Professor at the University of Washington Tacoma
About
Dr. Christopher Knaus is a race scholar, critical race theory practitioner, educator, and community advocate. A professor in the School of Education at the University of Washington Tacoma, Dr. Knaus leads multidisciplinary, education-focused systems-transformation efforts. He was the founding director of the EdD in Educational Leadership Program, which focuses on fostering leaders who transform health, education, and community services. Dr. Knaus additionally works with schools, districts, and community-based organizations to design community-led, student of color-oriented programs, and centers student voice as the foundation for radical, healing school systems.
Dr. Knaus served as a Fulbright Scholar to South Africa, where he maintains active research studies examining post-apartheid educational policy and practice. Dr. Knaus previously served as professor of Educational Leadership at California State University, East Bay, where he developed an urban leadership program to prepare community-oriented school leaders. Dr. Knaus has also taught in the African American Studies Department at the University of California, Berkeley, in the College of Education and School of Social Work at the University of Washington, and in high schools in Seattle, Oakland and Berkeley, CA.
In addition to numerous articles, presentations, and talks around the globe, Dr. Knaus has written three books on racism and schools.
Current Work:
Dr. Knaus is currently involved with three applied research projects, all of which examine racism and schools from critical race lenses.
The first entails a collaborative research project with African American school leaders and their experiences navigating and challenging systemic racism. This multi-year qualitative study centers critical, silenced voices in schools, and demonstrates the long-term impacts of daily microaggressions as well as systemic trauma that African American educators face in fostering healing educational opportunities for students of color.
The second research project examines the impacts of trauma on individual educators, and is based on narratives from survivors whose very trauma led them into the classroom.
The third research project is based on the impact of developing student voice, and aims to document the healing power of engaged, culturally responsive, youth-centered approaches.
Research Area Keyword(s):
Critical Race Theory, Racism, Racial Disparities, Education, Educational Leadership
