Doctor of Education (Ed.D.)
Educational Leadership
University of Southern California
Curriculum Vitae
Dr. Rhema Stradford Dai, Ed.D.
Experienced Elementary School Leader | Scholar-Practitioner | Author | Speaker
Developing People. Strengthening Schools. Inspiring Futures.
Profile
An elementary school leader and scholar-practitioner committed to building joyful, academically rigorous schools where children flourish, educators grow, and families become authentic partners in learning. Her work lives at the meeting place of practice and scholarship, guided by the conviction that schools flourish when leaders intentionally develop people.
She leads from a constructivist tradition, understanding leadership as the facilitation of meaning among adults rather than the exercise of power over them, and treats the school she leads as a site of serious study.
Education
Master of Science (M.S.)
Early Childhood Education
Master of Education (Ed.M.)
Transformational School Leadership
Bachelor of Arts (B.A.)
Political Science
Research Interests
Educational LeadershipAdult DevelopmentEarly Childhood LeadershipInstructional LeadershipWomen & LeadershipBlack Women's LeadershipConstructivist LeadershipOrganizational LearningSchool Culture
Professional Experience
Employment history is presented in summary form; institution names and locations are intentionally omitted.
Elementary School Principal
Elementary School
Lead a joyful, academically rigorous elementary school. Develop teachers and teacher-leaders, strengthen instructional coherence, and build a culture of belonging and authentic family partnership.
Elementary School Assistant Principal
Elementary School
Supported instructional leadership, teacher development, assessment, and school culture across the elementary grades.
Dean of Instruction
Elementary School
Led instructional coherence, curriculum, assessment, and the development of teaching practice.
Dean of Culture
Elementary School
Shaped school culture, belonging, and the conditions in which children and adults flourish.
Founding School Leader
Elementary School
Led the founding of a school, establishing its mission, culture, and instructional foundations.
Post Graduate Educational Leadership Program Coordinator
Post Graduate Program
Coordinated a post graduate educational leadership program and the preparation of aspiring school leaders.
Post Graduate Professor
Post Graduate Program
Taught aspiring school leaders and designed post graduate learning experiences in educational leadership.
University Teaching
Instructional Leadership for Equity
Doctoral Lecturer
School of Education
Adult Development & Professional Learning
Doctoral Lecturer
Educational Leadership Program
Supervision and Evaluation for Growth
Doctoral Lecturer
Principal Preparation Program
Selected Publications
Works in Progress
An ongoing study of adult development as the hidden curriculum of school improvement.
Selected Presentations, Invited Talks & Scholarly Engagement
Reimagining Adult Learning: Holding Environments, Developmental Supervision and the Affective Foundations of Liberatory Teaching
Third Annual CUNY Teaching and Learning Conference, The Graduate Center, City University of New York
Conference Presentation
Examined developmental, relational, and justice-oriented supervision as a site of adult learning, agency, identity development, and institutional change.
Policy with Purpose: Creating Our Legacy of Justice Through Leadership
Voice4Equity, When Women Lead Conference, Vancouver, Washington
Conference Presentation
New York State Federation of Educational Associations Conference, Rutgers University, New Jersey
Conference Presenter
Progressive Pedagogical Practices in Early Childhood Education
Golden Key Academy / Golden Key International Honour Society
Presentation
Explored constructivist, inquiry-based learning, equity, and the intellectual rigor of play.
Lessons for Today from Black Educators amid Jim Crow: The Origins of Teacher Leadership
Bank Street Graduate School of Education Library Salon #37
Invited Discussant
Research Collaborations
- Practitioner-scholar partnerships with university educational leadership programs
- Collaborative inquiry on the inner life of women in school leadership
- Ongoing study of adult development as a mechanism of school improvement
Selected Recognition
- Distinguished Principal Leadership Award
- Excellence in Instructional Leadership
- Recognized for contributions to adult development in schools
- Fellow, Educational Leadership Institute
Professional Affiliations
University Council for Educational Administration (UCEA)
American Educational Research Association (AERA)
National Association of Elementary School Principals (NAESP)
Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development (ASCD)
National Association for the Education of Young Children (NAEYC)
The School Superintendents Association (AASA)
Ad Astra
Per Sapientiam et Servitium
To the stars through wisdom and service.
Developing People. Strengthening Schools. Inspiring Futures.