Noel Anderson joins USC Rossier as visiting scholar

This fall, USC Rossier School of Education is welcoming Noel Anderson as a visiting scholar through Nov. 30, 2024. Anderson is scholar in residence and co-founder of the Center for Youth and the Future of Work and clinical professor of Educational Leadership and Policy Studies at New York University’s Steinhardt School of Culture, Education and Human Development.

Anderson brings over 25 years of public and private sector experience to USC Rossier leading large public school districts, institutions of higher education and nonprofit organizations. His research focuses on the experience of young people at the intersection of schooling and the future of work throughout the United States and abroad. His work often blends academic research, policy analysis and professional insights to understand how young people navigate the education system and their careers. He is one of the few scholars nationally whose research integrates the “capabilities approach” to education and equity, a theory developed by Nobel Prize winner Amartya Sen that focuses on people’s ability to achieve the kind of lives they value.

During his time at USC Rossier, Anderson will deliver several lectures on topics such as reconciling the “College for All” and “School to Work” movements that aspire to integrate the world of work and school for young people. He will also give lectures that prepare USC Rossier students for their future work and discuss how new technologies such as generative AI may impact the workforce with Doctor of Education in Educational Leadership students. He will also continue work on his large-scale study of young people and work-based learning in the United States in collaboration with scholars at Yale University and Vanderbilt University.

“USC Rossier faculty are national leaders in education. Noel Anderson and his extensive experience certainly fit the mold, and we are excited to welcome him to our campus this fall as visiting scholar,” said USC Rossier Dean Pedro Noguera. “Noel has served on President Biden’s Education Policy Committee, won the prestigious Whitney M. Young, Jr. Education Leadership Award from the National Urban League for creating an influential college access program and authored dozens of highly influential books and scholarly articles focusing on educational equity and workforce development. Providing our students with unparalleled access to top researchers and professionals is a point of emphasis at USC Rossier, and we are grateful that Noel Anderson will be working with our students this fall to enrich their academic experience and host several important dialogues on key issues in the field of education.”

“I look forward to spending the fall at USC Rossier as a visiting scholar and continuing to work with students and advance my research,” said Noel Anderson. “USC Rossier is known for its strong commitment to advancing educational equity through research and practice, and I look forward to furthering that mission during my time here. Honored to be in the company, again, of Dean Noguera and collaborating with the stellar faculty at USC Rossier.”

Additional information about Noel Anderson’s lectures and events at USC Rossier will be announced this fall.