For Immediate Release June 26, 2025
Contacts: Tony Pals, tpals@aera.net (202) 238-3235
Marla Koenigsknecht, mkoenigsknecht@aera.net (202) 238-3233
AERA Selects James A. Banks to Deliver 2025 Brown Lecture in Education Research
Washington, D.C., June 26, 2025—James A. Banks, the Kerry and Linda Killinger Endowed Chair in Diversity Studies Emeritus and founding director of the Center for Multicultural Education (now the Banks Center for Educational Justice) at the University of Washington, has been selected by the American Educational Research Association (AERA) to present the 2025 Brown Lecture in Education Research. The public lecture will take place on Thursday, October 23, at 6:00 p.m. ET. Complimentary registration for the livestream will open in July on the AERA website.
Often called the “father of multicultural education,” Banks is also known for his work in social studies and global citizenship education, and he has written widely in those fields. His research has focused on how educational institutions can improve race and ethnic relations and the academic achievement of diverse groups.
“Dr. Banks’s extraordinary contributions to the field are demonstrated by the breadth of his work and the significance of his impact advancing multicultural and diverse education research,” said AERA Executive Director Felice J. Levine. “We are honored to hear from such a pathbreaking and accomplished scholar.”
His authored books include Teaching Strategies for Ethnic Studies (Pearson); Cultural Diversity and Education: Foundations, Curriculum, and Teaching (Pearson); Educating Citizens in a Multicultural Society (Teachers College Press); and Race, Culture, and Education: The Selected Works of James A. Banks (Routledge). Banks is the editor of several books, including Handbook of Research on Multicultural Education (Wiley); Diversity and Citizenship Education: Global Perspectives (Wiley); and Citizenship Education and Global Migration: Implications for Theory, Research, and Teaching (AERA). He is also the editor of the Multicultural Education book series published by Teachers College Press.
Banks is a past president of AERA (1997–1998) and an AERA Fellow. He is also a past president of the National Council for the Social Studies. He received AERA’s 2023 Distinguished Contributions to Research in Education Award, inaugural 2004 Social Justice in Education Award, and 1994 Review of Research Award. He is a member of the National Academy of Education and the American Academy of Arts and Sciences.
Banks received his B.A. in elementary education and social science from Chicago Teachers College (now Chicago State University) and his M.A. and Ph.D. from Michigan State University.
The Brown Lecture, now in its 22nd year, was inaugurated by AERA in 2004 to commemorate the 50th anniversary of the Brown v. Board of Education decision, in which the U.S. Supreme Court took scientific research into account in issuing its landmark ruling ending legal racial segregation in public schools.
The 2025 Brown Lecture Selection Committee included AERA Social Justice Action Committee Chair James D. Anderson (University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign), AERA President Maisha T. Winn (Stanford University), AERA Past President Janelle T. Scott (University of California, Berkeley), AERA Social Justice Action Committee Member Denise M. Taliaferro Baszile (Wayne State University), AERA Social Justice Action Committee Member Nicole Johnson (Howard University), AERA Executive Director Felice J. Levine, and AERA Director of Professional Development and Diversity Officer George L. Wimberly.
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About AERA The American Educational Research Association (AERA) is the largest national interdisciplinary research association devoted to the scientific study of education and learning. Founded in 1916, AERA advances knowledge about education, encourages scholarly inquiry related to education, and promotes the use of research to improve education and serve the public good. Find AERA on Facebook, X, LinkedIn, Instagram, Threads, and Bluesky.