AERA NEWSAmerican Educational Research Association
Contact: Helaine Patterson1230 Seventeenth St. NWWashington DC 20036202) 223-9485[email protected]www.aera.net
For Release Monday, December 3, 2001
Felice Levine to Join AERASociology Executive Selected to Lead Educational Research AssociationNew Director Will Increase Emphasis on Research to Shape Policy and Practice
WASHINGTON, December 3, 2001--The American Educational Research Association (AERA) has announced the appointment of its new executive director, Felice J. Levine, a social psychologist who is participating in the national policy debate on effective systems for protecting human research subjects.
Levine, currently executive officer of the Washington, D.C.-based American Sociological Association (ASA), will succeed William J. Russell, who has retired from the position he held for 28 years. Gerald E. Sroufe, AERA's director of government relations, concurrently will serve as interim executive director until Levine assumes her new AERA responsibilities on May 6, 2002.
In announcing her appointment, AERA President Andrew C. Porter said: "Felice Levine possesses enormously impressive knowledge and energy. She understands the important role that education research can play in the improvement of education. I look forward to her leadership of the American Educational Research Association."
In accepting the appointment, Levine said that she "was truly honored to lead such a fine organization with a tradition and commitment to excellence. I am eager to work to advance education research, elevate its visibility, and promote its links and relevance to policy and practice."
Levine, who holds A.B., A.M. and Ph.D. degrees in sociology and psychology from the University of Chicago, has concentrated on science policy issues, including research ethics, data access and sharing, peer review, and the protection of human subjects. She is a member of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services' National Human Research Protections Advisory Committee and co-chairs its Social and Behavioral Science Working Group.
With strong interdisciplinary background across the social and behavioral sciences, Levine serves on the executive Committee of the Consortium of Social Science Associations and served as its chair from 1997 to 2000. She currently is a member of the advisory committee for the Decennial Census, on the board of the National Humanities Alliance, and on the advisory committee of the National Consortium of Violence Research.
An advocate for sound research support and policy, Levine co-authored the 1996 report Social Causes of Violence: Crafting a Science Agenda, which highlights research and identifies priorities for further study. In 2000, she co-led an agenda-setting activity to rethink opportunities for research in sociology and education at the request of the Spencer Foundation.
Her commitment to research, education and training run deep. She currently serves as principal investigator for the ASA Minority Fellowship Program for Underrepresented Minorities and has been leading a major Ford Foundation-funded project, where ASA is working with departments to redesign how best to achieve excellence and inclusiveness in education.
Before joining ASA, Levine served as program director at the National Science Foundation from 1979 to 1991 and as senior research social scientist at the American Bar Foundation from 1974 to 1979. She has conducted research on the dynamics underlying aggression, compliance, and at-risk behaviors in children and youth. She is a Fellow of the American Psychological Society and of the American Association for the Advancement of Science.
AERA, which Levine will lead next spring, represents more than 23,000 educators who conduct research and evaluation in education. Founded in 1916, AERA holds an annual meeting and offers a comprehensive program of scholarly publications, training, fellowships and meetings to disseminate research findings and improve the profession.
Under Russell's leadership, AERA grew significantly. Membership nearly doubled and the annual meeting expanded to five days, regularly drawing more than half of AERA's members. New publications and government relations and outreach programs also were established during his tenure. Most recently, AERA published the fourth edition of its Handbook of Research on Teaching, a 1,296-page text that will take the field of education research into the 21st century.
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