David I. Backer, PhD
Associate Professor of Education Policy
Department of Educational Leadership, Management, and Policy
Seton Hall University
EDUCATION
Columbia University, New York, NY
PhD in Philosophy and Education, Teachers College, May 2014
Dissertation: “The Distortion of Discussion”
Dissertation Committee: Megan Laverty (Chair, Columbia University, Teachers College), Tyson Lewis (University of North Texas), David Hansen (Columbia University, Teachers College), Sophie Haroutunian-Gordon (Northwestern University), Daniel Friedrich (Columbia University, Teachers College)
Columbia University, New York, NY
MPhil in Social and Political Philosophy, awarded with distinguished honors, June 2012
State University of New York-Buffalo, Buffalo, NY
MS in Interdisciplinary Studies/Education, June 2010
Thesis: “Measuring the Efficacy of Classroom Discussion: Harkness vs. Socratic Pedagogy”
George Washington University, Washington, DC
BA in Philosophy with a concentration in mathematics and logic, minor in biological anthropology, magna cum laude, 2006
ACADEMIC POSITIONS
Jan 2025 – Present Associate Professor of Education Policy
Department of Educational Leadership, Management, and Policy
Seton Hall University
Courses taught
ELMP 995 Financial Administration of Higher Education, Spring 2025
ELMP 7100 Selected Topics in Administration, Spring 2025
2021- 2024 Associate Professor of Education Policy,
Department of Educational Leadership and Administration
College of Education and Social Work, West Chester University, PA
2016-2021 Assistant Professor of Social and Cultural Foundations,
Department of Educational Foundations & Policy Studies, College of
Education and Social Work, West Chester University, PA
2015 – 2016 Visiting Assistant Professor of Social Foundations, Department of
Curriculum and Foundations, College of Education and Human Services, /
Cleveland State University, Cleveland, OH
Office of Field Services
Preservice Teacher Candidate Supervisor-Middle School Math and Science, Spring 2015
Masters of Urban Secondary Teaching Program
Preservice Teacher Candidate Supervisor-High School Math and English, Fall 2015
PUBLICATIONS
Books
Backer, David I. (Forthcoming 2025). As Public as Possible: Radical Finance for America’s Schools. The New Press.
Backer, David. I. (2022). Althusser and Education: Reassessing Critical Education. Bloomsbury.
Backer, David I. (2019). The Gold and the Dross: Althusser for Educators. Brill-Sense.
Backer, David I. (2016). Elements of Discussion. Information Age Press.
Book-length Translations
Dussel, E. (2019). Pedagogics of Liberation: A Latin American Philosophy of Education. Trans., David I. Backer and C. Diego, Punctum Books.
Peer-Reviewed Articles
Burgos, R. & Backer, D. I. (2024). “A Decolonial Look at Pennsylvania’s Multilingual Learners’ Policy.” Journal of Education Policy. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1080/02680939.2024.2446950
Backer, D. I., & Royal, C. (2024). Toxic Finance: Underinvestment in Philadelphia’s School Buildings, 1993–2021. Journal of Educational Administration and History, 1-18.
Backer, D. I., & Cyna, E. (2024). Critical School Finance. Journal of Educational Administration and History, 1-21.
Backer, D. I. & Rodriguez, A. (2023). “Movements at the Fiscal/Monetary Crossroads: Financing a Green New Deal for Public Schools in Philadelphia.” Journal of Urban Affairs. https://doi.org/10.1080/07352166.2023.2232062
Backer, D. I. (2023). “Cooperation Analysis of Twin Cities Tax-base Sharing: Human Resources, School Districts, and Social Justice.” Journal of Education Human Resources. 41(1), 14-35.
Rodriguez, Akira Drake, Daniel Aldana Cohen, Kira McDonald, Nick Graetz, Erika Kitzmiller, David I. Backer, and Billy Fleming (2021). A Green Stimulus for K-12 Schools. Philadelphia: climate + community project.
Backer, D. I. & Cairns, K. (2021). “Social Reproduction Theory Revisited.” British Journal of Sociology of Education. 42(7), 1086-1104.
Backer, D. I. (2021). “History of the Reproduction-Resistance Dichotomy: The Line of Critique against Louis Althusser, 1974-1985.” Critical Education, 12(6).
Backer, D. I. (2020). “School Funding Inequality in Pennsylvania: A Base-Superstructure Analysis.” Pennsylvania Educational Leadership Journal, 39(2).
Backer, D. I. (2020). “Ideology and Education.” Oxford Research Encyclopedia of Education.
