WASHINGTON – We are proud to announce that Ivory A. Toldson, Ph.D., professor of counseling psychology at Howard University and editor-in-chief of The Journal of Negro Education, has been ranked among the top 200 education scholars in the United States by the 2024 RHSU Edu-Scholar Public Influence Rankings. This annual list recognizes university-based scholars who have the most influence on educational practice and policy. 

The Edu-Scholar Public Influence Rankings is meant to recognize and encourage scholars who successfully merge education scholarship with policy and practice. Toldson’s ranking is emblematic of his longstanding efforts as a scholar and advocate for education. The author of numerous publications, Toldson’s 2019 book, “No BS (Bad Stats): Black People Need People Who Believe in Black People Enough Not to Believe Every Bad Thing They Hear about Black People,” explores how the most common data used to make decisions about Black students is misinformed and offers alternative ways to use data in pursuit of educational equity. 

“I see my work as a scholar and activist as a constant pursuit of truth and justice in education. It’s about challenging harmful narratives, dismantling inequitable systems, and amplifying the voices of those who have been marginalized for too long,” Toldson said. “This past year, I've focused on debunking myths about Black student achievement, advocating for using data for equity and post-reform education, and pushing for greater investment in HBCUs.”  

Toldson has been vocal about issues concerning book bans and DEI in higher education, recently authoring op-eds in Education Trust, BET and Diverse: Issues in Higher Education on the resignation of Harvard President Claudine Gay. He has been featured as a subject matter expert by MSNBC, NPR, Times Higher Education and more. 

Toldson is a nationally recognized researcher, author, and speaker whose work aims to debunk misleading stereotypes about African Americans in education. He also served as the executive director of the White House Initiative on Historically Black Colleges and Universities under President Barack Obama, and as the national director of Education Innovation and Research for the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP). 

Created by Frederick M. Hess, the American Enterprise Institute director of education policy studies and Education Week blogger, the Edu-Scholar Public Influence Rankings is in its 14th year of publication. The ranking metrics are formulated using nine publicly available sources, including Google Scholar, Amazon, X (formerly known as Twitter), books, syllabi, press mentions, web mentions, newspaper mentions, and congressional record mentions. 

Read more about the 2024 Edu-Scholar Public Influence Rankings here. 

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