William Ewell
Associate Teaching Professor
Dr. William Ewell is an Associate Teaching Professor with a joint appointment in Northeastern University’s Doctor of Education and Doctor of Law and Policy programs, where he teaches courses on education policy, research methodology and the policymaking process. Prior to joining Northeastern University, he served as department chair, Fellow in Public Policy at the Martin Institute, and Associate Professor of Political Science at Stonehill College.
His scholarly research concerns education policy, specifically equity and social justice issues, and experiential education. He has been published in the Legislative Studies Quarterly and the Journal of Political Science Education. He is currently working with Routledge Press on an education policy textbook to improve educational leaders understanding of the complex American education system and empower them to affect systemic change. He is also working on a paper on the 30-year impact of the 1993 Massachusetts Education Reform Act, specifically the failure of the education reform to equalize funding for high needs districts.
Prior to his academic tenure, Ewell served more than a decade in federal and state government. He served as a legislative aide in the United States Senate for Rhode Island United States Senator John Chafee. He also served former North Carolina Governor James B. Hunt at the Hunt Institute for Educational Policy and Leadership where he worked with governors and state legislators from across the country to improve their state education policy systems. William worked on the initial creation of the Common Core Standards Initiative, revisions to the No Child Behind Act, and numerous state education policy reforms.
William grew up near Plymouth, Massachusetts as a graduate and fierce supporter of the public school system. He earned his master’s in public policy from Duke University and his PhD in Political Science and Public Policy from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. He is married to Sara Ewell, a Northeastern University faculty member, and together they share a passion for education, social justice, and equality for all with their three children, Will, 13, Emma, 11 and Max, 5.