Backer, D. I.(2020). “A Socialist Guide to Education Talk.” GroundWorks. Published online: https://www.philosophyofeducation.org/committee-on-professional-affairs
Backer, D. I. (2020). “Althusser on School Law.” Legal Form. Published online: https://legalform.blog/2020/02/13/backer-althusser-school-law/
Lussier, J. & Backer, D. I. (2019). “Recovering the Marxist Feminist Eye.” Philosophy of Education Yearbook 2019.
Backer, D. I. (2018). “Radical Discussions: Agonistic Democratic Education.” Philosophy of Education Yearbook 2017.
Backer, D. I. (2018). “Interpellation, Counterinterpellation, and Education.” Critical Education, 9(12), 1-21.
Backer, D. I. (2018). “The Distortion of Discussion.” Issues in Teacher Education, 27 (1).
Backer, D. I. (2017.) “Making the Co-operative School a Challenge Alternative: Revisiting Social Reproduction Theory.” Journal of Co-operative Studies, Vol. 50 (1), 17-27.
Backer, D. I. (2017). “The Politics of Recitation: Interpellation, Hegemony, and Reproduction.” Harvard Educational Review, 87 (3).
Backer, D. I. (2017). “Is Discussion An Exchange of Ideas? Money, Speech, and Education.” Philosophical Inquiry in Education, 24 (4), p. 295-309.
Backer, D. I. (2017). “The Critique of Deliberative Discussion: A Response.” Democracy & Education, 25 (1).
Backer, D. I. (2017). “The Mass Psychology of Classroom Discourse.” Educational Theory, 67(1), 34-60.
Backer, D. (2016). “The Purpose of Online Discussion.” Hybrid Pedagogy. http://www.digitalpedagogylab.com/hybridped/purpose-online-discussion/
Backer, D. (2015). “Horizontal Pedagogy in Occupy Wall Street: Operationalizing Andy Merrifield’s Notion of the Encounter.” The SoJo Journal: Educational Foundations and Social Justice. 1(2).
Backer, D. and Lewis, T. (2015). “The Studious University: A Marxist-Psychoanalytic Groundwork.” Cultural Politics, 11(3).
Backer, D. and Lewis, T. (2015). “Retaking the Test.” Educational Studies: A Journal of the American Educational Studies Association, 51(3).
Backer, D. & J. Wozniak. (2014). “Introduction.” In Lapiz: Proceedings from the Latin American Philosophy of Education Society’s Annual Symposium. Diego, C. (Ed.)
Article Pipeline
Backer, D. I. & Schirmer, E. & Anti, S. (Under Consideration). “Are School Bonds Racist?” Inquiry.
Backer, D. I. (Forthcoming). “Critical School Finance: Four Tenets.” Entry for Political and Social Movements: The Encyclopedia of Social Justice and Education. Bloomsbury.
Backer, D. I. (Under Consideration). “Weak Link Policies: The Finance that Can Determine Teachers’ Material Conditions.” Workplace: A Journal of Academic Labor.
Backer, D. I. (Forthcoming). “The Problem of Educational Power,” The Philosophy of Education Yearbook.
Book Chapters
Backer, D.I. (2023). “Reproduction in Struggle.” In Palgrave International Handbook of Marxism and Education. Richard Hall, ed. Palgrave.
Backer, D. I. & Cohen, D. (2022). “‘Innovative’ Educational Finance: The Role of Financial Capital in Shaping Schooling.” In Routledge Handbook of Critical Approaches to the Politics and Policy of Education, Ken Saltman, ed. Routledge.
Backer, D. I. (2019). “Discussion: A Radical View.” In D. Ford (Ed.) Keywords in Radical Philosophy of Education. Brill-Sense.
Backer, D. I. (2018). “Socialist Grading.” In K.Haltinner (Ed.) Teaching Economic Inequality and Capitalism. Springer.
Backer, D. I. (2017). “Educating the Commons through Cooperatively-run Schools.” In D. Ford, G. Slater, A. Means (Eds.) Educational Commons in Theory and Practice. Palgrave.
Backer, D. & M. Bissen, J. Wozniak, J. North, J. Laroche, C. Casuccio, Z. Mackin, C. Szendler. (2017). “What is Horizontal Pedagogy?” In R. Haworth and J. Elmore (Eds.) Out of the Ruins: The Emergence of Radical Informal Learning Spaces, PM Press.
Backer, D. I. (2016). “Towards an Activist Theory of Language.” In J. Hannan (Ed.) Truth in the Public Sphere. Lexington Books.
