R.A. Neal
Rebecca A. Neal, PhD, is the Gordon B. Sanders Endowed Chair in Education and tenured Professor of Educational Foundations, where she has served since 2015. She is also an Edmondson Heim Faculty Fellow and the Director of the Center for Excellence in Urban Teaching (CEUT). In both roles, she leads initiatives focused on equity-centered teacher preparation, culturally responsive pedagogy, and the recruitment and retention of aspiring teachers. Dr. Neal’s work reflects ÀÇÓÑÉçÇø’s mission of social justice, community engagement, and transformative education, particularly in urban and historically marginalized contexts.
Dr. Neal earned her PhD in Curriculum and Instruction with a concentration in Special Education and Cultural Responsiveness from Arizona State University. She holds graduate degrees in Special Education from the University of Minnesota and the College of William and Mary. Prior to her career in higher education, she spent more than a decade as a special education teacher and behavior specialist in public schools across Minnesota, Maryland, and Virginia. These experiences continue to ground her work in teaching, service, and scholarship.
Her scholarship examines how race, culture, disability, and power operate within educational systems, with a particular focus on equity and inclusion in K–12 and teacher education contexts. Dr. Neal has published extensively in peer-reviewed journals and edited volumes and has secured more than $3 million in competitive grant funding to support educator development, mentorship, and systemic equity initiatives. She remains actively engaged in university and community service at the local, state, and national levels.
Research interests
- Racial disproportionality in school discipline
- Equity and inclusion in special education
- Culturally responsive teaching and teacher preparation
- Relational interactions in classrooms
- Teacher–student relationships and classroom conflict
- Educational experiences of Black students and students of color
- Communities of practice and educator development
- Urban education and justice-oriented pedagogy
Teaching and mentoring
Dr. Neal’s teaching emphasizes critical reflection, relational practice, and the application of research to real-world educational settings. Her courses invite students to examine how race, culture, disability, and power shape teaching and learning, while developing practical strategies to support diverse learners. She teaches undergraduate, graduate, and doctoral courses in special education, educational psychology, educational inequity, research design, and teacher preparation.
Students in Dr. Neal’s classes are encouraged to think deeply, engage honestly, and develop professional identities rooted in equity, care, and accountability.
My goal as an educator is to help students see themselves as capable, critical, and responsible professionals who understand that teaching is never neutral. I want students to leave my courses with the skills to support all learners, the courage to challenge inequitable systems, and the clarity to act with intention, compassion, and integrity in their work.
—Rebecca Neal