Melinda Lemke (she/her)

My research focuses on the politics of education and how social policies address structural violence to center the health, well-being, and human rights of women and girls. Reliant upon interdisciplinarity and critical qualitative methodologies, this includes investigating policy actor knowledge and decision-making processes. In an era of ongoing neoliberal and settler colonial reform, this also involves examining how culture, ideology, and rhetoric factor into said processes.

My work largely has examined the causes, effects, and public system responses to gender-based violence and the largescale internal and cross-border displacement of women and youth. Current projects include development of intersectional feminist policy analysis tools and critique of social policies that delimit, dislocate, and engender structural trauma and disposability - with ongoing research questions concerning (un)intended policy consequences, for whom do policies work, and to what ends for collective futurity. This research can be found in outlets such as Children's Geographies, Educational Policy, Gender and Education, Journal of Education Policy, Social Sciences, and The Urban Review.

Collectively, my research, teaching, and service are informed by a first career in U.S. public secondary education and work in sexual assault prevention and advocacy - which inspires the centering of context, as well as transparent, reciprocal, and co-constructed partnerships - to improve the social determinants of health and well-being for students, families, and communities. Select practitioner career achievements include a J. William Fulbright Fellowship to South Korea, James Madison Memorial Fellowship, National Endowment for the Humanities Outstanding Teaching Award, and National Board Certification (Secondary Social Studies).

Current Affiliations:
• American Educational Research Association
• Buffalo Commons (PPG and Cornell University)
• Childhood, Law, Policy Network, Queen Mary University of London, United Kingdom Arts and Humanities Research Council
• Fulbright Association
• UB Alberti Center for Bullying Abuse Prevention
• UB Community for Excellence, Global Health Equity
• UB Department, Global Gender and Sexuality Studies
• UB Faculty Senate and FSEC
• United University Professions, Buffalo Center Chapter Grievance Officer for Academics and Delegate

Please visit my ORCID and LinkedIn profiles to learn more about my work.

• Postdoctoral Research Associate, Swansea University, Wales, United Kingdom, Hillary Rodham Clinton School of Law, Observatory on Human Rights of Children and Young People
• PhD, The University of Texas at Austin, Educational Policy and Planning; Gender Studies concentration
• MEd, The University of Texas at Austin, Curriculum and Instruction; Government concentration
• BSED; BA; minor, Bucknell University, Secondary Education; History; Law

• Dr. Conrad F. Toepfer, Jr. Mentorship Award; University at Buffalo, SUNY; 2025-05-09;
• Paula Silver Case Award for the following article: Lemke, M., Bascug, E., & Howard, A. (2022). Seen yet unseen: A case of human trafficking at Harris High School. Journal of Cases in Educational Leadership, 25(2), 153-168.; University Council for Educational Administration (UCEA); 2023-10-15;
• Honors College, Graduate School of Education Faculty Fellow; University at Buffalo; 2021-08-30;
• Faculty-in-Residence Award; Graduate School of Education, University at Buffalo, SUNY; 2018-01-01;
• Refugee Health and Well-being Faculty Fellow; Community of Excellence in Global Health Equity, University at Buffalo, SUNY; 2017-01-01;

• Lemke, M., Miles Nash, A., Mackey, H., & Young, M. D. (Eds.) (2025). Beyond now: Feminist politics, policy, and research futures in education. International Journal of Qualitative Studies in Education (QSE), 38. https://www.tandfonline.com/toc/tqse20/38/8

• Lemke, M., Jekayinoluwa, J., Petko, D., Sharma, V., & LiPuma, K. (2025). Gender-based violence and the politics of sex education in the United States: Expanding medically accurate and comprehensive policy and programming. Youth, 5(4), 127-50. https://doi.org/10.3390/ youth5040127
• Judelsohn, A., Lemke, M., Hna, N., Raja, S., Scates, J., & Agbemenu, K. (2024). Co-constructing knowledge and space with refugee communities: Lessons from the Western New York Refugee Health Summit. Social Sciences, 13(8), 390. https://doi.org/10.3390/socsci13080390
• Lemke, M. & Rogers, K. (2023). A feminist critical heuristic for educational policy analysis: U.S. social emotional learning policy. Journal of Education Policy, 38(5), 803-828. https://doi.org/10.1080/02680939.2022.2130995

• Lemke, M. (2024). Critical and feminist cartographies of observation: Procedural, personal, and political considerations in the documentation and analysis of life worlds. In M. D. Young & S. Diem (Eds.), Handbook of critical education research: Qualitative, quantitative, and emerging approaches (pp. 590-611). Routledge. doi: 10.4324/9781003141464-35

• Gender Violence Policy Lab, Community of Excellence in Global Health Equity Award; Colleges / Universities; University at Buffalo, SUNY; Awarded; (02/09/2024-05/25/2027)
• Faculty Equity Grant; Local Government; Community of Excellence in Global Health Equity, University of Buffalo, SUNY; Awarded; (03/27/2023-07/31/2023)
• District Residency, Retention, and Community Well-being: A Policy Analysis at the Intersection of Class, Gender, and Race; Local Government; Gender Institute, University at Buffalo, SUNY; Awarded; (12/23/2022-12/31/2023)
• Co-constructing Public Knowledge: Centering Sexual Violence in Educational Research, Policy, and Practices Concerning Adolescent Girl Trauma; State Government; Community of Excellence in Global Health Equity Micro-Grant, University at Buffalo, SUNY; Awarded; (07/01/2021-05/01/2022)
• Turnaround Micro-Credential; State Government; New York State Department of Education; Awarded; (06/01/2019-09/30/2020)

• American Educational Research Association Annual Conference SIG and Division Chair/Reviewer
  05/24/2011-05/22/2025

• United University Professions, Buffalo Center, Grievance Officer for Academics
  02/03/2025-05/25/2026
• United University Professions, Buffalo Center Board
  08/19/2024-05/25/2026
• Board Member, Fulbright Association, Fulbright Chapter of WNY/NWPA (Secretary, 2022-2025)
  02/27/2021-05/25/2026
• Education Researcher, Partnership for the Public Good, Buffalo Commons
  09/01/2018-05/26/2025

• Editorial Board Member; International Journal of Qualitative Studies in Education (QSE)
  08/01/2025-05/31/2028
• Editorial Board Member; Journal of Cases in Educational Leadership
  10/01/2020-05/31/2024
• Associate Editor; Leadership and Policy in Schools
  09/01/2020-12/01/2023
• Editorial Board Member; Leadership and Policy in Schools
  09/01/2016-09/01/2020