Backer, D. (2015). “The Conference Method, or Harkness Pedagogy: Listening for Discussion.” In Listening to Teach: Beyond Didactic Pedagogy, ed. Leonard Waks. State University of New York Press: Albany.
Winkler, D.L., Andermann, R., Moore, J., & Backer, D. (2015). “Social Studies for the Gifted Student.” In T. Kettler (Ed.) Modern Curriculum for Gifted and Advanced Students. Prufrock Press.
Essay Translations
Paredes, J. (2018). “FEMINISMO COMUNITARIO DE ABYA YALA,” trans. Anita Juarez and David I. Backer, Lapiz Vol. 3. http://lapes.org/publications/lapiz/lapiz-three/LapizN3-LAPES.pdf
Dussel, E. (2018). “A Brief Note on Pedagogics,” trans. David I. Backer and Chris Casuccio, Lapiz Vol. 3. http://lapes.org/publications/lapiz/lapiz-three/LapizN3-LAPES.pdf
Book Reviews
Backer, D., D’Hoest, F., Ford, D., Rocha, S., Lewis, T. (2016). “Review Symposium: Studying Study With a Reply by Tyson Lewis.” Policy Futures in Education.
Backer, D. (2015). Book Review of Marx, Capital, and Education, by C. Malott and D. Ford. Educational Philosophy and Theory.
Backer, D. (2015). Book Review of As Free and as Just as Possible: The Theory of Marxian Liberalism, by J. Reiman. Teachers College Record. February 25, 2015.
Backer, D. (2014). Book Review of Teaching Marx: The Socialist Challenge. Teachers College Record. J. Elmore, C. Malott, and M. Cole (Eds). September 18, 2014.
Backer, D. (2011). Book Review of On Critique: A Sociology of Emancipation by Luc Boltanski. (General Audience). Full-Stop.net. http://www.full-stop.net/2012/09/14/reviews/david-backer/on-critique-luc-boltanski/
General Audience – Author
Backer, D.I. (2024). “Philly Schools are in Disrepair: The Municipal Bond Market is One Big Reason.”
The Conversation. Published online: https://theconversation.com/philly-schools-are-in-disrepair-the-municipal-bond-market-is-1-big-reason-234882
Backer, Bolton, Brumley, Cicarelle, Doughtery, Elmore, Famiglietti, Goodman, Hurt, Johannes, Krause, Kubrick, Malott, Morgan, Lair, Panicelli, Smucker, Sprague, Ruby, & Wozniak. “Just Say No to Shapiro’s Performance-Based Budgeting for Public Higher Education.” (2024). Bucks County Beacon. URL: https://buckscountybeacon.com/2024/03/just-say-no-to-governor-shapiros-performance-based-budgeting-for-public-higher-education/
Backer, D.I. (2023). “The IRA and Public Schools,” Phenomenal World. Published online:
Backer, D.I. (2022). “Build Schools Back Better,” African American Policy Forum. Published
online: https://forummag.com/2022/09/06/building-schools-back-better/
Backer, D.I. (2022). “Who Profits from the New Fascism in Our Schools?” Bucks County Beacon. Published online:
Backer, D.I. (2022). “The Nightmare Ouroboros of School Shootings and the Education Bond Market,” The American Prospect. Published online:
Backer, D. I. (2022). “Toxic Finance.” Dissent Magazine. Published online: https://www.dissentmagazine.org/online_articles/toxic-finance/
Cairns, K. & Backer, D. I. (2019). “Meeting Needs.” n+1 online. Published online: https://www.nplusonemag.com/online-only/online-only/meeting-needs/
Backer, D. I. (2019). “Uses and Abuses of Class Separatism.” Verso Blog. Published online: https://www.versobooks.com/blogs/news/4201-uses-and-abuses-of-class-separatism
Backer, D. I. (2018). “Race and Class Reductionism Today.” Verso Blog. Published online: https://www.versobooks.com/blogs/news/4068-race-and-class-reductionism-today
Backer, D. I. & Cairns, K. (2017). “Movement Pedagogy: Beyond the Class/Identity Impasse.” Viewpoint Magazine. Published online: https://www.viewpointmag.com/2017/12/21/movement-pedagogy-beyond-class-identity-impasse/
Backer, D. I. (2017). “A Democrat Against Democracy.” Jacobin Magazine. Published online: https://www.jacobinmag.com/2017/05/corporate-education-reform-dwight-evans
Backer, D. I. (2016). “The False Promise of Education.” Jacobin Magazine. Published online: https://www.jacobinmag.com/2016/11/education-reform-inequality-jobs-economy/
General Audience – Media Mentions
Furman, C.& Gottlieb. (2024). “Philosophy of School Finance.” Thinking in the Midst Podcast. Interviewed and featured. URL: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/62-the-philosophy-of-education-finance/id1668433164?i=1000681116264
Berkshire, J. (2024). “Cut, Fire, Close.” Have You Heard Podcast. Interviewed and featured. URL: https://t.co/uJ3UUylzGa
De La Cour, N. (2024). “A New Wave of Pro-Public School Organizing.” Jacobin. Published online: https://jacobin.com/2024/08/public-schools-organizing-federal-austerity
Lehmann, C. (2024). “Josh Shapiro is a Bad VP Pick Any Way You Look at it.” The Nation. Published online: https://www.thenation.com/article/politics/josh-shapiro-vp-kamala-harris-wrong/
Lieberman, M. (2023). “What Does it Actually Mean for Public Schools to be Public?” EdWeek. Published online: https://www.edweek.org/leadership/what-does-it-actually-mean-for-schools-to-be-public/2023/08
OTHER PROFESSIONAL EXPERIENCE
Consultant, Disproportionality Lab, Rutgers University-Newark, 2024-2025.
