Richard Kahlenberg

Last updated

Richard Kahlenberg
Richard Kahlenberg.jpg
Kahlenberg in 2025
Born
Richard D. Kahlenberg

(1963-06-08) June 8, 1963 (age 62)
United States
Education Harvard University (BA, JD)
Occupation(s)Writer, academic

Richard D. Kahlenberg (born June 8, 1963) is an American researcher and writer who has written about a variety of education, labor and housing issues. [1] [2]

Contents

Kahlenberg is Director of the American Identity Project and Director of Housing Policy at the Progressive Policy Institute, and a professorial lecturer at George Washington University's Trachtenberg School of Public Policy and Public Administration. [3] [4]

The author or editor of 20 books, Richard D. Kahlenberg has been described as “the intellectual father of the economic integration movement” [5] in K–12 education and “arguably the nation’s chief proponent of class-based affirmative action in higher education admissions.” [6] He has also written extensively on housing, teachers’ unions, charter schools, community colleges, and labor organizing. [7]

Kahlenberg's articles have been published in The New York Times, The Washington Post, The Wall Street Journal, The Economist and The Atlantic and he has appeared on ABC, CBS, CNN, FOX, C-SPAN, MSNBC, and NPR. [8] [9]

Early life and education

Kahlenberg graduated magna cum laude from Harvard College in 1985 and then graduated cum laude from Harvard Law School with his Juris Doctor degree in 1989. [10] Between college and law school, he spent a year in Kenya at the University of Nairobi School of Journalism, as a Rotary Scholar. [11]

Career

After graduating from law school, Kahlenberg served as a legislative assistant to Senator Charles S. Robb (D-VA) from 1989-1993. [12]  He then served as a visiting associate professor of constitutional law at George Washington University from 1994-1995 and as a Fellow at the Center for National Policy from 1996-1998. [13]

From 1998-2022, Kahlenberg was a senior fellow at The Century Foundation, a liberal think tank founded in 1919. There, he authored or edited 15 books on K-12 schooling, higher education, and labor unions.

Proponent of Class-Based Affirmative Action

The New York Times referred to Kahlenberg as “the most prominent self-described progressive with doubts about the current version of affirmative action.” [14] In a profile published by The New Republic, he was described as an “affirmative action prophet” for his long-standing support of class-based affirmative action, an idea that was once considered “a heresy” among liberals, but is now seen as a potential path forward for promoting racial diversity. [15] His 1996 book The Remedy: Class, Race and Affirmative Action was named one of the best books of the year by The Washington Post . [16] In a review for The New York Times, sociologist William Julius Wilson called it “by far the most comprehensive and thoughtful account thus far for...affirmative action based on class.” [17]

Kahlenberg won the William A. Kaplin Award for Excellence in Higher Education Law and Policy Scholarship for his research on ways selective colleges can open the doors to more economically disadvantaged students. [18] William G. Bowen and Michael S. McPherson wrote that he “deserves more credit than anyone else for arguing vigorously and relentlessly for stronger efforts to address disparities by socioeconomic status.” [19]

He served as an expert witness to the plaintiffs in Students for Fair Admissions v. Harvard and Students for Fair Admissions v. University of North Carolina, cases in which the U.S. Supreme Court ultimately declared racial preference policies unlawful. [20]  A front-page profile in the New York Times labeled Kahlenberg a “liberal maverick” for his role in allying with the conservative plaintiffs. [21] Kahlenberg detailed his involvement in the cases in his 2025 book, Class Matters: The Fight to Get Beyond Race Preferences, Reduce Inequality and Build Real Diversity at America’s Colleges. The New York Times called the book a “spirited argument for a liberal politics of class rather than race…serious, measured and fair-minded.” [22]

Supporter of K-12 Integration by Socioeconomic Status

Kahlenberg has been a long-time supporter of efforts to use socioeconomic factors to create racial and economic diversity in K-12 schooling. His book, All Together Now: Creating Middle Class Schools through Public School Choice, was labeled “a clarion call for the socioeconomic desegregation of U.S. public schools” by the Harvard Education Review and “a substantial contribution to a national conversation” on education by the Washington Post. [23]   Kahlenberg has advised a number of school districts on diversity including New York City, Los Angeles, Chicago, and Charlotte-Mecklenburg. [24]

