wide range of applied psychology degrees, including one of the nation's leading programs in organizational psychology. Every year captains from the United States Military Academy at West Point are selected for the Eisenhower Leader Development Program (ELDP) and complete the Organizational Psychology M.A. program to become tactical officers (TAC) at West Point.^[25][26]

The college also houses the programs in anthropology. It was foundational in the development of the field of anthropology and education. By the 1930s, Teachers College had begun to offer courses in anthropology as part of the foundations of education. By 1948 Margaret Mead started what would be a long association with Teachers College where she taught until the early 1970s. In 1953 Solon Kimball joined the faculty. In 1954 nine professors (including Mead and Solon Kimball) came together to discuss the topic. In the 1960s, these people formed the Council on Anthropology and Education within the American Anthropological Association, and it is still considered as the leading organization in the field.

Margaret Mead, became President of the American Anthropological Association in 1960

The student experience at Teachers College is governed by a student senate, headed by the Senate president, followed by the vice-president, parliamentarian, communications officer, and treasurer. Two senators, a master's candidate, and a PhD candidate are elected each year to represent each academic department at Teachers College to advocate on behalf of current students and alumni. The TC Senate meets bi-weekly to determine what issues need to be investigated.

Academic departments

Rankings

For 2023, U.S. News & World Report ranked Teachers College, Columbia University, No. 7 among all graduate schools of education in the United States.^[27]

In 2008, 2002, 1998, 1997, and 1996 Teachers College, Columbia University, was ranked first by the publication.

Teachers College, Columbia University, was ranked #2 in Curriculum and Instruction in 2023 according to U.S. News & World Report.^[27]

Admissions are highly selective.

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Susan Fuhrman

Susan Fuhrman

Susan Harriet Fuhrman is an American education policy scholar and the first female president of Teachers College, Columbia University. Fuhrman earned her doctorate in Political Science and Education from Teachers College. She became very engaged in issues of educational equity and emerged as an authority on school reform. Fuhrman is known for her early and ongoing critical analysis of the standards movement and for her efforts to foster research that provides a scientific basis for effective teaching.

Dwight D. Eisenhower

Dwight D. Eisenhower

Dwight David "Ike" Eisenhower was an American military officer and statesman who served as the 34th president of the United States from 1953 to 1961. During World War II, he served as Supreme Commander of the Allied Expeditionary Force in Europe and achieved the five-star rank as General of the Army. Eisenhower planned and supervised two of the most consequential military campaigns of World War II: Operation Torch in the North Africa campaign in 1942–1943 and the D-Day invasion of Normandy in 1944. Eisenhower was the only military general president of the 20th century.

Margaret Mead

Margaret Mead

Margaret Mead was an American cultural anthropologist who featured frequently as an author and speaker in the mass media during the 1960s and the 1970s.

American Anthropological Association

American Anthropological Association

The American Anthropological Association (AAA) is an organization of scholars and practitioners in the field of anthropology. With 10,000 members, the association, based in Arlington, Virginia, includes archaeologists, cultural anthropologists, biological anthropologists, linguistic anthropologists, linguists, medical anthropologists and applied anthropologists in universities and colleges, research institutions, government agencies, museums, corporations and non-profits throughout the world. The AAA publishes more than 20 peer-reviewed scholarly journals, available in print and online through AnthroSource. The AAA was founded in 1902.

U.S. News & World Report

U.S. News & World Report

U.S. News & World Report (USNWR) is an American media company that publishes news, consumer advice, rankings, and analysis. It was launched in 1948 as the merger of domestic-focused weekly newspaper U.S. News and international-focused weekly magazine World Report. In 1995, the company launched 'usnews.com' and in 2010, the magazine ceased printing.

