Mary Mendenhall, associate professor of international and comparative education at Columbia University’s Teachers College, has received the Jackie Kirk Outstanding Book Award from the Comparative and International Education Society. She was honored for her book, Education and Resilience in Crisis: Challenges and Opportunities in Sub-Saharan Africa (Bristol University Press, 2024). The award honors a published book that advances the understanding and practice in the field of education in emergencies.
The award-winning book examines how humanitarian crises have adversely impacted teaching and learning in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Ethiopia, Niger, Somalia, South Sudan, Tanzania, and Uganda. Dr. Mendenhall shares the award with her co-authors, Gauthier Marchais of the Institute of Development Studies in the United Kingdom, Yusuf Sayed of the University of Cambridge, and Neil Boothby of the University of Notre Dame in Indiana.
As a multidisciplinary scholar of education, Dr. Mendenhall’s work spans the fields of anthropology, policy studies, and sociology. Her research examines refugee education policies and practices across camp, urban, and resettlement contexts with a particular focus on teacher support and professional development. At Columbia University, she currently serves as director of the George Clement Bond Center for African Education.
Dr. Mendenhall received her bachelor’s degree in psychology from Ohio University, a master’s degree in higher education administration from New York University, and a doctorate in international educational development from Teachers College.