Lydia N. Bean

Lydia N. Bean is a social scientist and nonprofit leader based in Texas. She currently serves as a Fellow in the Political Reform program at New America and holds the position of Faculty Research Associate at the University of Texas at Arlington. She earned her Ph.D. in Sociology from Harvard University and a Bachelor's degree from Austin College.

Her research focuses on the sociology of religion, political identity, and social justice, particularly within evangelical communities in the U.S. and Canada. She is the author of The Politics of Evangelical Identity (Princeton University Press, 2014). Bean is also the founder of Faith in Texas, a nonprofit organization that mobilizes multiracial faith communities to advocate for justice and fairness in North Texas.

Previously, she taught at Baylor University as an Assistant Professor of Sociology. She has been actively involved in public service, including a 2020 run for the Texas House of Representatives in Tarrant County. Bean resides in Arlington, Texas, with her family.