Nell Duke

University of Michigan

Professor

Nell K. Duke, Ed.D., is executive director of the Center for Early Literacy Success at Stand for Children as well as a professor in the Marsal Family School of Education at the University of Michigan in in literacy, language, and culture and also in the combined program in education and psychology. Duke received her Bachelor's degree from Swarthmore College and her Masters and Doctoral degrees from Harvard University. Duke's work has focused on early childhood literacy development (birth to age eight), particularly among children living in economic poverty. She has served as Co-Principal Investigator of projects funded by the Institute of Education Sciences, the National Science Foundation, the Spencer Foundation, the Kellogg Foundation, and the George Lucas Educational Foundation, among other organizations. Duke is currently co-leading projects that focus on early literacy policy, early literacy coaching, and development and implementation of a full-day, birth-to-age-eight curriculum called Great First Eight. Duke has been awarded the P. David Pearson Scholarly Influence Award from the Literacy Research Association and the International Literacy Association's William S. Gray Citation of Merit for outstanding contributions to research, theory, practice, and policy. Other awards she has received include the Michigan Reading Association Advocacy Award, the American Educational Research Association Early Career Award, the Literacy Research Association Early Career Achievement Award, the International Reading Association Dina Feitelson Research Award, the National Council of Teachers of English Promising Researcher Award, and the International Reading Association Outstanding Dissertation Award.