Research Bio

Michelle D. Young, PhD, is Dean and Professor at the Berkeley School of Education at the University of California, Berkeley. An internationally recognized scholar of educational policy, leadership, and equity, her work has helped shape the field of Critical Policy Analysis (CPA) in education and deepen understanding of how power, politics, institutions, and leadership influence educational opportunity. Her scholarship examines how educational policies and leadership practices can either reproduce or challenge inequities and how educational systems can be transformed to better serve students, families, and communities.

Young is known for her contributions to Critical Policy Analysis, educational leadership, and the preparation of educational leaders. Through influential publications, edited volumes, and collaborative scholarship, she has helped establish CPA as an important framework for understanding educational policy as a dynamic and contested process shaped by history, ideology, and competing social interests. Her work has expanded the field's capacity to examine the relationships among policy, power, race, gender, democracy, and educational justice. Young has also helped shape the field of educational leadership through a combination of influential scholarship, organizational leadership, and mentorship. Her research has informed leadership standards, accreditation systems, university preparation programs, and educational policies throughout the United States and internationally. 

Over the course of her career, Young has led multiple research projects focused on leadership development, educational policies, and educational policy actors. She has co-authored or co-edited numerous books and published more than 100 peer-reviewed articles and book chapters. Her scholarship has received numerous honors, including the William J. Davis Award for most outstanding article; an Emerald Literati Award for Excellence; the AERA Division A Excellence in Research Lifetime Achievement Award in Organizational Leadership and Administration and the UCEA Edwin M. Bridges Award for Significant Contributions to Research on Educational Leadership Development.

Recent journal articles include: 

• Brewer, C., & Young, M. D. (2025). The politics of institutional neutrality: Ambiguity, fear, and the effort to silence higher education in the USA, 10. Frontiers in Education. https://doi.org/10.3389/feduc.2025.1639020
• Xia, J., Ni, Y., Rorrer, A., Xu, L., & Young, M. D. (2025). Understanding the Relationship between Educational Leadership Preparation Program Features and Graduates’ Career Intentions. Education Sciences, 15(5). https://doi.org/10.3390/educsci15050575
• Lemke, M., Young, M.D., Mackey, H., & Nash, A. (2025). Feminisms in Education: Struggles and Solidarities in a Time of Regressive Social Change. International Journal of Qualitative Studies in Education, 38(8), 1095–1108. https://doi.org/10.1080/09518398.2025.2540930
• Young, M. D., Diem, S., Sampson, C. (2024). The Vital Necessity of Critical Education Policy Research. Educational Evaluation and Policy Analysis, 46 (2). https://doi.org/10.3102/01623737241239985
• Perrone, F., Young, M.D. & Fuller (2023). A call for data on the principal pipeline. Educational Researcher, 51 (6). https://doi.org/10.3102/0013189X221075767
• Ni, Y., Rorrer, A., Xia, J., Pounder, D., & Young, M.D. (2023). Educational Leadership Preparation Program Features and Graduates’ Assessments of Program Quality. Journal of Research on Leadership Education, 18 (3), 457-481. https://doi.org/10.1177/19427751221094865
• VanGronigen, B.A., Young, M.D., Rodriguez, K. (2022). Who Governs? Blank spots and blind spots in state boards of education in the United States. Education Policy Analysis Archives, 30 (11). https://doi.org/10.14507/epaa.30.7006 
• Fuller, E. & Young, M.D. (2022). Challenges and opportunities in diversifying the principal pipeline: Flow, leaks and interventions. Leadership and Policy in Schools. DOI: 10.1080/15700763.2021.2022712https://doi.org/10.1080/15700763.2021.2022712
• Clement, D., & Young, M.D. (2022). Building a More Diverse School Leadership Workforce: What’s the Hold-up? Leadership and Policy in Schools. DOI: 10.1080/15700763.2021.2022713 https://doi.org/10.1080/15700763.2021.2022713

Recent books include: 

• Young, M.D., O’Doherty, A., & Cunningham, K. (2021). Redesigning educational leadership preparation for equity: Strategies for innovation and improvement. New York: Routledge. 
• Young, M.D., & Diem, S. (Eds.). (2023). Handbook of Critical Education Research: Qualitative, Quantitative and Emerging Approaches. New York: Routledge. 

Prior to joining Berkeley, Young served as Dean of the School of Education at Loyola Marymount University and as Executive Director of the University Council for Educational Administration (UCEA), where she led one of the world's leading scholarly organizations dedicated to advancing educational leadership research, policy, and practice. Throughout her career, she has been deeply committed to mentoring emerging scholars and strengthening the research infrastructure that supports educational leadership and policy scholarship.

Young earned her PhD in educational policy, planning and leadership from the University of Texas at Austin; her master of education in special education with an emphasis on learning disabilities and second language learners from the University of Texas at Austin; and her bachelor of arts in sociology and political science from Southwestern University.

Research Expertise and Interest

policy analysis, critical theory, educational leadership, educational equity