Dr. S. Marie McCarther has excelled as a teacher, principal, curriculum director, program evaluator and district level leader for urban, rural, and suburban school districts in Missouri, Iowa, and Ohio. Dr. McCarther was recruited to UMKC by the Midwest Center for Nonprofit Leadership (MCNL), Cookingham Institute of Public Affairs in the Block School in 1997 where she served as founding Director of The Forum for Early Childhood Organization and Leadership Development, Senior Fellow, and Adjunct Professor. Under her leadership the Forum became a national model for building leadership and organizational capacity in early education professionals. As Senior Fellow she conducted board development and strategic planning for national, regional, and local nonprofits. She also taught graduate courses in nonprofit leadership and management. In 2007 Dr. McCarther joined the School of Education as Assistant Professor in the Division of Educational Leadership, Policy, and Foundations (ELPF).
Currently, Dr. McCarther is a tenured Associate Professor in ELPF where she teaches graduate leadership and foundations courses; enjoys advising EdD and IPhD doctoral students; and conducts research on leadership, management, and equity and access issues. Dr. McCarther serves as Division Coordinator for the Interdisciplinary Doctorate Program (IPhD). McCarther believes in collaboration and partnerships and in 2013 in response to community concerns about the lack of positive opportunities for local youth, she co-founded Kansas City Dreamkeepers: Visions and Voices for the Future, an online literary, visual, performing, and cinematic arts contest that emphasizes themes related to social justice and equity. For over five years Kansas City Dreamkeepers held an area wide arts contest with cash prizes in the spring and a student-educator symposium in the fall in support of expanding culturally sustaining and socially just teaching and learning opportunities for students in the metropolitan area. Working in collaboration with the Missouri Division of Youth Services, in 2018, McCarther co-created Project HEART (Helping Educators Attain Responsive Teaching). This exciting project assists educators from the Missouri Division of Youth Services (DYS) with developing teaching strategies to reach youth living and/or learning within the correctional system. These cutting-edge projects, and others, illustrate Dr. McCarther’s ability to collaborate across campus units and partner with multiple community stakeholders.
Dr. McCarther’s work embraces narrative studies, ethnography, documentary, and historiography; all giving a voice to those long silenced across race, class, and gender boundaries. A trained qualitative researcher, she has specific interests in social justice and leadership, arts, and urban education issues. Dr. McCarther is published in numerous scholarly journals and has presented at many national conferences including the American Educational Research Association, American Educational Studies Association, Organization of Educational Historians, National Association of Multicultural Education and the National Alliance of Black School Educators. Dr. McCarther is Editor of the American Educational History Journal. For the past five years, she has engaged in a collaborative teaching and learning project with the Department of English in the College of Arts & Science mentoring student interns in the publication process.
Doctor of Education: Educational Administration, Foundations, Program Development and Change; University of Cincinnati
Cultural Foundations of education; Urban education; Social justice and arts education; Multicultural education; Race and Gender studies in education
McCarther, S. M. (Ed.). (2020). American Educational History Journal, 47(1 & 2). Charlotte, N.C.: Information Age Publishing.
McCarther, S. M. (Ed.). (2019). American Educational History Journal, 46(1 & 2). Charlotte, N.C.: Information Age Publishing.
McCarther, S. M. (Ed.). (2018). American Educational History Journal, 45(1 & 2). Charlotte, N.C.: Information Age Publishing.
McCarther, S.M. and Davis, D.M. (2017). “Culturally relevant pedagogy twenty-plus years later: How an arts approach to teaching and learning can keep the dream alive,” American Educational History Journal, 44(2), 103-114.
McCarther, S.M. & Davis, D.M. (2015). “The bravest girl in the world: A qualitative exploration of social justice through the lens of the adolescent,” Journal of Urban Learning, Teaching, and Research, 11, 50-56.
Davis, D.M. & McCarther, S.M. (2015). “Following the drinking gourd: Culturally responsive pedagogy and curriculum development through the arts,” The Educational Forum, 79 (1), 68-80.
McCarther, S.M., Davis, D.M., Nilsson, J., Marszalek, J., & Barber, C. (2013). “Social justice advocacy competency: A step on the journey to develop an analytic instrument to pinpoint development and build capacity in 21st century school leaders,” National FORUM of Applied Educational Research Journal, 26 (1&2), 94-100.
McCarther, S.M., Davis, D.M., & Caruthers, L. (2012). “A place called homecoming: Memories of celebration and tradition by successful African American graduates of Lincoln University in Missouri from 1935 to 1945.” Journal of Educational Foundations, 26 (3-4), 7-32.
McCarther, S. M., Davis, D. M., & Caruthers, L. (2012). “Traveling the tenure track: Mentoring and collaborative research among African American female faculty in a Midwestern university.” In Anderson, C., & Myers, S. (Eds.). Dimensions in mentoring: A continuum of practice from beginning teachers to teacher leaders. Boston: Sense Publishers.
McCarther, S. M., Davis, D. M., & Caruthers, L. (2012). “Traveling the tenure track: Mentoring and collaborative research among African American female faculty in a Midwestern university.” In Anderson, C., & Myers, S. (Eds.). Dimensions in mentoring: A continuum of practice from beginning teachers to teacher leaders. Boston: Sense Publishers.
McCarther, S. M. (2010). A black who wore white: Reflections of a segregated nursing education program at General Hospital No. 2 in Kansas City, Missouri, American Educational History Journal, 37, 291-311.
O’Bannon, D. J., Garavalia, L., Renz, D., & McCarther, S. M. (2010). Successful leadership development for women STEM faculty. Leadership, Management, and Engineering. 10(4), 167-173.
