Rate My Professor Kendra Lowery

Dr. Kendra Lowery serves as Associate Dean for Engagement and Associate Professor of Educational Leadership in Teachers College at Ball State University, assuming this role in September 2024 after joining the institution in 2016 as Assistant Professor and EdS/EdD Program Director. Previously, she held the position of Assistant Professor and Program Coordinator in Educational Leadership at the University of Arkansas at Little Rock from 2014 to 2016. Lowery possesses extensive P-12 experience from her 11 years with the Madison Metropolitan School District in Wisconsin, where she worked as a History Teacher from 2003 to 2010, Instructional Resource Teacher for Cultural Relevance from 2010 to 2011, and Assistant Principal at Sennett Middle School from 2011 to 2014. Her academic credentials include a Ph.D. in Educational Leadership and Policy Analysis from the University of Wisconsin-Madison in 2013, an M.S. in the same field from the same institution in 2011, an M.A. in Women’s Studies from The Ohio State University in 2002, a B.A. in Afro-American Studies from the University of Wisconsin-Madison in 1994, and a B.S. in Education with Political Science and teaching certification from the University of Wisconsin-Madison in 1994.

Lowery's research specializations encompass social justice leadership, anti-racism, culturally responsive practices, student belonging, restorative practices, community engagement, and the experiences of marginalized students and leaders, particularly in Black and Latina/o/x communities. Key publications include “The enactment of anti-deficit thinking by Latina/o/x school leaders” (Journal of Latinos and Education, 2024), “Warp and weft: Weaving a community of practice for antiracism in Indiana” (Collaborations: A Journal of Community-Based Research and Practice, 2024), “Writing about dance: Representations of strength in the struggle for social justice” (Qualitative Inquiry, 2024), “There’s no place like homeplace: School principals’ roles in developing student belonging as resistance against oppression” (Theory into Practice, 2024, with K. Johnson and R. Spearman), and “How principals’ knowledge and experiences inform their shifts toward the use of restorative in lieu of exclusionary practices” (NASSP Bulletin, 2023, with L. Watkins). She has obtained over $5 million in grants, including the Indiana Department of Education’s COVID-19 Learning Recovery Grant ($3,083,030, 2021–2023) and Attract, Prepare, and Retain Grant ($2,170,520, 2022–2024). Awards include Emens Distinguished Professorships from Ball State University (2021–2023) and Diversity Publications Recognition and Awards. In her deanship, she oversees partnerships with P-12 schools, Burris Laboratory School, Indiana Academy, charter schools, and the Ryan Family Scholars Program.