Butler Library

Teachers College serves as Columbia University's graduate and professional school of education by virtue of its designation as the university's Faculty and Department of Education.^[4] However, the college holds its own corporate status, including an independent administrative structure, board of trustees and endowment.^[28]

Teachers College graduates are awarded Columbia University degrees.^[29] Teachers College is statutorily prohibited from conferring its own degrees.^[29] Although the college houses PhD programs, these degrees are conferred by Columbia University's Graduate School of Arts and Sciences in a manner analogous to the PhD programs of the university's other professional schools.^[30][31]

Teachers College's graduating class participates in the Columbia University Commencement ceremony.^[32][33][34] TC graduates are Columbia University alumni, may attend Columbia Alumni Association events, retain their @columbia.edu email for life, and are eligible for nomination of the alumni medal and membership to the Columbia University Club of New York.^{[35][36][37][33][34]}

While Teachers College faculty appointments are approved by Teachers College's board of trustees at the discretion of the president of Columbia University, "Columbia University [has] no responsibility for salaries, tenure, or retirement allowances" of officers of Teachers College.^[29]

Low Memorial Library

Teachers College shares academic and institutional resources with greater Columbia University including courses of instruction (Teachers College students may take courses at any other Columbia University graduate school and vice versa),^[38][39] libraries, health service systems, research centers, classrooms, special event facilities and the Dodge Fitness Center.

The Ivy League will allow Columbia fourth-year senior student-athletes, who may have lost playing time due to COVID-19-related cancellations in their final year of eligibility, to continue playing their varsity sport for the 2021–22 season if they are accepted to and enroll at Teachers College.

The Columbia University Senate includes faculty and student representatives from Teachers College who serve two-year terms; all senators are accorded full voting privileges regarding matters impacting the entire University.^[40][41] The president of Teachers College is a dean in the university's governance structure.^[29]

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Butler Library

Butler Library

Butler Library is located on the Morningside Heights campus of Columbia University at 535 West 114th Street, in Manhattan, New York City. It is the university's largest single library with over 2 million volumes, as well as one of the largest buildings on the campus. It houses the Columbia University Libraries collections in the humanities, history, social sciences, literature, philosophy, and religion, and the Columbia Rare Book and Manuscript Library.

Columbia University Club of New York

Columbia University Club of New York

The Columbia University Club of New York is a private university alumni club that extends membership to all graduates of all the schools and affiliates of Columbia University, as well as Columbia undergraduate students, graduate students, faculty and administrators. The Club has more than 2,500 Columbia members representing all the schools and affiliates of Columbia University.

Low Memorial Library

Low Memorial Library

The Low Memorial Library is a building at the center of Columbia University's Morningside Heights campus in Manhattan, New York City, United States. The building, located near 116th Street between Broadway and Amsterdam Avenue, was designed by Charles Follen McKim of the firm McKim, Mead & White. The building was constructed between 1895 and 1897 as the university's central library, although it has contained the university's central administrative offices since 1934. Columbia University president Seth Low funded the building with $1 million and named the edifice in memory of his father, Abiel Abbot Low. Low's facade and interior are New York City designated landmarks, and the building is also designated as a National Historic Landmark.

Ivy League

Ivy League

The Ivy League is an American collegiate athletic conference comprising eight private research universities in the Northeastern United States. The term Ivy League is typically used beyond the sports context to refer to the eight schools as a group of elite colleges with connotations of academic excellence, selectivity in admissions, and social elitism. Its members are Brown University, Columbia University, Cornell University, Dartmouth College, Harvard University, Princeton University, University of Pennsylvania, and Yale University.

Whittier Hall

The college has three residence halls for single students. They are 517 West 121st, Grant Hall, and Whittier Hall.^[42] The college has three residence halls for family housing. They are Bancroft Hall, Grant Hall, and Sarasota Hall. One bedroom apartments are available for childless students and students who have one child. Two and three-bedroom apartments are available for students who have more than one child.^[43] Lowell Hall and Seth Low Hall have faculty housing units.^[44]

The Teachers College Record has been published by the college continuously since 1900. In 1997 a group of doctoral students from Teachers College established the journal Current Issues in Comparative Education (CICE), a leading open-access online academic journal.^[45]

Teachers College Press, founded in 1904, is the national and international book publishing arm of Teachers College and is dedicated to deepening the understanding and improving the practice of education. Teachers College also publishes The Hechinger Report, a non-profit, non-partisan education news outlet focused on inequality and innovation in education that launched in May 2010.

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Teachers College Record

Teachers College Record

Teachers College Record is a monthly peer-reviewed academic journal of education that was established in 1900. It is published by EdLab at Teachers College, Columbia University. The journal also "pre-publishes" papers online, and curates special online issues with the aim of building a weekly audience by utilizing online technologies in order to increase relevancy and reduce publication lag.