McCarther, S. M. (2010). Donavan’s Story: One Urban High School Student’s Voice – Many Lessons. National Forum of Applied Educational Research Journal, 24(1 & 2), 29-36.
McCarther, S. M. (October 2020). Straight Talk: Mentoring and Advising First-Gen Doctoral Students in 2020 — 34th Annual Women in Educational Leadership Conference. Lincoln, NE.
McCarther, S.M. (October 2020). Update, Historical Research and Publishing: American Educational History Journal — (Editor’s Session). Annual Meeting Organization of Educational Historians. Chicago, IL.
McCarther, S. M. and Davis, D. M. (October 2020). Disrupting the Status Quo in the Academy: One Example Enabling Transformational Impact in the Post “I Can’t Breathe” Era — 34th Annual Women in Educational Leadership Conference. Lincoln, NE.
McCarther, S. M. (November 2019). Teaching for Social Justice Advocacy in a Virtual Cultural Foundations Classroom in the Academy: Lessons from One Professor’s Experience. — Academy of Educational Studies Critical Questions Symposium. Chicago, IL.
McCarther, S. M. (October 2019). Lessons about Social Justice Advocacy Teaching: One Professor’s Experience in a Virtual Cultural Foundations Classroom in the Academy. — 33rd Annual Women in Educational Leadership Conference. Lincoln, NE.
McCarther, S. M. (October 2019). Editor’s Session: 2019 Annual Report: American Educational History Journal, 46(1 & 2). Organization of Educational Historians 2019 Annual Conference. Kansas City, MO.
McCarther, S. M. & Davis, D. M. (June 2019). Kansas City Dreamkeepers Visions & Voices for the Future – A University, School, & Community Initiative. — Chancellor’s Diversity Council Inclusive Excellence Grant Presentation. University of Missouri – Kansas City.
McCarther, S. M. (October 2018). Academy Conversation: Panel Presentation – Civics, Citizenship & Civility—Academy of Educational Studies Critical Questions Conference.
McCarther, S.M. and Davis, D.M. (October 2018). Teaching Civility through the Arts: Creating Socially Just Safe Spaces for Urban Students. (Paper)—Academy of Educational Studies Critical Questions Conference.
McCarther, S.M. and Davis, D.M. (October 2018). Project H.E.A.R.T.: Culturally Relevant Pedagogy, Civic Engagement, and Youth Development. (Paper)—Academy of Educational Studies Critical Questions Conference.
McCarther, S.M. and Davis, D.M. (October 2018). Educational Leadership and Community Engagement: Our Role as Women in Higher Education Institutions in Creating Socially Just Learning Communities. —Invited Keynote Presentation. Women in Educational Leadership Conference. Lincoln, NE.
McCarther, S.M. (October 2018). Historical Research and Publishing: American Educational History Journal — (Editor’s Session). Annual Meeting Organization of Educational Historians. Chicago, IL.
McCarther, S.M., & Davis, D.M. (June 2018). Project HEART (Helping Educators Attain Responsive Teaching): Effective Practices Symposium— (2-day Professional Development) Missouri Department of Youth Services Leadership & Education Faculty.
McCarther, S.M., & Davis, D.M. (March 2018). Project HEART (Helping Educators Attain Responsive Teaching): Post-secondary options: College & Career Kaleidoscope— (2-half-day seminars) Missouri Department of Youth Services Students Grades 8-12.
McCarther, S.M., & Davis, D.M. (April 2018). The Dreams and Possibilities of Youth: Creating Socially Just Safe Spaces for Urban Students— (Paper) American Educational Research Association.
McCarther, S.M., & Davis, D.M. (April 2018). Ask an Editor: Tips and resources for faculty Seminar —Faculty Center for Excellence in Teaching. University of Missouri- Kansas City.
McCarther, S.M., & Davis, D.M. (April 2018). The Dreams and Possibilities of Youth: Creating Socially Just Safe Spaces for Urban Students. Annual Meeting of the American Educational Research Association.
NRT-HDR: Evidence Based Model for Training Traditional and Non-Traditional Graduates in an Interdisciplinary Approach for Data Harnessing in Healthcare and Cybersecurity Domains. (2019). Role, Senior Personnel. In collaboration with UMKC Computer Engineering and Chemistry Faculty. ($499,759).
Professional Masters of Education in Nanoelectronics. (2017). Submission to National Science Foundation. Role: Co-PI. In collaboration with UMKC Engineering and Chemistry Faculty. ($499, 625).
McCarther, S. M. and Davis, D. M. (2017). Inclusive Excellence Award. Division of Diversity and Inclusion, University of Missouri-Kansas City. Amount Awarded: $5,000.
McCarther, S, M., Barber, C., Davis, D. M., Marszalek, J. & Nilsson, J. (April 2012) Dean’s Small Grant, School of Education, University of Missouri – Kansas City. “A Look Inside: Developing Diagnostic Tools for the Assessment of Social Justice.” $20,000 (Awarded). Role: Equal Collaborators/Contributors – 20% each.
McCarther, S. M., Davis, D. M., and Odom, L. (2010). CFDA 84.363A: School Leadership Program – Project U-LEAD (Urban Leadership Excellence for Administrative Development); U.S. Department of Education. Five Year total request: $4,169,000. Role: Primary Investigator. April 6, 2010 (Unfunded)
McCarther, S. M. (2008). Teaching Enhancement Grant, TEG Provost Office, $2,000; University of Missouri – Kansas City. (Awarded).
2018: Chancellor’s Award for Excellence in Community Engagement
2015: Chancellor’s Award for Excellence in Diversity