Adjunct Assistant Professor, Department of Educational Leadership and Social Justice, California State University-East Bay, CA
Theories of Educational Leadership and Social Justice, Spring 2015 (Hybrid)
Adjunct Professor, Teachers College, Columbia University, New York City
Graduate Seminar: Readings in Communication Theory and Social Thought, Fall 2014
Introduction to Philosophies of Education, Fall 2013
Student Support Specialist, Guttman Community College, City University of New York
Planned and implemented programs for at-risk students, worked with at-risk students one-on-one to improve study skills and classroom experience, Fall 2014
Adjunct Professor, Guttman Community College, City University of New York
Environmental Ethics, Fall 2013
Foundations of Humanities, Spring 2014
Studio, Spring 2013-Fall 2014
MIDDLE/HIGH SCHOOL TEACHING EXPERIENCE
2010-2011 Instructor, Columbia Secondary School
8th Grade Bioethics, August 2010-2011
6th Grade Philosophy of Mathematics, August 2010-2011
2008 – 2010 Instructor and Chair, Theory of Knowledge Department, The American
School of Quito, Ecuador
11th and 12th Grade Theory of Knowledge, 2008-2010
2006 – 2008 Instructor, English Department, Archbishop Carroll High School,
Washington, DC
11th Grade American Literature, 2006-2008
12th Grade Introduction to Philosophy, 2007-2008
10th Grade Mathematical Thinking, 2007-2008
CONFERENCES
Backer, D.I. “The Problem of Educational Power.” Accepted general session paper, Philosophy of Education Society Annual Meeting, March 4-8, 2025, Baltimore, Maryland.
Backer, D. I. “Socialism and School Finance in the United States: Theory, Policy, and Struggle.” Presentation to the Annual Historical Materialism Conference. November 7-10, 2024, London, United Kingdom.
Backer, D. I. “US Teacher Pension Policy in the Polycrisis.” Presentation to the Annual Meeting of Finance and Society. September 12-13, 2024, Sheffield, United Kingdom.
Backer, D. I. “Theft and Money Laundering in West Philadelphia Elementary Schools: A Critical Look at the University of Pennsylvania’s Netter Center Program.” Presentation to the Critical Sociology Mini-Conference Emancipatory Politics in Times of Crisis. August 9th, 2024, Montreal, Canada.
“Exploring the Contours of K-12 Capital Funding: Policy, Practice, and Critique.” Co-organizer with Jeff Vincent (UC-Berkeley) and Claire Cahen (Occidental College). Online. January 18th, 2024.
“Informing Public Debates and Policy-Making on School Finance: Critical Approaches,” American Educational Research Association 2023 Meeting, Division L: Education Policies and Politics, Panel organizer and co-author of two papers, Chicago, May 2023.
Kitzmiller, E., Rodriguez, A., Backer, D. I. “A Green New Deal for Public Schools.” Poster presentation for Education Finance and Policy, Denver, Colorado, March 2022.
Backer, D. I. & Rodriguez, A. “Financing a Green New Deal for Schools: A Question from Philadelphia.” Paper proposal accepted to Decentering Urban Climate Finance: Relational comparison in theory and practice, Durham, UK, October 2021 and Zurich, SW, May 2022. https://www.urbanclifi.com/cfp
Backer, D. I. “The Structure of Race and Education: Althusser, Hall, and Leonardo.” Presented to the New England Philosophy of Education Society, October 2020.