Current Issues in Comparative Education

Current Issues in Comparative Education

Current Issues in Comparative Education is an international online, open-access academic journal publishing diverse opinions of academics, practitioners, and students in the field of comparative and international education. The journal shares its home with the oldest program in comparative education in the US, the Teachers College Comparative and International Education Program, founded in 1898. Established in March 1997 by a group of doctoral students from Teachers College, Columbia University, the journal is dedicated to serve as a platform for debate and discussion of contemporary educational matters worldwide.

Academic journal

Academic journal

An academic journal or scholarly journal is a periodical publication in which scholarship relating to a particular academic discipline is published. Academic journals serve as permanent and transparent forums for the presentation, scrutiny, and discussion of research. They nearly universally require peer review or other scrutiny from contemporaries competent and established in their respective fields. Content typically takes the form of articles presenting original research, review articles, or book reviews. The purpose of an academic journal, according to Henry Oldenburg, is to give researchers a venue to "impart their knowledge to one another, and contribute what they can to the Grand design of improving natural knowledge, and perfecting all Philosophical Arts, and Sciences."

Teachers College Press

Teachers College Press

Teachers College Press is the university press of Teachers College, Columbia University. Founded in 1904, Teachers College Press has published professional and classroom materials for over a century and currently publishes 70 titles per year.

Current faculty

Arthur M. Langer

Dr. Ruth Westheimer

• John Allegrante, Health and Behavior Studies
• Charles Basch, Health Education
• George Bonanno, Clinical Psychology
• Peter T. Coleman, Social-Organizational Psychology and Conflict Resolution
• Christopher Emdin, Science Education
• Edmund W. Gordon, Psychology and Education
• Neil R. Grabois, Mathematics Education
• Joan Dye Gussow, Nutrition Education
• Henry Landau, Mathematics Education
• Arthur M. Langer, Professor of Professional Practice, Department of Organization and Leadership
• Suniya Luthar, Psychology and Education
• Elizabeth Midlarsky, Psychology and Education
• Lisa Miller, Clinical Psychology
• Kimberly G. Noble, Neuroscience and Education
• Henry O. Pollak, Mathematics Education
• Michael Rebell, Law and Educational Practice
• Robert S. Siegler, Psychology and Education
• Derald Wing Sue, Counseling Psychology
• Barbara Tversky, Psychology and Education
• Erica Walker, Mathematics and Education
• Barbara C. Wallace, Clinical Psychology
• Ruth Westheimer, Adjunct Professor, International and Transcultural Studies Department.^[46][47]

Past faculty

Margaret Mead

Donna Shalala

• Eva Allen Alberti (1856-1938), dramatics teacher
• Richard Thomas Alexander, founder of New College for the Education of Teachers
• Allen E. Bergin, clinical psychologist
• Elizabeth Burchinal, authority on American folk dance
• Lambros Comitas, Applied Anthropology
• Frank W. Cyr, father of the Yellow School Bus
• Morton Deutsch, social psychologist and founding father of the field of conflict resolution
• John Dewey, philosopher
• Arthur Wesley Dow, arts education
• David F. Duncan, health education
• Elizabeth E. Farrell, first president of the Council for Exceptional Children
• Hamden L. Forkner, founder of Future Business Leaders of America
• Elbert K. Fretwell, second Chief Scout Executive
• Maxine Greene, philosopher of education
• Linda Darling Hammond, founder of the National Center for Restructuring Education
• Virginia Henderson, arguably the most famous nurse of the 20th century
• Leta Stetter Hollingworth, psychology and education
• Adele T. Katz, Music
• William Heard Kilpatrick, philosopher of education
• Solon Kimball, anthropologist
• Julius B. Maller, educational psychology
• Charles J. Martin, arts instructor
• Margaret Mead, anthropologist
• Jack Mezirow, sociologist; former professor of adult and continuing education^[48]
• Harold J. Noah, comparative education
• Nel Noddings, philosopher of education
• Mary Adelaide Nutting, nursing
• Philip H. Phenix, philosopher of education [1]
• Mary Swartz Rose, created nation's first program in nutrition
• Harold Rugg, educational reformer
• Julius Sachs, Education
• Donna Shalala, former US Secretary of Health and Human Services
• Douglas Sloan, professor of history of education; educational theorist; author
• David Eugene Smith, professor of mathematics & mathematics education
• Graeme Sullivan, art education
• Edward Thorndike, psychologist
• Robert L. Thorndike, psychologist
• Clarence Hudson White, founding member of the Photo-Secession movement
• Mary Schenck Woolman, pioneer in vocational education, one of the first two women on staff

