"The touchstones [of education reform] must be constant: challenging standards for all students, coherent and supportive policies, respect for professional judgement, and a strong and clear commitment to support teaching and learning in schools that have the responsibility and flexibility to meet the needs of their students." [from the book, Debating the Future of American Education]
Committed to shaping the nation's educational policies -- especially as they relate to equal opportunities and to high standards -- Dr. Marshall Smith is currently in a prime position to act on his commitment. On leave from Stanford, he is now serving as undersecretary of education in Washington, DC. Trained originally in statistical techniques of educational research, he has acquired extensive knowledge of policy issues through his years of previous governmental and academic experience. This experience has included, for example, key positions in government education policy; lead roles as researcher on topics including computer analysis of social science data, early childhood education, critical thinking, and social inequality; teaching positions at Harvard, Wisconsin and Stanford; and six years as dean of the School of Education at Stanford. With this broad background, he is able to integrate research on policy questions from several disciplines and to focus on educational process, whether at the level of the individual student in the classroom or the level of state and national educational reform.
Current Research: National and state educational policy; educational equality; challenging educational standards.
Education: BA, Harvard College; EdD in Measurement and Statistics, Harvard University (1970).
Professional Experience: Instructor, Assistant/Associate Professor, Harvard Graduate School of Education (1966-1976); Associate Director, National Institute of Education (1976-1977); Assistant Commissioner for Policy Studies, US Office of Education (1977-1980); Chief of Staff to the Secretary, US Department of Education (1980); Professor and Director of the Wisconsin Center for Educational Research, University of Wisconsin-Madison (1980-1986). Stanford from 1986. Dean, School of Education (1986-1992).
Activities and Awards: Member, National Academy of Education; Fellow, Center for Advanced Study in the Behavioral Sciences, Stanford; Chair, Board of International Comparative Studies in Education, National Academy of Sciences; Chair and Principal Investigator, Pew Forum on Educational Reform; Member, National Council on Education Standards and Testing (Congressionally mandated council); Chair, Subcommittee on Educational Standards, US Government.
Publications:
"Educational Reform: The Clinton Agenda" in Debating the Future of American Education (in press);
"Systemic School Reform" in The Politics of Curriculum and Testing, Politics of Education Association Yearbook (co-author 1991);
"Educational Policy and School Effectiveness" in Research on Exemplary Schools (co-author 1985);
Inequality: A Reassessment of the Effect of Family and Schooling in America (co-author 1972);
The General Inquirer: A Computer Approach to Analysis (co-author 1967).