Backer, D. I. “Educational History of the Ideological State Apparatuses: Ranciere’s Frustration.” Presented to the Annual Meeting of the Philosophy of Education Society, March 2020.
Backer, D. I. “History of the Reproduction-Resistance Dichotomy: The Line of Critique against Louis Althusser, 1970-1979.” Presented to the Critical Theories in the Twenty First Century: A Conference on Transformative Pedagogies, November 2019.
Backer, D. I. “Some Advances in the Concept of Interpellation: Agency, Struggle, and Education.” Submitted to the Ninth Annual International Conference on Child and Teen Consumption, Rutgers-Camden, June 2020.
Lussier, J. & Backer, D. I. “Recovering the Marxist Feminist Eye.” Paper presented to the Annual Meeting of the Philosophy of Education Society, Richmond, VA, March 2019.
Backer, D. I. “Strikes and Resistance.” Presentation as part of the “Teacher Resistance in Troubled Times” Panel at the Annual Meeting of the Philosophy of Education Society, Richmond, VA, March 2019.
Backer, D. I. “Socialist Grading as Counter-interpellation.” Paper presentation as part of the “Rethinking the Pedagogy of Critical Theory” stream at the American Comparative Literature Association Annual Meeting, Washington, DC, March 2019.
Backer, D. “Philosophy of Education in Social Movement: Social Movements and the Formation of Philosophy of Education.” Panel presentation with Jason T. Wozniak to the Annual Meeting of the Philosophy of Education Society, Chicago, IL, March 2018.
Organizer. Latin American Philosophy of Education Society Annual Symposium, West Chester University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, March 2018.
Backer, D. “Is The Classroom Political?” Paper accepted to the Northeastern Philosophy of Education Society (NEPES) Annual Conference, Boston, MA, October 2017.
Organizer. Critical Theories of Education Today. West Chester University and Philadelphia, PA, November 2017.
Organizer. Latin American Philosophy of Education Society Annual Symposium, California Institute for Integral Studies, San Francisco, CA, May 2017.
Backer, D. “What Co-operative Schools Can Reproduce.” Paper presented to the Third Annual Co-operative Education Research Conference, Manchester, UK, April 2017.
Backer, D. “Radical Discussions: Agonistic Democratic Education.” Paper presented to the Annual Meeting of the Philosophy of Education Society, Seattle, March 2017.
Backer, D. “Encounter, Solidarity, and Education at Trump Tower: Horizontal Pedagogy in Occupy Wall Street.” Paper presented to the “Pedagogies for Solidarity: Education for Collective Consciousness” panel at the American Sociological Association, Annual Meeting, Seattle, WA, August 2016.
Backer, D. (Invited Participant) Civic Now! A Two Day Celebration of the Manifesto. Co-sponsored by punctum books, GTK Press and the Beamer-Schneider Professorship in Ethics, Case Western Reserve University. July 19-20, 2016, Cleveland, OH.
Backer, D. “The Latin American Philosophy of Education Society: An Introduction.” Panel presentation with Jason T. Wozniak, Ana Cecilia Diego, and Tomas Rocha at the Coloquio Internacional América Latina y Estados Unidos: Diálogo de Saberes, New School for Social Research, New York City, May 2016.
Backer, D. Elements of Discussion Book Launch. Respondents: Bill E. Lawson, Paula McAvoy, Jessica L. Hochman, Derek R. Ford. Philosophy of Education Society Annual Meeting, Toronto, CA, March 2016.
Backer, D. “Education and Counter-interpellation: A New Look at Louis Althusser.” Session Organizer with a paper, “Introduction to Counter-interpellation: Freedom, Discussion, and Relations of Production,” to be presented to the American Educational Research Association national conference, Washington, DC, April 2016.
Backer, D. “Discussing a New Relation of Production.” Paper accepted to the American Educational Studies Association national conference, San Antonio, TX, November 2015.
Backer, D. “The Politics of Recitation.” Paper presented to the Ohio Valley Philosophy of Education Society annual conference in Dayton, OH, September 2015.
Backer, D. “Sor Juana Inés de la Cruz y su concepto de estudio.” Co-presenter with Ana Cecilia Galinda Diego at the Asociación Latinoamericana de Filosofia de la Educación international conference in Mexico City, July 1, 2015.