Housing Expert

Kahlenberg has been a critic of exclusionary zoning laws that reduce the affordability of housing and increase economic and racial residential segregation. His 2023 book on the topic, Excluded: How Snob Zoning, NIMBYism and Class Bias Build the Walls We Don’t See, was awarded the 2023 Goddard Riverside Award for Social Justice. He has testified before Congress on the topic, and as director of housing policy at the Progressive Policy Institute, Kahlenberg has been recognized by Washington Magazine as one of the most influential people shaping policy. [25] [26]

Director of the American Identity Project

At the Progressive Policy Institute, Kahlenberg directs the American Identity Project, which seeks to support educators in teaching students what it means to be an American. [27] The effort is guided by an advisory group of prominent Americans.

Works

Edited volumes

See also

References

  1. ↑ Lartey, Jamiles (March 14, 2019). "The perfectly legal – but immoral – ways rich kids get into top colleges". The Guardian .
  2. ↑ Korn, Melissa (November 8, 2020). "Latest Trial Over College Affirmative Action to Begin in North Carolina". The Wall Street Journal .
  3. ↑ "Richard D. Kahlenberg". Progressive Policy Institute. Retrieved November 18, 2025.
  4. ↑ "About". Richard Kahlenberg. Retrieved November 18, 2025.
  5. ↑ Eaton, Susan E. (January 19, 2007). The Children in Room E4: American Education on Trial. Algonquin Books. ISBN   978-1565124882.
  6. ↑ "Class-Based Affirmative Action". June 18, 2003.
  7. ↑ "Richard D. Kahlenberg". Progressive Policy Institute. Retrieved November 20, 2025.
  8. ↑ "Richard D. Kahlenberg –The Century Foundation". The Century Foundation . Retrieved June 24, 2021.
  9. ↑ "Opinion | How to Fix College Admissions Now". The New York Times. July 5, 2023. ISSN   0362-4331 . Retrieved November 20, 2025.
  10. ↑ "About". Richard Kahlenberg. Retrieved November 18, 2025.
  11. ↑ "Richard D. Kahlenberg, Author at Education Next". Education Next. November 29, 2023. Retrieved March 5, 2025.
  12. ↑ "About". Richard Kahlenberg. Retrieved November 18, 2025.
  13. ↑ "About". Richard Kahlenberg. Retrieved November 18, 2025.
  14. ↑ "The Leading Liberal Against Affirmative Action". March 9, 2013.
  15. ↑ Judis, John B. (July 18, 2013). "The Unlikely Triumph of an Affirmative Action Prophet". The New Republic.
  16. ↑ "WashingtonPost.com: Informed Opinions: Experts Pick Their Favorites". www.washingtonpost.com. Retrieved May 4, 2023.
  17. ↑ Wilson, William Julius (July 14, 1996). "Class Consciousness". The New York Times.
  18. ↑ "William A. Kaplin Award". www.stetson.edu. Retrieved November 20, 2025.
  19. ↑ Bowen, William G.; McPherson, Michael S. (March 29, 2016). Lesson Plan. Princeton University Press. ISBN   9780691172101.
  20. ↑ "Opinion | I Believe in Campus Diversity. That's Why I Helped End Affirmative Action". POLITICO. March 29, 2025. Retrieved November 18, 2025.
  21. ↑ "The Liberal Maverick Fighting Race-Based Affirmative Action (Published 2023)". March 29, 2023. Retrieved November 18, 2025.
  22. ↑ "Affirmative Action Is Gone. Can Class-Based Admissions Replace It?". March 24, 2025. Retrieved November 18, 2025.
  23. ↑ "Diversity in K-12 Education". Richard Kahlenberg. Retrieved November 18, 2025.
  24. ↑ "Diversity in K-12 Education". Richard Kahlenberg. Retrieved November 18, 2025.
  25. ↑ "User Clip: Richard Kahlenberg's Testimony". C-SPAN.org. Archived from the original on April 6, 2025. Retrieved November 18, 2025.
  26. ↑ Staff, Washingtonian (May 2, 2024). "Washington DC's 500 Most Influential People of 2024" . Retrieved November 18, 2025.
  27. ↑ "American Identity Project". Progressive Policy Institute. Retrieved November 18, 2025.
