August 1, 2019
David Bell, Ed.D., assumed the role of Dean of The School of Education at St. John’s University on August 1, 2019.
Dr. Bell previously served as Associate Dean for Curriculum and Accreditation in the College of Education and Social Work at West Chester University, PA. In that role, Dr. Bell oversaw academic program and curricular development, assessment, faculty development, and accreditation. Prior to joining West Chester University, Dr. Bell was Associate Professor and Associate Dean at Saint Xavier University in Chicago, IL, where he served as the accreditation coordinator and facilitated the implementation of the School of Education’s assessment system, in addition to other responsibilities.
“We are very excited to welcome Dr. Bell as the new Dean of The School of Education,” said Simon G. Møller, Ph.D., Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs. “I am confident that Dr. Bell will bring outstanding leadership skills to The School of Education in many critical areas, including strategic academic program development, student enrollment, faculty development, assessment, accreditation, and external outreach.”
Examples of Dr. Bell’s many accomplishments include the development of a pre-first-year bridge program, a junior faculty development mentoring program, a community-based principal preparation residency program, and urban high school partnerships to serve minority students. He has also served as an Instructional Leader for the Illinois State Board of Education, as an Illinois State Regional Evaluator for Chicago Public Schools, and as a Lead Coach for the implementation of the Illinois Response to Intervention at schools within the Archdiocese of Chicago.
“My desire to come to St. John’s University is two-fold,” Dr. Bell said. “I started my career in higher education in a faith-based institution, and I believe that being faith based is an essential quality at a college or university to provide a solid foundation for students to grow and develop in our complex world,” Dr. Bell said. “In addition, St. John’s serves a widely diverse community and that immediately felt like home to me. I was born and raised in Chicago, and it was really important to me to be part of an institution that serves a diverse community with a high level of fidelity and accountability.”
The Dean earned his B.S. in Finance from the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign and his M.Ed. and Ed.D. in Curriculum and Instruction from Loyola University at Chicago. As a faculty member, Dr. Bell has extensive teaching experience at the undergraduate and graduate levels. He has been awarded more than $1.6 million in external funding and has published in the field of diversity, equity and inclusion, and teacher professional development.