Rebecca Cheung is the Assistant Dean of the Berkeley School of Education's Leadership Development programs, including the Principal Leadership Institute and LEAD EdD. She has served on advisory and working groups convened by the California Department of Education, California Collaborative for Educational Excellence, CA State Board of Education, California Teacher Credential Commission, UC Office of the President, as well as EdPrepLab, an initiative to strengthen educator preparation in the United States by building the collaborative capacity of preparation programs, school districts, and state policymakers.
Dr. Cheung serves as the Principal Investigator and Director for the 21st Century School Leadership Academy (21CSLA) State Center. Funded by the California Department of Education, 21CSLA is dedicated to the professional learning and support of California’s educational leaders—teacher, site, and district—to create more equitable learning environments that ultimately improve success for underserved students. Headquartered at UC Berkeley's School of Education, it is led in partnership with UCLA School of Education, the California Subject Matter Projects and seven Regional Academies across the state.
Dr. Cheung’s research focuses on issues of leadership preparation and development, especially related to increasing capacity to lead for equity and social justice that results in creating more inclusive and effective schooling. She also investigates how systems and policies can nurture and increase educator diversity. Her research collaborators include WestEd and the Learning Policy Institute. She has served as a consultant to institutes of higher education, international investments in leader preparation and professional learning, as well as school districts.
Prior to joining UC Berkeley in 2011, Rebecca worked for more than 15 years in Oakland Unified School District and Berkeley Unified School District as a teacher, vice principal, elementary principal and middle school principal, and Director of Evaluation and Assessment. Rebecca earned her doctorate from the School of Education at UC Berkeley in 2008. In 2013, Dr. Cheung was named an Emerging Leader by Phi Delta Kappan, a program that recognizes innovators, thought leaders, problem solvers, and change agents who are making a difference in the field of education.
Recent Publications
- Cheung, R. Gong, N. (2022) Understanding How a Leaders of Color Network Supports the Retention of a Diverse Leader Workforce. Leadership and Policy in Schools Special Issue 21(1). https://doi.org/10.1080/15700763.2021.2022709
- Bristol, T., Cheung, R., Wilkerson, M. (2021) Designing at the Margins: How senior school district leaders of color learn to enact equitable policies and practices. Institute for Research on Labor and Employment, Berkeley: University of California.
- Cheung, R. & Tchetgen, P. (2020) Laying the Foundation (LtF): A Framework for Integrating Performative Modalities in Social Justice School Leadership Programs. Berkeley: University of California.
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Cheung, R., Robinson, J., Rufo-Tepper, R., and Charles, J. (2020). Reflections on Developing a Cross-Institutional Inquiry Project. New York: Bank Street College of Education.
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Cheung, R. (2019) New Innovations in Leader Induction in California. In J. Weinstein & G. Muñoz (Eds.) Cultivating Leadership in Education. Santiago, Chile: Centro de Desarrollo de Liderazgo Educativo, Universidad Diego Portales.
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Cuéllar Becerra, C., González Vallejos, M. P., Espinosa Aguirre, M. J., & Cheung, R. (2019). ‘Buen mentor’ y ‘buena mentoría’ según actores de programas de inducción a directores novatos chilenos. Psicoperspectivas, 18(2). http://dx.doi.org/10.5027/psicoperspectivas-vol18-issue2-fulltext-1543
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Charles, J., Cheung, R. & Rosekrans, K. (2019) Performance assessment of aspiring school leaders grounded in an epistemology of practice: A Case study. International Journal of Educational Leadership Preparation, 14(1), 77-98.
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Cheung, R., Sablo Sutton, S. & Flores, C. (2019) Tipping the Balance: Social justice leaders allying with marginalized youth to increase student voice and activism. Journal of the California Association of Professors of Educational Administration, Vol:30, March 2019.
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Cheung, R., Reinhardt, T., Stone, E. & Little, J.W. (2018) Defining a Teacher Leader Leadership: A Framework, Phi Delta Kappan 100(3), 38-44.
- Kearney, K, & Mattson, H., Cheung, R, Makkonen, R. (2018) Study of the initial impact of the California Administrator Performance Assessment (CalAPA) policy on preparation programs. San Francisco: West Ed.
Interests and Professional Affiliations
Leadership
Principalship
Educational Equity
School Data Analysis
Urban Schooling
