Sarah A. Robert (she/her)
Affiliated Faculty
Professor
LEARNING AND INSTRUCTION
Specialty/Research Focus
Critical Policy Analysis; Gender Studies; Gender, Culture, and Equity; Global Issues; Educational Policy; Ethnography; Qualitative Research Methods; Politics of Education; Sociology of Education
Professional Summary:
Professor Sarah A. Robert is an interdisciplinary expert in global education policies, global gender policies, and school food politics. Of particular interest in her ethnographic studies is how policy and politics shape and are shaped by the intersectional qualities of gender and other context-specific dynamics. Prof. Robert is the author of the award-winning books Neoliberal Education Reform: Gendered Notions in Global and Local Contexts (Routledge, 2017) and School Food Politics (P. Lang, 2011). She is a trained Latin Americanist, who has pivoted to global comparative research, as demonstrated by her recent award-winning, co-edited volume with Dr. Jennifer E. Gaddis, Transforming School Food Politics Around the World (MIT Press, 2024). Additional edited special issues for global audiences include Intersectionality and education work during COVID-19 transitions (Gender, Work, and Organizations, 2023) and Neoliberalism, Gender, and Education Reform (Gender & Education, 2016; Routledge, 2018). She also has written extensively for transdisciplinary academic and popular audiences in multiple languages and forms. She is finalizing dissemination of a multi-year project that compared government to teacher responses to COVID-19 in Argentina, Chile, the UK, and the USA. And, she co-leads a multinational research team with Gaddis for the Rockefeller Foundation's Big Bet program, developing comparative case studies of the relationship of regenerative/agroecological farming practices and school food programs.
Education and Training:
- PhD, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Educational Policy Studies
- MA, University of California, San Diego, Latin American Studies
- BA, University of Rochester, History and Political Science
Awards and Honors:
- 2025 ASFS Book Award, Edited Volume Category; Association for the Study of Food and Society; 2025-06-19;
- 2025 Best School Meals Book in the World; 30th Annual Gourmand Food Book Awards at the CASCAIS World Food Summit, Lisbon, Portugal.; 2025-06-18;
- Excellence in Diversity and Inclusion Award; UB Graduate School of Education; 2019-05-03;
- 2016 Critics’ Choice Book Award; American Educational Studies Association; 2016-11-11;
- 2012 Critics’ Choice Book Award; American Educational Studies Association; 2012-11-09;
Recent Publications:
Edited Book:
- Gaddis, J., & Robert, S. A. (Eds.). (2024). Transforming School Food Politics Around the World. Cambridge, MA: The MIT Press. Open access https://direct.mit.edu/books/oa-edited-volume/5789/Transforming-School-Food-Politics-around-the-World
Journal Article:
- Robert, S. A., & Gaddis, J. E. (2025). School meals, policy protagonism, and the politics of care in the Americas. Social Politics: International Studies in Gender, State and Policy 32(2), 333-356. DOI: 10.1093/sp/jxaf024
- Moreau, M.P., & Robert, S.A. (2023). Re/definitions of teachers and teaching work in UK and US policy discourses under Covid-19 and their implications for social justice. International Studies in the Sociology of Education (ISSE). DOI: 10.1080/09620214.2023.2243282
Book Chapter:
- Robert, S. A., Coote, M., & McEntarfer, H. K. (2026). Conceptualizing Teachers’ Care Work: Lessons from Black Women and Trans- and Non-binary Teachers. In N. Bascia, & R. M. Maton (Eds.), Handbook on Teachers’ Work: International Perspectives on Research and Practice (pp. 215-229). Routledge.
Other:
- Gaddis, J. & Robert, S. A. (2024, June 4). Organic cheese and free lunch for all: what the US can learn from other nations about better school meals. The Guardian, School Food Fights. https://www.theguardian.com/global/commentisfree/article/2024/may/31/free-healthy-school-lunches?CMP=share_btn_url
Recent Presentations:
Invited Lectures:
- Gaddis, J. E., & Robert, S. A. (2025, July 26). Social Inclusion and Public Support in Brazil and South Korea [TED-style presentation]. Nourishing the Future through Regenerative School Meals, UNFSS+4 High-level Convening, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.;
- Robert, S. A. (2024, September 27). “Policy protagonism for transforming politics and their analysis.” Alumni Speaker Series. University of Wisconsin-Madison, School of Education, Educational Policy Studies Department.;
Conferences:
- Robert, S. A., & Gaddis, J. E. (2025, November 19-23). “Why should we care about school food politics” [flash presentation]? American Anthropological Association Conference, New Orleans, LA.;
- Robert, S. A., Gaddis, J. E., Torres, I., López Cevallos, D., Patton-Lopez, M. (2025, June 5-7). School food and the right to care [paper presentation]. Fourth Global Carework Network, Duke University, Durham, NC, USA.;
Recent Grants:
Grant:
- Investigating pathways for scaling regenerative/agroecological school meals: Case studies of Brazil and South Korea; Foundation and Research Organization; The Rockefeller Foundation; Awarded; (04/01/2025-11/03/2025)
Recent Activities:
Professional Service:
- Robert, S. A., Chair. (2025). 2025 George and Louise Spindler Award Committee. American Anthropological Association, Council on Anthropology and Education.
04/07/2025-11/21/2025
Recent Editorships:
Editorship:
- English Language Board Member; Educational Policy Analysis Archives
10/17/2025-05/22/2026 - Editorial Board Member; Policy Futures in Education
09/03/2018-05/22/2026