This issue marks the beginning of a new editor-in-chief for Studies in Philosophy and Education (SPED). I am excited to begin my tenure in this role, and to continue developing the long-standing strength and quality of this journal, which enjoys a 54-year history of continual support from editors in the fields of philosophy, philosophy of education, social science, and educational policy, in support of addressing philosophical, theoretical, normative and conceptual problems and issues in educational research, policy and practice.

Let me introduce myself a little. I am a “military brat” who grew up on USA military bases around the world during the Cold War, the 1960s civil rights movement, the 2nd wave of the feminist movement, and the Viet Nam War, all of which greatly affected me. I am a former Montessori elementary teacher, mother of four very talented adult children and grandmother of two adorable granddaughters.

I am a full professor, who worked in undergraduate teacher education for 9 years at Bowling Green State University, Ohio before moving to Knoxville, Tennessee, where I have been working for 15 years with graduate students in the Cultural Studies masters program and the Learning Environments and Educational Studies doctoral program at the University of Tennessee. I currently serve as program coordinator for both programs. I teach graduate courses on philosophy and history of education, social philosophy and cultural diversity. My primary research areas are: philosophy of education, pragmatism, feminist theory and pedagogy, and cultural studies in education. I am an active member in numerous professional organizations, such as the American Educational Research Association, American Educational Studies Association, International Network of Philosophers of Education, and the Philosophy of Education Society USA, and present papers regularly at their conferences.

I am the author of over fifteen chapters in essay collections and over seventy journal articles, published in professional journals such as The Journal of Thought, Educational Theory, Studies in Philosophy and Education, Inquiry, Educational Foundations, and Educational Studies. I have written five books, Philosophy applied to education: Nurturing a democratic community in the classroom, with Charles S. Bacon as contributing author (Merrill Publishing, Prentice-Hall, 1998); Transforming critical thinking: Thinking constructively (Teachers College Press, 2000); Relational “(e)pistemologies” (Peter Lang, 2003); Beyond liberal democracy in schools: The power of pluralism (Teachers College Press, 2008); and Democracies always in the making: Historical and current philosophical issues for education (Rowman & Littlefield, 2013); and co-edited with Lynda Stone and Kathleen Sprecher Education feminism: Classic and contemporary readings (SUNY Press, 2013).

In taking on this position as editor-in-chief I am letting go of a position of editor of the journal International Education, under my helm for the past 6 years. I bring that experience, along with guest editing and series editing experience, to help continue the quality of SPED. I also have the ability to support doctoral students as managing editors through this editing work and plan to continue to do so. Those arrangements are made.

What is a surprise is to discover that with my becoming editor-in-chief, I become the first woman to serve in this role not only for SPED, but also for any of the top ranked English journals in educational philosophy. It is about time, in 2015, don’t you agree? I am reminded of quotes from two key philosophers anticipating this possibility:

Women have as yet made little contribution to philosophy. But when women who are not mere students of other persons philosophy set out to write it, we cannot conceive that it will be the same in viewpoint or tenor as that composed from the standpoint of the different masculine experience of things. (Dewey 2008, p. 46)

It is important to understand that the exclusion of both women and the reproductive processes of society from the educational realm by philosophy of education is a consequence of the structure of the discipline and not simply due to an oversight which is easily corrected. Thus, philosophical inquiry into the nature of those processes or into the education of women cannot simply be grafted onto philosophy of education as presently constituted. On the contrary, the very subject matter of the field must be redefined. (Martin 1982, pp. 147–148)

Readers will note changes in the journal over time with the changing of editors, but also the continuing of long-established practices. Gert Biesta and I will be working together during the transition year of 2015 to insure a smooth transition, and Gert will remain on our Editorial Board. Gert has served this journal well for 15 years, thank you Gert! He has been a visionary for the journal and his editorial spells out how he has helped lead the journal into the 21st century. As the next editor, I will be reading all submissions to determine if they should go out for review, and if so, recommending three reviewers with expertise in the submissions’ area of research. I hope that when we ask for review help your response will be, yes! I will continue the practice of occasionally devoting a single journal issue to a themed topic with guest editor(s) and their invited contributors. Proposals for these possibilities are welcome. I have served as a guest editor for SPED in the past myself. The journal will continue to have our frequent “Reviewers and Rejoiners” section that features book review essays with replies from the authors, and Sam Rocha will continue in the role of book review editor. I look forward to working with him. For all submissions that have gone through the review process with Gert as editor-in-chief and received notifications of acceptance, those decisions will be honored and those manuscripts will be published in as timely a manner as possible.