Backer, D. “Tinkering Talk: Discussion and Dehiscence.” Paper presented to the American Educational Research Association national conference in Chicago, IL, April 24, 2015.
Backer, D. “Teacher Listening and Social Justice: Listening to Enact Justice and Transformation in the Pursuit of Education.” Discussant for panel at the American Educational Research Association national conference in Chicago, IL, April 24, 2015.
Backer, D. “Saying Revolution: Education, Communication, and Social Change in New York City and Nicaragua.” Paper presented to the American Association of Geographers national conference in Chicago, IL, April 21, 2015.
INVITED TALKS/PRESENTATIONS
“Towards a Critical History of the School Bond,” Invited lecture to Historical Foundations of Education Policy Seminar, University of Texas-Austin, October 15, 2024.
“Is it Simple to be a Marxist in School Finance?” American Educational Research Association Annual Meeting, Invited Lecture to the Marxist Special Interest Group, April 13, 2024.
“Education Finance, Statistics, and Philosophy,” Invited lecture at Colloquium of the Philosophy and Education Program at Teachers College, Columbia University, February 22, 2024.
“Critical Theory and K-12 CapEx: Policy for the Polycrisis.” Exploring the Contours of K-12 Capital Funding: Policy, Practice, and Critique. Co-organized with Jeff Vincent (UC-Berkeley) and Claire Cahen (Occidental College). January 18th, 2024.
“Althusser, Neoliberalism, Education.” Invited Lecture to Theory Seminar at University of California-Berkeley, November 14, 2023.
“How to Do Critical School Finance.” Invited Lecture to Education Law and Policy Seminar at University of Manitoba, October 14, 2023.
“Half Liberatory: The Inflation Reduction Act from a Critical School Finance Perspective.” Keynote lecture at L’éducation aux États-Unis : approches critiques et nouveaux terrains de recherche (Education in the United States: Critical Approaches and New Directions for Research), June 9, 2023.
“The Cycle of Bondage,” presentation with Eleni Schirmer for The K-12 Teacher Debt Crisis: Towards Teacher Debt Liberation. West Chester University, April 29, 2023.
“How to be a Marxist in the Academy: Althusserian Theories of Education,” Historical Materialism Broadcast, March 28, 2023. URL: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M6ho_W4cLFQ
“Althusser and Education,” Lecture, Liverpool Hope University’s Centre for Education and Policy Analysis. March 9, 2023.
“Althusser e Educacao.” IFPR Campus Parangua, Brasilia, Brazil. February 24, 2023.
“Introduction to Critical Policy Analysis.” Invited Presentation to the Moonshot for Equity Group, West Chester University. February 2023.
“Lessons Learned.” Presentation to the Radical Pedagogy Workshop at Yale University, February 10-12, 2023.
“Althusser and Education: Book Launch.” Invited Presentation to Education Policy Futures Webinar Series. January 26th, 2023.
“Althusser and (Higher) Education.” Invited Lecture to the Philosophy of Higher Education Seminar, Scholarly Communication Research Group, Adam Mickiewiecz University in Poznan, Poland, January 17, 2023. URL: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JhsFtNrutf0
“Organizing After George Floyd.” Presented to the Department of Educational Foundations and Policy Studies, West Chester University, Department Retreat, August 2020.
“Addressing the Other Pandemic (Racism): Ideology, Equity, and Higher Education.” Co-presented with Dr. Dana Morrison to West Chester University’s College of Education and Social Work’s Welcome Session, August 2020.
“School Funding in the COVID Crisis: Socialist Approaches.” Presentation and workshop to the Local Initiative/Local Action Committee in Philadelphia, PA. August 2020.
Invited Speaker. Enrique Dussel’s Pedagogics of Liberation. Bournemouth University, UK. Feb. 13, 2020.
Invited Speaker. Enrique Dussel’s Pedagogics of Liberation. University of Winchester, UK. Feb. 11, 2020.
Invited Speaker. Introducing Enrique Dussel’s Pedagogics of Liberation. Penn State University, Jan. 30, 2020.
Invited Speaker. Faculté des Lettres et des sciences Humaines- Université de Limoges. Le réseau international Amérique latine, Afrique, Europe, Caraïbes (ALEC) et la West Chester University of Pennsylvania (USA), January 29, 2020.
Invited Speaker. Introducing Enrique Dussel’s Pedagogics of Liberation. Haverford College, November 25, 2019.
“A Socialist Approach to School Funding Inequality in Philadelphia.” Invited Presentation to the Our City Our Schools and Philadelphia Democratic Socialists of America Chapter. December 8, 2019.