Discover more about Notable faculty related topics

Arthur M. Langer

Arthur M. Langer

Arthur M. Langer is an American academic whose work focuses on the effect of technology on organizational structure, behavior and workforce development. Langer is a Vice Provost at Northeastern University, Director of the Center for Technology Management and Digital Leadership, and Professor of Practice at the D'Amore-McKim School of Business Additionally, he is a faculty member in the Department of Organization and Leadership at the Teachers College Graduate School of Education. In 2005, Langer founded Workforce Opportunity Services (WOS), a nonprofit organization that trains and places underserved and Veteran job seekers into long-term careers.

John P. Allegrante

John P. Allegrante

John Philip Allegrante is an American applied behavioral scientist and academic. He is the Charles Irwin Lambert Endowed Professor of Health Behavior and Education at Teachers College, the graduate school of education, health, and psychology at Columbia University, where he has been a member of the faculty since 1979.

Charles Basch

Charles Basch

Charles Basch is the Richard March Hoe Professor of Health and Education at Teachers College, Columbia University, New York City, New York. He teaches courses related to epidemiology, planning and evaluation. Before coming to Teachers College, he was Assistant Professor of Community Health Education at Russell Sage College in Troy, New York.

George Bonanno

George Bonanno

George A. Bonanno is a professor of clinical psychology at Teachers College, Columbia University, U.S. He is responsible for introducing the controversial idea of resilience to the study of loss and trauma. He is known as a pioneering researcher in the field of bereavement and trauma. The New York Times on February 15, 2011, stated that the current science of bereavement has been "driven primarily" by Bonanno. Scientific American summarized a main finding of his work, "The ability to rebound remains the norm throughout adult life." In 2019, Bonanno was honored with the James McKeen Cattell award from the Association of Psychological Science "for a lifetime of intellectual achievements in applied psychological research and their impact on a critical problem in society at large" and by the International Positive Psychology Association for "distinguished lifetime contributions to positive psychology".

Christopher Emdin

Christopher Emdin

Christopher Emdin is the Robert Naslund Endowed Chair in Curriculum and Teaching at the University of Southern California. He is an American academic who was previously an Associate Professor of Science Education at the Teachers College, Columbia University where he also served as Director of Science Education at the Center for Health Equity and Urban Science Education (CHEUSE). He was a noted author of the Obama White House and regular contributor to HuffPost. He developed and partnered with the rapper GZA and the website Rap Genius to develop the Science Genius B.A.T.T.L.E.S, which engages students in science through the creation of raps and a final rap battle competition. Emdin is founder of the #HipHopEd web chat and social movement.

Edmund W. Gordon

Edmund W. Gordon

Edmund Wyatt Gordon is a professor of psychology who "had a tremendous influence on contemporary thinking in psychology, education and social policy and the implications of his work for the schooling of lower status youth and children of color in America".

Joan Dye Gussow

Joan Dye Gussow

Joan Dye Gussow is a professor, author, food policy expert, environmentalist and gardener. The New York Times has called her the "matriarch of the eat-locally-think-globally food movement."

Henry Landau

Henry Landau

Henry Jacob Landau is an American mathematician known for his contributions to information theory, including the theory of bandlimited functions and on moment issues.

Elizabeth Midlarsky

Elizabeth Midlarsky

Elizabeth Midlarsky (1941-2023) was an American professor of psychology and education at Teachers College, Columbia University.

Kimberly Noble

Kimberly Noble

Kimberly G. Noble is an American neuroscientist and pediatrician known for her work in socioeconomic disparities and children's cognitive development. She is Professor of Neuroscience and Education at Teachers College, Columbia University and Director of the Neurocognition, Early Experience and Development (NEED) Lab.

Henry O. Pollak

Henry O. Pollak

Henry Otto Pollak is an Austrian-American mathematician. He is known for his contributions to information theory, and with Ronald Graham is the namesake of the Graham–Pollak theorem in graph theory.

Derald Wing Sue

Derald Wing Sue

Derald Wing Sue is a professor of counseling psychology at Columbia University. He has authored several books, including Counseling the Culturally Diverse: Theory and Practice, Overcoming our Racism, and Understanding Abnormal Behavior.