It is my sincere hope to continue the development of an inviting and welcoming space for diverse philosophical perspectives on educational policy, issues, and research at an international level at SPED. The fact that a space for women philosophers of education to become editors is first opening up here says much about the supportive space this journal’s editors have already sought to create. However, as a woman in a field strongly dominated by men for so long, even though women have been educating children in societies around the world throughout time, and as a cultural studies scholar, I know that it is very important to pay attention to how we define ‘philosophy’ and ‘education,’ and what we use as our criteria for what counts as ‘good scholarship’ worthy of publication.

Under my term as editor-in-chief, ‘philosophy’ will be broadly defined, beyond the reach of Ancient Greece and Plato’s and Aristotle’s influences, to include other roots as far and wide as Confucius, Buddha, and First Nations’ oral traditions. Philosophical methods that include existentialism, phenomenology, narrative inquiry, critical theory, queer theory, post-structural theory as well as more traditional philosophical approaches are all welcome. ‘Education’ will also be broadly defined to include formal, informal, and milieu forms of education, as Harry Broudy (1954) defined the term, or reproductive, domestic education, as Jane Martin (1982) described the term.

The audience SPED addresses is an international audience and all authors submitting material need to keep that in mind. My experience from editing International Education is that authors sometimes forget that they are not just addressing others in their particular country such as the USA, Australia, or China, for example. Examples used from within national boundaries and local popular cultures need to be explained for those of us who may not be familiar with those particular references. Educational policy issues and particular school practices unique to national locations need to be explained too. Attention should be made to sources referenced as well, to broaden contributions and deepen understanding at an international level. I will seek to publish contributions from around the world and will do all I can to help make that occur. Potential authors will find feedback from our reviewers as well as me that seeks to help them reach the goal of publishing their work in the best form possible.

As a cultural studies and feminist scholar, aware of marginalized and/or targeted voices, my approach will be a caring approach. This does not mean “easy,” as sometimes it is misinterpreted to mean. It means significant attention and generosity will be used in the review process, and a willingness to be approachable and welcoming will be found. I am aware that for many authors submitting English manuscripts they will be writing in a second or even third language. My managing editor(s) and I will do our best to listen and respond to authors in a timely manner, read your submissions attentively, and select reviewers that are generous fits for your submissions. At the same time, reviewers’ feedback will be received with attention and taken seriously, and their suggestions for improvement shared and encouraged to be heeded by authors.

I will be looking for authors to submit theoretical work that directly connects to problems and issues in educational research, policy and practice. There are other journals whose missions are solely philosophical or historical, for example, but this journal’s mission is to directly connect educational theory to educational practice. As Dewey reminds us, there are enough real problems in the world for philosophers to worry about and seek to make contributions toward helping to solve. Those real educational problems should be our focus in submissions for this journal, not “tacked on” at the end of an essay. Please make sure your submissions focus directly on education, broadly defined.

In 1982 Martin predicted that when women are included in philosophy and philosophy of education and treated with epistemological equality, new questions can be asked, great historical figures can be better understood, insight into childrearing activities will be increased, theories of curriculum will be more complete, and the field of study will be invigorated. She warned us: “the need for a redefinition of its subject matter is imperative if philosophy of education is to cease serving patriarchal policy. The promise of enrichment is real” (Martin 1982, p. 148). I certainly hope so! I am excited about the possibilities! I hope this announcement of the first woman editor-in-chief for SPED will be received as an exciting opportunity for all of us. Thank you, Gert Biesta for the invitation to be a pioneer and help make history for Studies in Philosophy of Education.