Biography for Dr. Louie F. Rodriguez
Dr. Louie F. Rodríguez is an educator, researcher, author, professor, and speaker in the
field of urban education. His work takes a socio-cultural analysis of urban schooling and
typically focuses on three keys areas: 1) students' voices and experiences in the school
and community context, 2) critical ways to understand and use institutional culture to
boost student engagement, 3) and engaging educational communities in institutional and
community excellence. The goal of this work is to shape educational policy and practice
at the local and national levels.
Rising through the public school system in Southern California, Dr. Rodriguez found
himself in community college (SBVC) and with the support of mentors and meaningful
academic opportunities, transferred to CSU, San Bernardino. As a college student at
CSU, San Bernardino (where he currently teaches), he became a McNair Scholar and
became passionate about using research to understand and transform educational
opportunities for historically marginalized students. After completing a summer research
internship at Harvard, he applied and was admitted to Harvard for graduate school where
he completed two master’s degrees and a doctorate in Administration, Planning and
Social Policy. Dr. Rodriguez has also served as a middle-school counselor/intervention
specialist and later as a high school math teacher. His dissertation focused on issues of
educational equity studying the experiences of Latina/o and Black high school students in
the context of high-stakes testing, zero-tolerance policies, and school
restructuring. While at Harvard, he held several leadership roles, particularly as cofounder and inaugural co-chair for the Alumni of Color Conference (AOCC), and served
as a Teaching Fellow for eight graduate courses.
He is currently an associate professor in Educational Leadership and Technology and CoDirector of the Doctoral Program in Educational Leadership at California State
University, San Bernardino (CSUSB). Prior to his position at CSUSB, Dr. Rodriguez
was on the faculty for three years at Florida International University in Miami where he
continued his research on urban education issues.
From his research, Dr. Rodriguez has published three books Small Schools and Urban
Youth (with Gil Conchas) (2007), The Time is Now: Understanding and Responding to
the Black and Latina/o Dropout Crisis in the U.S. (2014), and Intentional
Excellence: The Pedagogy, Power, and Politics of Excellence in Latina/o Schools and
Communities (2015). He has also published several peer-reviewed journal articles, blogs,
and practitioner-oriented articles about Latinas/os in education, student engagement, and
educational policy issues.
His current work focuses on issues of equity and access, specifically on the dropout crisis
facing the Latino community. At CSUSB, Dr. Rodriguez is the principal investigator of
the PRAXIS Project, Participatory Research Advocating for Excellence in Schools. This
school/community-based project aims to study and advocate for educational excellence
by directly engaging youth, educators, and community-stakeholders in the process of
empirical research to positively impact educational policy and practice at the local and
national levels. From this work he published A 10-Point Plan to Respond to the Dropout
Crisis which consist of 10 policy-memos intended for educational policymakers, leaders,
and educators. His work has helped guide school and district level policy and practice,
particularly around student engagement issues in the Southern California area.
Dr. Rodriguez has received many honors including Outstanding Latino Faculty by the
American Association of Hispanics in Higher Education (AAHHE) in 2015 and an
“Emerging Leader” designation in 2014 by Phi Delta Kappa International in Washington,
DC. In 2013-2014, he was selected to participate in the Inland Empire Economic
Partnership’s (IEEP) inaugural Regional Leadership Academy (RLA). In 2013 Dr.
Rodriguez was named Outstanding Professor of the Year for Research in the College of
Education at CSU, San Bernardino. In 2012, he was selected as a Fellow for the
Executive Leadership Academy at UC Berkeley and also as a Kika De La Garza
Education Fellow with the United States Department of Agriculture. In 2011 he received
a Person of Distinction award by San Bernardino Valley College and was a Faculty
Fellow for the American Association of Hispanics in Higher Education. In 2010, he was
the recipient of the 30 Under 35 Award for Latinas/os and Native Americans for his
service to the community by California State Assembly Member Wilmer Amina Carter
and received special recognition from Assembly Member Manuel Perez for this service to
the 62nd assembly district in California. Dr. Rodriguez is currently working with the
National Latino Education Research and Policy Project (NLERAP), served as past CoChair of the Faculty Fellows Program for the American Association of Hispanics in
Higher Education (AAHHE), and past board member for the Hispanic Alumni Board at
CSUSB. He is a frequently invited speaker to address student engagement and
educational equity issues for schools, districts, and communities.