Invited Speaker. Enrique Dussel’s Pedagogics of Liberation: A Launch. Barnard College, October 15, 2019.
Guest on WCPN’s “Sound of Ideas” Radio Program, on Cleveland, Ohio’s National Public Radio Station. Discussed the question of Educational Inequality and School Desegregation with Dr. Ainsley Erickson (Teachers College, Columbia University); Dr. Ronnie Dunn (Cleveland State University). Link: http://wcpn.ideastream.org/programs/sound-of-ideas/education-inequality
FELLOWSHIPS AND AWARDS
Cleveland Psychoanalytic Center Annual Essay Prize, 2015 ($1,000)
Doctoral Dissertation Grant, Columbia University, Teachers College, Spring 2014 ($5,000)
Weinberg Fellowship, Columbia University, Teachers College, Fall 2010-Spring 2012
GRANTS
Transatlantic Research Partnership, Albertine Foundation, Bourse Face Grant (2024). Secured $20,000 for an international comparative research project, co-led with Dr. Nora Nafaa, called “Profiling Education Finance Regimes: a Cross-national Study.” Grant Funded.
Dean’s Grant (2022). Secured $8,500 for Fauset Scholarship in the Transformative Education and Social Change – Philadelphia program. Scholarship covers admitted BIPOC student expenses including tuition. Created a dedicated account at the WCU Foundation for TESC.
IDIG – Innovation in Diversity and Inclusion (2020). University level. Up to $5,000 for innovative programs for diversity, equity, and inclusion programs at the university. Applied for a Fauset Fellowship program in Transformative Education and Social Change. (Grant unfunded.)
CESW-PDG Professional Development Grant (2018) – College of Education and Social Work $4,000 for the funding and organization of the Latin American Philosophy of Education Society annual symposium, Spring 2018.
DISSERTATIONS ADVISED
Chaired Dissertations
Liberatory Language Instruction: A Dusselian Self-Study, Renee Burgos (2023)
Equitable Funding for Trauma Informed Social Policy: A Critical Analysis of the 2019-2020 Pennsylvania Department of Education School Safety and Security Grant Program, Heather Bickley (2023)
“Like a Whole Thing”: Dialogic Sensemaking in One Sixth Grade Classroom, Catherine Bienkowski (2023)
Service-Learning Curricula in Eastern Pennsylvania’s K-12 Schools: Educational Decision-Makers’ Experiences Through a Critical Lens, Megan Jerabek (2023)
Everyone is on Their Phones: Eighth Graders’ Struggle with Social Media in School, George Weinhardt (2023)
Checking the Box: Evaluating Professional Development Evaluations, Cristin Young (2022)
Centering Critical Vibes Through Community Immersion: A Mixed Methods Study of Early Grades Teacher Candidates’ Critical Consciousness, Ashley Rowe (2022)
The Pandemic Dilemma: A Mixed-Methods Study of Student-Centered Science Education in the COVID-19 Pandemic, Jennifer Slavick (2022)
The Emotional Labor of Special Educators: A Mixed Methods Study, Erika Thomas (2022)
Perceptions and Use of Digital Technology by Educators Who Support Students with Disabilities in Public Schools: A Mixed Methods Study, Tammy Thompson-Cooke (2022)
Code the Code: Surveillance Capitalism, Education, and the Critical Theory of Technology, Robert Rust (2021)
More than colleagues: Understanding international higher education partnerships during crisis, Chirstina Kinney (2021)
Mass School Closures in the School District of Philadelphia 2012-2013: An Autoethnography, Cirstina Utti (2021)
The Importance of Peer Engagement and Peer Support Groups on Persistence of Online Law Students: A Mixed Methods Study, Larasz Moody (2021)
Mindful Matters: The Efficacy of an Eight-Week Mindfulness Intervention on Boarding School Teacher Burnout, Nicole Campbell (2021)
Negotiating Difference: A Critical Discourse Analysis of Writing Center Interactions Between Peer Tutors and Multilingual Tutees, Lisa DiMaio (2020)
Moments of Reflection: A Phenomenological Study of Preservice Teacher Reflection, Jane Ferris (2020)
Professional Learning Communities in an Elementary School: Teacher Perceptions, Implementation, and Impacts, Michael Garvin (2020)
Creating Project-Based Math Curricula: A Narrative Inquiry, Marcie Hull (2020)
Feminism and Critical Literacy in an All-Boys School, Cara Saraco (2018)
The Participation Gap: A Mixed Methods Study of Racial Inequalities in Extracurricular Activities in a Predominantly White School District, Christopher Lunardi (2018)
Time to Meet: The Value of Common Planning Time for Middle School Teachers and Paraprofessionals, Shawn Cruice (2018)
