Kimberly M. Bridges, Ed.L.D.

Education

• Ed.L.D. in Education Leadership, Harvard Graduate School of Education
• M.Ed. in Education Leadership and Policy, University of Richmond
• B.A. in English and Rhetoric and Communication Studies, University of Virginia

Research interests

Sustainable K-12 improvement and student achievement through:

• effective leadership and governance;
• state and local policy;
• diversity, inclusion and equity; and
• cross-sector collaboration.

Career highlights

• Doctoral fellow for the Virginia Governor's Children's Cabinet and the Office of the Richmond Mayor
• Senior facilitator for the Public Education Leadership Project of the Harvard School of Business and the Harvard Graduate School of Education
• Teaching fellow and research assistant for the Harvard Graduate School of Education
• Senior policy analyst for the Virginia Department of Education
• School board member and chair of the Richmond Public School Board (2007-2012)

Recent publications/projects

• Postdoctoral fellow (2018) supporting the development of a coordinated Out of School Time system to increase access and quality for Richmond students.
• Bridges, K., Morgan, A. (forthcoming). Navigating Governance Changes and District Improvement: Strategic Leadership in St. Louis Public Schools. Harvard Education Publishing Group.
• Bridges, K. (2016). Jefferson County Public Schools: From Legal Enforcement to Ongoing Commitment In Stories of School Integration, The Century Foundation.
• Bridges, K. (2016). Eden Prairie Public Schools: Adapting to Demographic Change in the Suburbs In Stories of School Integration, The Century Foundation.

Bio

Dr. Kimberly Bridges has a background in K-12 education policy at the state and local levels, governance, and system improvement, as well as experience in program administration, teaching adult learners and communications. She brings a cross-sector perspective, the ability to apply research and theory to real-world political and organizational settings, and skill in building relationships and shared understanding to tackle systemic challenges in the K-12 sector.

Bridges' doctoral studies at the Harvard Graduate School of Education centered on leadership and team development; increasing diversity, equity and inclusion; closing student opportunity gaps; and system improvement through governance and strategy centered on the instructional core. She served as a facilitator, senior facilitator and trainer for the Public Education Leadership Project (PELP) and as a teaching fellow to support learning through a team-oriented consultancy model to design solutions for K-12 systems and nonprofit organizations. She has worked alongside district and community leaders from urban school systems and localities across the nation, analyzing a wide range of school system needs to propose actionable solutions. She served as policy lead for the Re-imagining Integration Diverse and Equitable Schools project.

During Bridges' tenure as a local elected school board leader, the school system achieved 100 percent state accreditation, the only time it has reached this milestone to date. As a state senior policy analyst at the Virginia Department of Education, she supported the development of an extended learning grant awarding more than $7 million annually to selected school divisions and provided analyses and recommendations for General Assembly education bills. Bridges began her education career in programs targeted to adult learners who had been underserved by their K-12 experiences.

Curriculum Vitae

(804) 828-2498

bridgeskm@vcu.edu