Mary Antin

Shirley Chisholm

Norman Cousins

Art Garfunkel

Martin Haberman

Lee Huan

John King Jr.

Anita Pollitzer

Diane Ravitch

Robert Sherman

Merryl Tisch

• Thelma C. Davidson Adair (M.A. 1945; Ed.D. 1959), advocate for human rights; peace; and justice
• Muhammad Fadhel al-Jamali (M.A. 1930; PhD 1934), Prime Minister of Iraq
• Pam Allyn (M.A. 1988), literacy expert
• Millie Almy (M.A. 1945, PhD 1948), psychologist and "Grandame of early childhood education"
• Charles Alston (M.F.A. 1931), artist
• Hafizullah Amin (M.A.), president of Afghanistan
• Nahas Gideon Angula (M.A. 1978; Ed.M. 1979), Prime Minister of Namibia
• Mary Antin (1902), immigration rights activist; author of The Promised Land
• Michael Apple (Ed.D. 1970), professor of educational policy studies
• William Ayers (Ed.M.; Ed.D. 1987), founder of Weather Underground; professor of education
• Carolyn Sherwin Bailey (1896), author of Miss Hickory winner of the 1947 Newbery Medal
• Florence E. Bamberger (PhD 1922), pedagogue; school supervisor; progressive education advocate
• Sarah Bavly (M.S. 1929; PhD 1947), Dutch-Israeli nutrition education pioneer in Israel
• Louis T. Benezet (PhD 1942), former president of Claremont Graduate University
• Sara Benincasa (M.A.), comedian and author
• Randy E. Bennett (M.A. 1977; Ed.M., 1978; Ed.D. 1979), educational researcher
• Josephine Thorndike Berry (B.S. 1904, A.M. 1910), American educator, home economist
• C. Louise Boehringer (B.S. 1911), the first female to be elected to office in Arizona
• Zhang Boling (1917), Chinese founder and president of National Nankai University
• Louie Croft Boyd (1909), nursing instructor
• Barnett R. Brickner (M.A.), rabbi
• Augusta Fox Bronner (B.S. 1906; M.A. 1909; PhD 1914), psychologist and co-director of the first child guidance clinic
• John Seiler Brubacher (M.A.; PhD), educational philosopher; professor at Yale
• Edith Buchanan (Ed.D. 1953), nursing educator, Professor & Principal, College of Nursing, (now Rajkumari Amrit Kaur College of Nursing) New Delhi, India
• Paul G. Bulger (Ed.D. 1951), academic administrator
• Peter L. Buttenwieser (PhD), American educator, fundraiser, member of the Lehman family
• Donald Byrd (PhD 1982), jazz and fusion trumpet player; music educator
• William Vincent Campbell Jr. (Ed.M. 1974), board director for Apple Inc.; CEO for Claris; Intuit Inc. and GO Corporation; chairman of the board of trustees of Columbia University
• Betty Castor (1963), politician and president of the University of South Florida
• P. C. Chang (PhD), philosopher and diplomat
• Arthur W. Chickering (PhD 1958), educational researcher in student development theory
• May Edward Chinn (B.S. 1921), first black woman to graduate from Bellevue Hospital Medical College
• Shirley Chisholm (M.A. 1952), first African American woman elected to Congress and former US presidential candidate
• Carl Henry Clerk (PGDip. 1926), fourth synod clerk of the Presbyterian Church of the Gold Coast
• Peter T. Coleman (PhD), psychologist; executive director of the Morton Deutsch ICCCR and the AC4
• Satis N. Coleman (PhD 1931), music educator
• Ennis Cosby (Ed.M. 1995), special education
• Norman Cousins (B.A.), editor; peace activist
• Margaret Mordecai Jones Cruikshank (1911), president of St. Mary's Junior College
• Arthur Cunningham (M.A. 1957), composer
• Frank W. Cyr (PhD 1930), educator and author
• Bidhu Bhusan Das (M.A. 1947), public intellectual; professor; and ranking government official from India
• Sarah Louise Delany (B.A. 1920; Ed.M. 1925), first African-American permitted to teach high school science in New York
• Ella Cara Deloria (B.S. 1915), Yankton Sioux ethnologist
• Patricia DiMango (M.A.), judge; star of CBS’ Hot Bench created by Judge Judy
• Diane DiResta (M.S. 1977), media trainer; speech coach; certified speech pathologist
• Marjorie Housepian Dobkin (M.A.), author; Barnard College professor and dean
