Khalilah Brown-Dean
Dr. Khalilah L. Brown-Dean, Associate Professor of Political Science, is a nationally-known and respected expert on the political dynamics surrounding the American criminal justice system. She received her Ph.D. in Political Science from The Ohio State University in 2003 and a B.A. in Government from The University of Virginia in 1998.
Professor Brown-Dean is featured in the documentary, “The Color of Justice,” and serves on the Board of Directors for Prison Policy Initiative; a non-partisan, non-profit organization that documents the impact of mass incarceration on communities across the nation. She has authored numerous academic and popular pieces including “Felon Disenfranchisement after Bush v. Gove: Changes and Trends,” in Election Administration in the United States: The State of Reform After Bush v. Gove, edited by Michael Alvarez and Bernard Grofman (Cambridge University Press, 2014) and “Counting Bodies and Ballots: Prison Gerrymandering and the Paradox of Urban Political Representation” forthcoming in Urban Citizenship and American Democracy: The Historical and Institutional Roots of Local Politics and Policy by Amy Bridges and Michael Javen Fortner (SUNY Press). She is co-author of a Joint Center for Political and Economic Studies report on the contemporary status of voting rights in the United States that was presented during the 50th Anniversary of the Bloody Sunday March in Selma, Alabama. Dr. Brown-Dean is an award-winning political analyst, advisor, and commentator for numerous agencies and organizations including The New York Times, The Congressional Black Caucus, NPR, WURD, CNN, The Wall Street Journal, Ebony.com, Crisis Magazine, Fox News Radio, TheGrio.com, Uptown Magazine, The Comcast Network, The Washington Post, the American Urban Radio Network, and Dominion of New York. She is a frequent guest on WNPR’s “Where We Live” and has lectured at some of the world’s leading universities including Oxford University in England. Fun Fact: Dr. Brown-Dean is a native of Lynchburg, Virginia and holds a key to that City. The City’s Mayor also proclaimed May 6th “Dr. Khalilah L. Brown-Dean Day.” Philosophy of Teaching: I strive to inculcate what Shulman calls, “the pedagogy of substance,” throughout my interactions with students both inside and beyond the classroom. The pedagogy of substance is a tacit recognition that active learning must involve more than just obscure concepts and theories. Rather, the emphasis should be on practical learning that can help students develop valuable skills in the areas of critical thinking, analysis, interpretation, reasoning, and communication. As Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr so aptly assessed, “the function of education is to teach one to think intensively and to think critically. Intelligence plus character; that is the goal of true education.” Whether introducing a group of freshmen to their new communities or challenging upperclassmen to evaluate dimensions of identity, teaching provides a forum for me to help students develop competencies that are not beholden to field or discipline. Our students are forced to navigate an increasingly complex world that presents myriad challenges and opportunities. If we are to successfully prepare our students for success beyond the University, we must equip them to do more than just graduate. We must empower them to develop skills and habits that will enable them to make good choices. As an educator my mission to is train future scholars to function as contemporary citizens. |