Sara Lawrence-Lightfoot
Encyclopedia
Sara Lawrence-Lightfoot is an American sociologist who examines the culture of schools, the patterns and structures of classroom life, socialization within families and communities, and the relationships between culture and learning styles. She has been a professor at the Harvard Graduate School of Education
since the 1970s.
and empiricism
, which she continues to use in her own work.
She has written eight books, including I've Known Rivers, which explores the development of creativity and wisdom using the lens of "human archaeology," The Art and Science of Portraiture, which documents her pioneering approach to social science methodology, and, her most recent, The Third Chapter: Passion, Risk, and Adventure in the 25 Years After 50.
In March 1998, she was the recipient of the Emily Hargroves Fisher endowed chair at Harvard University
, which, upon her retirement, will become the Sara Lawrence-Lightfoot endowed chair, making her the first African-American woman in Harvard's history to have an endowed professorship named in her honor. She also has an endowed professorship named in her honor at Swarthmore College
.
Lawrence-Lightfoot was featured on the 2006 PBS television documentary African American Lives
. In 2008, she was elected to membership in the American Philosophical Society
, the oldest learned society in the United States, dating to 1743.
Beyond Bias: Perspectives on Classrooms (1978)
The Good High School: Portraits of Character and Courage (1983)
Balm in Gilead: Journey of a Healer (1988)
Respect (1990)
I've Known Rivers: Lives of Loss and Liberation (1995)
The Art and Science of Portraiture (1997)
The Essential Conversation: What Parents and Teachers Can Learn from Each Other (2003)
The Third Chapter: Passion, Risk, and Adventure in the 25 Years After 50 (2009) ISBN 978-0-374-27549-5
Harvard Graduate School of Education
The Harvard Graduate School of Education is one of the graduate schools of Harvard University, and is one of the top schools of education in the United States. It was founded in 1920, the same year it invented the Ed.D...
since the 1970s.
Career
Lawrence-Lightfoot has pioneered portraiture, an approach to social science methodology that bridges the realms of aestheticsAesthetics
Aesthetics is a branch of philosophy dealing with the nature of beauty, art, and taste, and with the creation and appreciation of beauty. It is more scientifically defined as the study of sensory or sensori-emotional values, sometimes called judgments of sentiment and taste...
and empiricism
Empiricism
Empiricism is a theory of knowledge that asserts that knowledge comes only or primarily via sensory experience. One of several views of epistemology, the study of human knowledge, along with rationalism, idealism and historicism, empiricism emphasizes the role of experience and evidence,...
, which she continues to use in her own work.
She has written eight books, including I've Known Rivers, which explores the development of creativity and wisdom using the lens of "human archaeology," The Art and Science of Portraiture, which documents her pioneering approach to social science methodology, and, her most recent, The Third Chapter: Passion, Risk, and Adventure in the 25 Years After 50.
Honors
In 1984, Lawrence-Lightfoot was awarded the prestigious MacArthur prize fellowship, and in 1993, she was awarded Harvard's George Ledlie prize for research that makes the "most valuable contribution to science" and "the benefit of mankind."In March 1998, she was the recipient of the Emily Hargroves Fisher endowed chair at Harvard University
Harvard University
Harvard University is a private Ivy League university located in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States, established in 1636 by the Massachusetts legislature. Harvard is the oldest institution of higher learning in the United States and the first corporation chartered in the country...
, which, upon her retirement, will become the Sara Lawrence-Lightfoot endowed chair, making her the first African-American woman in Harvard's history to have an endowed professorship named in her honor. She also has an endowed professorship named in her honor at Swarthmore College
Swarthmore College
Swarthmore College is a private, independent, liberal arts college in the United States with an enrollment of about 1,500 students. The college is located in the borough of Swarthmore, Pennsylvania, 11 miles southwest of Philadelphia....
.
Lawrence-Lightfoot was featured on the 2006 PBS television documentary African American Lives
African American Lives
African American Lives is a PBS television miniseries hosted by historian Henry Louis Gates, Jr., focusing on African American genealogical research...
. In 2008, she was elected to membership in the American Philosophical Society
American Philosophical Society
The American Philosophical Society, founded in 1743, and located in Philadelphia, Pa., is an eminent scholarly organization of international reputation, that promotes useful knowledge in the sciences and humanities through excellence in scholarly research, professional meetings, publications,...
, the oldest learned society in the United States, dating to 1743.
Works
Worlds Apart: Relationships Between Families and Schools (1978)Beyond Bias: Perspectives on Classrooms (1978)
The Good High School: Portraits of Character and Courage (1983)
Balm in Gilead: Journey of a Healer (1988)
Respect (1990)
I've Known Rivers: Lives of Loss and Liberation (1995)
The Art and Science of Portraiture (1997)
The Essential Conversation: What Parents and Teachers Can Learn from Each Other (2003)
The Third Chapter: Passion, Risk, and Adventure in the 25 Years After 50 (2009) ISBN 978-0-374-27549-5