The Impact of Peer Mentoring on Undergraduate Music Major Mentee Self-Efficacy and Retention, Ralph Sorrentino (2018)
Chaired Master’s Theses
“We’ve Got Your Back: A Programmatic Approach to Helping Injured Students,” Alex Deliso. (2019)
“Where Do I Belong?: The Importance and Necessity of Centers for Trans and Queer Students,” Alexander Hazzard. (2019)
“Embracing Ambiguity in Higher Education: Intervening in Undecidedness to Achieve Success,” Christine Denis. (2019)
“The Intersectional Struggles of Community College Transfer Students,” Christopher Stancil. (2019)
“Incorporating Neurodiverse Practices to Ensure Student Success,” Ethan Wasserman. (2019)
“Leadership Agency: Engaging Students in a Developmental Process for Change,” Olivia Miller. (2019)
“OUTLINE: A Shift in Support Services for Gen Z Students Coming Out on Campus,” Shannon Gillespie. (2019)
“Strength in Supervision: A Professional Development Model for Student Affairs Graduate-Professionals,” Stephen Babb. (2019)
PROFESSIONAL SERVICE
Ad Hoc Committee on Policy, Legislation, and Advocacy (University & CESW), Fall 2024 – Member of newly-formed committee convened by Dean Williams to track legislative changes and opportunities at the state and federal levels, advising Deans both in the CESW and across the University on state and national legislative trends to both comply with new regulations, take advantage of emerging programs, and advocate for programs beneficial to WCU student.
PA Promise Study Committee, (APSCUF State Office), Spring 2024 – Lead finance policy advisor for group advocating for further PASSHE funding, tracking Gov. Shapiro’s new Blueprint for Higher Education.
Audit Committee, (APSCUF State Office), Fall 2024
Council of Professional Education, Member, AY 2021-2024
Diversity Committee, CESW, Member, AY 2021-2024
Co-chair of Social Justice Committee, APSCUF, AY 2021-2023
Latin American Philosophy of Education Subcommittee, Department of Educational Foundations and Policy Studies. AY 2020-2021.
Chair of External Organizing Committee, APSCUF, AY 2018-2020.
Advising Committee for Doctorate of Education Administration, Planning, and Policy Program, College of Education and Social Work, AY 2017-2020.
APSCUF State Delegate, AY 2018-2020.
Program Coordinator for Critical Theories of Education Today Conference, Fall 2018.
Member of Task Force to create a certificate in Urban Education for the Masters of Science in Transformative Education and Social Change program, Fall 2018.
Member of Task Force to create a certificate in Latin American Educational Philosophy for the Masters of Science in Transformative Education and Social Change program, Fall 2018.
Section Head, Foundations, Department of Educational Foundations & Policy Studies, AY 2018-2019.
Member of Task Force on Urban Education convened by Asst. Dean David L. Bell, Spring 2018, WCU College of Education and Social Work. Developed internal survey for the College of Education and Social Work to determine courses and faculty teaching relevant material for a potential Urban Education track.
Graduate Curriculum Working Group, WCU’s Bayard Rustin Urban Community Axis (RUCCAS). Authored syllabus for RUX 525, “Urban Power and Resistance,” AY 2018-2019.
Member of International Education Committee, WCU College of Education and Social Work, AY 2017-2018.
Graduate Coordinator for Department of Educational Foundations and Policy Studies, West Chester University, 2017-2018 academic year.
Conference Organizer, Critical Theories of Education Today, November 2017.
Faculty advising and support for WCU chapter of Pennsylvania Student Power Network, 2016-2017.
Department Representative, APSCUF, 2016-2023.
Search Committee for Assessment and Evaluation Position in Department of Professional and Secondary Education, Spring 2017.
Program Chair, Critical Theories in the 21st Century Conference, West Chester University, Fall 2016.
Associate Editor, Lapiz, Journal of the Latin American Philosophy of Education Society, Vols. 1-3, 2013-2016
Co-founder, Latin American Philosophy of Education Society, March 2013
PROFESSIONAL SOCIETY MEMBERSHIPS
American Education Research Association
Education Finance and Policy
Northeastern Philosophy of Education Society
Philosophy of Education Society
Latin American Philosophy of Education Society
American Educational Research Association
American Sociological Association
david (isaac) backer 