Vivian Gadsden Elected Vice President of the National Academy of Education

Penn GSE Professor Vivian Gadsden has been elected as the next vice president of the National Academy of Education. She will begin her term in November 2025, succeeding Pam Grossman, former dean and professor emerita of education at Penn GSE, who is concluding her tenure as vice president.

The National Academy of Education advances high-quality education research and its use in policy and practice. Its members, elected on the basis of outstanding scholarship, serve as a collective voice shaping the future of education.

A renowned scholar whose work bridges research, policy, and practice, Gadsden has held numerous national leadership roles. She served as president of the American Educational Research Association; chaired the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine’s Committee on Supporting Parents of Young Children; co-founded the National Center on Fathers and Families, and co-leads Penn Early Childhood and Family Research Center at Penn GSE.

“For decades, Professor Vivian Gadsden has paired rigorous inquiry with deep and abiding care for the lives of children and families, reshaping how our field understands early childhood development,” said Katharine Strunk, Dean and George and Diane Weiss Professor of Education at Penn GSE. “Her appointment as vice president of the National Academy of Education recognizes not only her intellectual leadership, but the generosity of spirit that animates her scholarship and mentorship. We are incredibly proud to call her our colleague at Penn GSE.”