  28. ↑ "Bobby Kennedy, Liberal Patriot: What RFK's Approach Could Teach Political Leaders Today". American Enterprise Institute - AEI. Archived from the original on August 18, 2025. Retrieved November 18, 2025.
  29. ↑ Kahlenberg, Richard D. (2025). Class matters: the fight to get beyond race preferences, reduce inequality, and build real diversity at America's colleges. New York: PublicAffairs. ISBN   978-1-5417-0425-1.
  30. ↑ Kahlenberg, Richard D. (2023). Excluded: how snob zoning, NIMBYism, and class bias build the walls we don't see (First ed.). New York: PublicAffairs. ISBN   978-1-5417-0146-5.
  31. ↑ Kahlenberg, Richard D.; Potter, Halley, eds. (2014). A smarter charter: Finding what works for charter schools and public education. New York: Teachers College Press. ISBN   978-0-8077-5580-8.
  32. ↑ Kahlenberg, Richard D.; Marvit, Moshe Zvi (2012). Why labor organizing should be a civil right: rebuilding a middle-class democracy by enhancing worker voice. New York: Century Foundation Press. ISBN   978-0-87078-523-8.
  33. ↑ Kahlenberg, Richard D. (2007). Tough liberal: Albert Shanker and the battles over schools, unions, race, and democracy. Columbia studies in contemporary American history. New York: Columbia Univ. Press. ISBN   978-0-231-13496-5.
  34. ↑ Kahlenberg, Richard D. (2001). "All Together Now: Creating Middle-Class Schools through…". Goodreads. Retrieved November 20, 2025.
  35. ↑ Kahlenberg, Richard D. (1996). The remedy: class, race, and affirmative action. A New Republic book. New York, NY: BasicBooks. ISBN   978-0-465-09823-1.
  36. ↑ Kahlenberg, Richard D. (1999). Broken contract: a memoir of Harvard Law School. Amherst: University of Massachusetts Press. ISBN   978-1-55849-234-9.
  37. ↑ Herman, Jonnea (April 25, 2019). "Restoring the American Dream: Providing Community Colleges with the Resources They Need". The Century Foundation. Retrieved November 18, 2025.
  38. ↑ Kahlenberg, Richard D.; Lumina Foundation for Education; Century Foundation, eds. (2014). The future of affirmative action: new paths to higher education diversity after Fisher v. University of Texas. New York, NY: Century Foundation Press. ISBN   978-0-87078-541-2.
  39. ↑ Unequal, The Century Foundation Task Force on Preventing Community Colleges from Becoming Separate and (May 23, 2013). "Bridging the Higher Education Divide". The Century Foundation. Retrieved November 18, 2025.
  40. ↑ Kahlenberg, Richard D., ed. (2012). The future of school integration: socioeconomic diversity as an education reform strategy. New York: The Century Foundation Press. ISBN   978-0-87078-522-1.
  41. ↑ "Affirmative Action for the Rich: Legacy Preferences in …". Goodreads. Retrieved November 18, 2025.
  42. ↑ Century Institute, ed. (2010). Rewarding Strivers: Helping Low-Income Students Succeed in College. New York, N.Y: Century Foundation Press. ISBN   978-0-87078-516-0.
  43. ↑ Kahlenberg, Richard D., ed. (2008). Improving on No Child Left Behind: getting education reform back on track. New York: Century Foundation Press. ISBN   978-0-87078-512-2.
  44. ↑ Kahlenberg, Richard D.; Century Foundation, eds. (2004). America's untapped resource: low-income students in higher education. A Century Foundation book. New York: Century Foundation Press. ISBN   978-0-87078-485-9.
  45. ↑ Kahlenberg, Richard D., ed. (2003). Public school choice vs. private school vouchers / Richard D. Kahlenberg, editor. New York: Century Foundation Press. ISBN   978-0-87078-484-2.
  46. ↑ School, The Century Foundation Task Force on the Common (September 1, 2002). "Divided We Fail: Coming Together Through Public School Choice". The Century Foundation. Retrieved November 18, 2025.
  47. ↑ Kahlenberg, Richard D. (2000). A Notion at Risk: Preserving Public Education as an Engine for Social Mobility. Century Foundation Press, 41 East 70th Street, New York, NY 10021 ($15. ISBN   978-0-87078-455-2.
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