Professional Profile

Jason Margolis is a Professor of Educational Leadership, Graduate Teacher Education in the School of Education. He graduated from the State University of New York New Paltz for Secondary Education English in 1991, the City University of New York Queens College for Secondary Education English in 1994, and the University of Michigan for Educational Studies- Teacher Education in 2003. He earned the 2017 International Professional Development Association (IPDA) Best Article of the Year Award for the piece “The missing link in teacher professional development: student presence.”

Margolis served as an English educator within the New York City Public Schools system from 1993 to 1999. He then transitioned to a role as a Professor and Partnership Coordinator at Washington State University-Vancouver from 2003 to 2011. Margolis later obtained the position of Professor and Department Chair at Duquesne University from 2011 to 2022, where he showed commitment to academic excellence and leadership in the educational landscape. Margolis’ teaching philosophy is grounded in a sense of third space — bringing together individual learners and disciplinary content in synergy. This is a constant balancing act, and there is no perfect formula. Because of this, he believes that any teaching philosophy must be flexible to the moment and the ancient art of paying attention to the learner and the learning situation. Margolis' current research interests include teacher leadership, school change, and complex theory of integrating academic content and social-emotional learning.

Margolis has contributed to education literature with publications such as "Understanding Teacher Leadership in New York City through Complexity Theory" (International Journal of Complexity in Education, 2022), "Coupling Coaching with Model Classrooms: Amplifying Individual and Organizational Change" (The Learning Professional, 2022), and "Tearing Down the Wall: Making Sense of Teacher Leaders as Instructional Coaches and Evaluators" (Journal of School Leadership, 2020). Other noteworthy works include "The Semi-Formality of Teacher Leadership on the Edge of Chaos" (Harvard Educational Review, 2020), "Assessing the Success of Teacher Leadership: The Case for Asking New Questions" (Professional Development in Education, 2020), "Teacher Professional Dispositions: Much Assemblage Required" (Teachers College Record, 2019), and "Self-Study Research as a Source of Professional Development and Learning within a School of Education" (Springer Press, 2018).

Academic Credentials

• University of Michigan, Educational Studies - Teacher Education, 2003
• City University of New York Queens College, Secondary Education English, 1994
• State University of New York New Paltz, Secondary Education English, 1991