Julie Fernandez

Dr. Julie Fernandez is the Dean of the College of Education at Charleston Southern University (CSU), where she began her role on January 1, 2021. Her academic career includes faculty positions at the University of Houston and Houston Baptist University (HBU), where she taught educational leadership courses and chaired dissertations. She holds an Ed.D. in Educational Leadership from the University of Houston (2012), with a focus on transformational leadership practices.

• Education: Ed.D. in Educational Leadership (University of Houston, 2012), M.S. in Reading Specialist (University of Houston-Clear Lake, 1990), B.A. in Education (University of South Carolina, 1984)

Dr. Fernandez’s research specializes in school culture and climate, teacher leadership development, and organizational health-based leadership. Her 2019 co-authored book Influencing Student High Achievement through School Climate exemplifies her focus on quantifying leadership impacts on student outcomes. Her earlier presentations (2004–2020) explored topics like literacy instruction, stress management for educators, and evaluation systems (T-PESS, T-TESS).

She has held multiple certifications in Texas, including Principal Evaluation and Support System (T-PESS) and Teacher Evaluation Support System (T-TESS) appraiser and trainer roles. Dr. Fernandez is affiliated with Kappa Delta Pi and the Association of Supervision and Curriculum Development (ASCD).