Winners

Douglas H. Fuchs

Research Professor, Department of Special Education, Vanderbilt University
Institute Fellow, American Institutes for Research
Formerly Nicholas Hobbs Endowed Professor of Special Education and Human Development, Vanderbilt University

Lynn S. Fuchs

Research Professor, Department of Special Education, Vanderbilt University
Institute Fellow, American Institutes for Research
Formerly Dunn Family Endowed Professor in Psychoeducational Assessment, Vanderbilt University

Trailblazers in the field of special education, Lynn Fuchs and Doug Fuchs are the 2021 McGraw Prize winners in PreK-12 Education. Across four decades of methodologically rigorous and innovative research and development, Lynn and Doug helped establish Data-Based Individualization as the most respected approach to instructing students with serious learning disabilities and as the sine qua non of special education intervention. In addition, Doug and Lynn have produced many scientifically-validated programs in literacy and mathematics for children and youth ranging from academically talented to academically at risk. Doug and Lynn and their former doctoral students have worked with thousands of educators across the U.S., encouraging them to conduct these programs in a multi-tiered (RTI/MTSS) framework to provide instruction of appropriate intensity to students with varying degrees of need. In their current research, they explore children’s cognitive strengths and weaknesses and how instructional programs can leverage the strengths while addressing the weaknesses. Lynn and Doug are Institute Fellows at the American Institutes for Research and Research Professors in the Departments of Special Education and Psychology and Human Development at Peabody College of Vanderbilt University. Recognized as “revolutionary educators” by Forbes, the Fuchs have received numerous awards and are among the most frequently cited researchers in the social sciences.

Learn more about Douglas H. & Lynn S. Fuchs’ work.

Richard G. Baraniuk

C. Sidney Burrus Professor of Electrical and Computer Engineering Founder and Director, OpenStax
Rice University

Engineer, education entrepreneur, and researcher Dr. Richard Baraniuk, the 2021 McGraw Prize winner in Higher Education, has revolutionized college textbook publishing by putting free and open-source books in the hands of tens of millions of students and faculty across the United States and world. As founder and director of OpenStax, the nonprofit educational and scholarly publishing project he founded in 1999, Baraniuk and his team address a major but often hidden barrier to college affordability: college textbooks that can cost hundreds of dollars apiece. OpenStax is grant funded and sustained and scaled by a novel ecosystem of ed-tech companies. Baraniuk has inspired hundreds of education entrepreneurs, who link to his work and create additional innovative tools. Baraniuk is the C. Sidney Burrus Professor in Electrical and Computer Engineering at Rice University.

Learn more about Richard G. Baraniuk’s work.

Carol D. Lee

Edwina S. Tarry Professor Emerita
School of Education and Social Policy
Northwestern University

Carol D. Lee, the 2021 McGraw Prize winner in Learning Science Research, has had a lasting impact on the learning sciences by introducing transformative perspectives to the field. In her five-decade career, she adopted a broad ecological focus, closely attending to the role of culture in learning and literacy. Her work has led to significant practical implications for how educators can support learning using an intersectional lens, particularly for African American youth. Lee has received dozens of awards and honors—both for her research and her leadership in cultivating new voices from diverse and marginalized communities. Lee is Professor Emeritus in the School of Education and Social Policy and in Learning Sciences and African-American Studies at Northwestern University.

Learn more about Carol D. Lee’s work.