Nadirah Foley

Nadirah Foley is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Education at Washington University in St. Louis, with affiliations to the Center for the Study of Race, Ethnicity, and Equity (CRE2) and the Interdisciplinary Program in Urban Studies. Their research focuses on sociological perspectives of education, particularly how schools intersect with systemic inequalities related to race, class, and place. Foley employs ethnographic and qualitative methods to examine educational inequities in K-12 and higher education settings.

Education:

• PhD in Education (Culture, Institutions, and Society), Harvard University
• M.S.Ed in Higher Education, University of Pennsylvania
• A.B. in Classics, Princeton University

Research Interests: Foley’s work investigates how systemic inequalities manifest in educational institutions. Their current book project, Class, Dismissed: Inequality Talk in a Suburban School, explores how socioeconomic inequality is overlooked in affluent, diverse suburban school districts despite growing attention to racial disparities. They emphasize schools as sites of both inequality and potential transformation, urging critical analysis of educational access, experiences, and outcomes.

Awards:

• Here & Next Spark Funding Award (2024)

Professional Experience: Prior to WashU, Foley held a postdoctoral appointment at NYU focusing on equity in Continuous Improvement projects funded by the Gates Foundation. Before academia, they worked in higher education administration, including college access and student affairs roles. Their teaching emphasizes sociological critiques of education’s role in society.