Office of the Dean

Erica N. Walker is Dean and Professor at the Ontario Institute for Studies in Education, University of Toronto. Prior to joining OISE in 2023, she served as the Clifford Brewster Upton Professor of Mathematical Education, Chairperson of the Department of Mathematics, Science, and Technology, and Director of the Edmund W Gordon Institute for Urban and Minority Education at Teachers College, Columbia University.  An award-winning former public high school mathematics teacher from Atlanta, Georgia, she earned her doctorate in education from Harvard University. Her research focuses on the social and cultural factors as well as educational policies and practices that facilitate mathematics engagement, learning, and performance, especially for underserved students. Recognized as a Fellow of the American Educational Research Association and by the National Association of Mathematicians and the Association for Women in Mathematics for her scholarship, leadership, and practice, she collaborates with teachers, schools, districts, organizations, and media outlets to promote mathematics excellence and equity for young people. Her work has been published in journals such as the American Education Research Journal, Journal for Research in Mathematics Education, Educational Leadership, and the Urban Review. Professor Walker serves on several editorial boards and is the author of two books: Building Mathematics Learning Communities: Improving Outcomes in Urban High Schools (published by Teachers College Press in 2012) and Beyond Banneker: Black Mathematicians and the Paths to Excellence, published by SUNY Press in 2014.