Andrew Wells
Historian of Education
My work centers around historical issues of race and inequality in education. I am specifically interested in the intersection between education policy and opportunity in North Carolina. My current research focuses on the relationship between the American Missionary Association, the Freedmen’s Bureau, and the Williston School in Wilmington, North Carolina during Reconstruction.
Cape Fear Memorial Bridge
Wilmington, North Carolina
I am currently a Ph.D student in Educational Policy Studies with a concentration in History at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. I approach this work from the perspective of a classroom teacher, having taught high school history in the public schools of North Carolina and at a public charter in Denver, Colorado. I aim to prioritize the voices of students and teachers as much as possible in my historical research.
Image By Zach Rudisin (Own work) [CC BY-SA 3.0], via Wikimedia Commons
In addition to conducting historical research, I am also a student of education policy.
Growing up I attended magnet schools in Florida. These schools seemed diverse when viewed holistically. However, as a student, I was struck by the level of segregation within the school buildings. As a teacher, I worked in a magnet school in North Carolina and observed the same problem.
When I moved to Wisconsin I was interested in how magnets have been implemented by school districts across the state. Below is a brief describing magnet school policy in Wisconsin.