• Aaron Douglas (M.A. 1944), painter; illustrator; visual arts educator; and major figure in the Harlem Renaissance
• Patricia Lynne Duffy (M.A. 1981), synesthesia expert
• Edward C. Elliott (M.A.), educational researcher and president of Purdue University
• Albert Ellis (M.A. 1943; PhD 1947), cognitive behavioral therapist
• Blanche General Ely (M.A. 1923), principal and founder of multiple schools in Broward County, Florida
• Claire Fagin (M.A.), first woman to serve as president of an Ivy League university
• Abraham S. Fischler (Ed.D. 1959), academic; second president of Nova Southeastern University
• Edward Fitzpatrick (B.S. 1906; M.A. 1907; PhD 1911), president of Mount Mary College
• Rudolf Flesch (PhD 1955), Austrian-born American author; inspired Dr. Seuss to write The Cat in the Hat
• William Patrick Foster (Ed.D. 1955), revolutionized college marching band technique
• William Trufant Foster (PhD 1911), economist; first president of Reed College
• Agnes Moore Fryberger, music educator
• Susan Fuhrman (PhD 1977), first female president of TC; former UPenn dean
• Clarence Gaines (M.A. 1950), hall of fame basketball coach of Winston-Salem State University
• Mildred García (Ed.D. 1987), president of the American Association of State Colleges and Universities (AASCU)
• Art Garfunkel (M.A. 1967), singer (Rock and Roll Hall Of Fame inductee); poet; and actor
• Gordon Gee (Ed.D. 1972), president of Ohio State University
• Haim Ginott, child psychologist and psychotherapist and parent educator
• Samuel E. Goldfarb, composer
• Edmund W. Gordon (Ed.D.), psychologist
• Erick Gordon (Ed.M. 1992), founding director of the Student Press Initiative (SPI)
• Betsy Gotbaum (M.A. 1967), American politician and activist
• Joan Dye Gussow (Ed.D. 1975), professor; author; food policy expert; environmentalist; gardener
• Margaret H'Doubler (1916), dance education
• Martin Haberman (Ed.D. 1962), academic
• Tsuruko Haraguchi (PhD 1912), psychologist
• Anna Mae Hays (B.S. 1958), first woman in the U.S. Armed Forces to be promoted to a general officer rank
• Virginia Henderson (B.S. 1932; M.A. 1934), nurse; researcher; theorist; the "first lady of nursing"
• Martha Hill (B.S. 1929), first director of dance at the Juilliard School
• Andy Holt (PhD 1937), president of University of Tennessee
• Lois Holzman (PhD 1977), director and co-founder of the East Side Institute
• Olivia Hooker (M.A. 1947), first African-American woman to serve in the U.S. Coast Guard
• Lee Huan (M.A.), premier of the Republic of China
• Percy Hughes (M.A.; PhD), philosopher; teacher
• Seymour Itzkoff (PhD 1965), professor emeritus of education and child study at Smith College
• George Ivany (M.A. 1962), president of the University of Saskatchewan
• Kevin Jennings (M.A. 1994), former assistant deputy secretary at the U.S. Department of Education
• David W. Johnson (Ed.D. 1966), social psychologist
• Hazel Johnson-Brown (M.A. 1963), first female African-American general in the United States Army
• Dock J. Jordan (A.B., 1925; M.A. 1928), civil rights leader, educator, lawyer, president of Edward Waters University and Kittrell College
• Yoshi Kasuya (M.A. 1930, PhD 1933), Japanese educator
• Thomas Kean (M.A. 1963), former governor of New Jersey
• John D. Kendall (M.A.), leader in bringing the Suzuki Method to the US
• Deborah Kenny (PhD 1994), CEO of Harlem Village Academies
• Maude Kerns (M.A. 1906), pioneering abstract artist and teacher^[49]
• William Heard Kilpatrick (PhD 1912), philosopher of education; successor of John Dewey
• Imogene King (Ed.D.), pioneer of nursing theory development
• John King Jr. (Ed.M.; Ed.D. 2008), 10th United States secretary of education
• Herbert Kliebard (Ed.D. 1963), historian of education
• Ellie Krieger (M.S. 1994), nutritionist; host of Healthy Appetite with Ellie Krieger on Food Network and Ellie's Real Good Food on PBS
• Eleanor C. Lambertsen (B.S. 1949; M.A. 1950; Ed.D. 1957), revolutionized nursing and health care organization and delivery
