David Cohen, the John Dewey Professor of Education and professor of education policy and public policy at the Ford School, has been named a fellow in the American Academy of Arts and Sciences (AAAS). The academy also elected Phil Hanlon, U-M provost and executive vice president for academic affairs, to the 2013 class of 198 fellows.
In response to being elected, Cohen, who is currently a visiting professor at Harvard Graduate School, told The Record Update: "I am honored to have been included in such distinguished company. I am delighted to be in the same cohort with my friends Richard Murnane, Sarah Lawrence Lightfoot, and Marshall Smith. And I am pleased to be in the company of such devoted conservationists as Pete Seeger and Wendell Berry."
Cohen's research focuses on implementing and evaluating reforms in K-12 education. He is co-director of a national study of efforts to improve teaching and learning in high-poverty elementary schools.
Founded in 1780, the American Academy of Arts and Sciences is one of the most prestigious societies of its kind. Each year AAAS elects a number of exceptional leaders in science, academia, art and literature, business, and public affairs to "conduct a varied program of projects and studies responsive to the needs and problems of society," according to the academy's website.
The AAAS induction ceremony will be held in Cambridge, MA, on October 12, 2013.