• H. S. S. Lawrence (M.A.; Ed.D. 1950), Indian educationist
• Maya Lawrence (M.A. 2010), Olympic fencer
• J. Paul Leonard (1901–1995), American university president, educator^[50]
• Harriet Lerner (M.A.), clinical psychologist
• Eda LeShan (B.S. 1944), writer; television host; counselor; educator; playwright
• Mosei Lin (PhD 1929), Taiwanese academic and educator; first Taiwanese to receive a PhD degree
• Guillermo Linares (Ed.D.), first Dominican elected to public office in the US
• Mort Lindsey (M.A. 1948; Ed.D. 1974), orchestrator; composer; pianist; conductor; musical director
• George Albert Llano (M.A. 1939), Cuban-born American polar explorer and lichenologist
• Ruth Lubic (B.S. 1959; M.A. 1961; Ed.D. 1979), leader of the nurse-midwifery movement in the US
• Sid Luckman, quarterback in the Pro Football Hall of Fame
• Ryah Ludins (B.S. 1921; artist and art teacher
• Julius B. Maller (PhD 1929), educator and sociologist
• Agnes Martin (B.A. 1942), artist
• Rollo May (PhD 1949), existential psychologist
• John C. McAdams (M.A.), associate professor of political science at Marquette University
• Jane Ellen McAllister (PhD 1929), first African American woman to earn a PhD in education in the United States
• Margaret McFarland (PhD 1938), child psychologist, chief consultant to Mister Rogers' Neighborhood
• Morris Meister (PhD 1921), first principal of The Bronx High School of Science, and the first president of The Bronx Community College
• Olga A. Mendez (M.A. 1960), first Puerto Rican woman elected to a US state legislature
• Jiang Menglin (PhD), president of Peking University; minister of education for the Republic of China
• Chester Earl Merrow (1937), educator; U.S. Representative from New Hampshire
• Yvonne B. Miller (M.A. 1962), first African-American woman to be elected to the Virginia state house
• Richard P. Mills (Ed.D. 1977), former commissioner of education for Vermont and New York
• Belle Moskowitz (attended in 1894)
• Jerome T. Murphy (M.A.), dean emeritus at the Harvard Graduate School of Education
• Georgia O'Keeffe (1914), artist
• Raphael Montañez Ortiz (Ed.D. 1982), founder of El Museo del Barrio
• Annie-B Parson (M.A. 1983), dancer, choreographer, founder of Big Dance Theater
• Hildegard Peplau (M.A.; PhD), nurse and nurse theorist who led the way towards the humane treatment of patients with behavior and personality disorders
• Regina Peruggi (Ed.D. 1984), educator
• Esther Peterson (M.A. 1930), consumer rights activist; 1981 Presidential Medal of Freedom recipient
• Kuo Ping-Wen (M.A. 1912; PhD 1914), Chinese educator
• Anita Pollitzer (1913), suffragette and national chairman of the NWP
• Thomas S. Popkewitz (M.A. 1964), professor of curriculum theory at the University of Wisconsin-Madison
• Neil Postman (M.A. 1955; Ed.D. 1958), cultural critic
• Louise M. Powell (B.S. 1922), nurse and educator who led the University of Minnesota School of Nursing during its formative years.
• Caroline Pratt (B.A. 1894), progressive educator; founder of City and Country School
• Soon-Yi Previn (Ed.M.), special education
• Thomas Granville Pullen Jr. (Ed.M.; Ed.D. 1926), president University of Baltimore; Maryland State Superintendent of Education
• David Randolph (M.A. 1942), conductor; music educator; radio host
• Robert Bruce Raup (PhD 1926), philosophy of education professor emeritus and critic of the American education system
• Diane Ravitch (PhD 1975), historian of education; former U.S. Assistant secretary of education
• Betty Reardon (Ed.D. 1985), founder and director of the Peace Education Center
• Helen Reichert (M.A. 1931), talk show personality; professor
• June Reinisch (M.A. 1970; PhD 1976), psychologist and director of the Kinsey Institute
• Richard Robinson (attended, 1963), former CEO of Scholastic Corporation
• Henrietta Rodman (1904), teacher; feminist activist
• Agnes L. Rogers (PhD 1917), educational psychologist; professor of education
• Carl Rogers (M.A. 1928; PhD 1931), psychologist
• Martha E. Rogers (M.A. 1945), nursing theorist; creator of the Science of Unitary Human Beings
• Marvin Rosen (Ed.M.; Ed.D.), pianist; educator; musicologist; Classical Discoveries radio host
• Miriam Roth (Ed.M.), Israeli writer and scholar of children's books; educator
• Adolph Rupp (M.A.), hall of fame basketball coach of the University of Kentucky
• Juanita Jane Saddler (M.A. 1935), dean of women at Fisk University
• Angela Santomero (M.A.), television executive producer and creator
• Morton Schindel (M.A. 1947), educator and film producer
• William Schuman (B.S. 1935; M.A. 1937), former president of the Juilliard School of Music and the Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts
• Jill Sheffield (M.A. 1963), women's reproductive rights advocate
• Robert Sherman (M.A. 1953), radio broadcaster; author; educator
• Tian-Ming Sheu (Ed.D. 1993), president of the National Academy for Educational Research in Taiwan
• Frank Shifreen (2001), artist; curator; teacher
• Hu Shih (PhD 1917), Chinese philosopher; essayist; and diplomat
• Irma Salas Silva (PhD 1930), Chilean educator
• Rawley Silver (Ed.D. 1936), art therapist
• Lucy Diggs Slowe (M.A. 1915), first black woman to serve as Dean of Women at an American University; one of the original founders and first president of Alpha Kappa Alpha
• Ian K. Smith (M.A. 1993), physician and author; appears on VH1's Celebrity Fit Club series; The View; NBC News; and HealthWatch with Dr. Ian Smith
• Karl Struss (B.A. 1912), photographer and cinematographer; pioneer in 3D films
• Elaine Sturtevant (M.A.), artist
• Leon Sullivan (M.A. 1947), civil rights leader and social activist; 1991 Presidential Medal of Freedom recipient
• Ruth C. Sullivan (M.A. 1953), autism activist
• Bobby Susser (M.A. 1987), children's songwriter; record producer; performer
• Marius Sznajderman
• Hilda Taba (PhD 1932), architect; curriculum theorist; curriculum reformer and teacher educator
• Alma Thomas (M.A. 1934), expressionist painter and art educator
• Ellen R. Thompson (M.A.) composer and music educator
• Edward Thorndike (PhD 1898), psychologist
• Robert L. Thorndike (M.A. 1932; PhD 1935), psychologist
• Merryl Tisch (Ed.D.), chancellor of the New York State Board of Regents
• Samuel Totten (Ed.D. 1985), genocide scholar
• Minnie Vautrin (M.A. 1919), educator and missionary
• Marion Verhaalen, (Ed.D., 1971) composer and musicologist
• Lynd Ward (1926), artist and storyteller
• Moshe Weinberger, rabbi and author
• Joel Westheimer, professor of citizenship education at the University of Ottawa
• Ruth Westheimer (Ed.D. 1970), sex therapist known as "Dr. Ruth", German-American, also talk show host, author, professor, Holocaust survivor, and former Haganah sniper.
• Floyd Wilcox (M.A. 1920), third president of Shimer College
• John Davis Williams (Ed.D. 1940), chancellor of the University of Mississippi
• Henry Wittenberg (M.A.), Olympic wrestling champion
• Carmen Rita Wong (M.A. 2000), personal finance expert; former host of On the Money on CNBC
• Deborah Wolfe (M.S. 1938; Ed.D. 1945), Education Chief of the US House of Representatives Committee on Education and Labor
• Marion Thompson Wright (PhD 1940), first African-American woman in the United States to earn PhD in History^[51]
• Tao Xingzhi (1917), Chinese educator and political activist
• Darlene Yee-Melichar (M.S. 1984; Ed.D. 1985), gerontologist
• Anzia Yezierska (1905), Polish-born American novelist
• Shirley Zussman (1937), German-born American sex therapist

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Martin Haberman

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Lee Huan

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John King Jr.

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Anita Pollitzer

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Diane Ravitch

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Merryl Tisch

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