Julia Heffernan, Ph.D., taught middle and high school social studies and language arts for eight years and was an education administrator for another eight years before beginning an academic career in education studies. Heffernan is the Graduate Director of Curriculum and Instruction for the teacher licensing program UOTeach.
Dr. Heffernan has been an education leader in anti-oppressive and culturally responsive curriculum, instruction, and educational leadership since 2009. She serves on the Provost’s Teaching Academy Board, has been a Provost’s Fellow on Inclusive Teaching and appointed faculty to the Difference, Inequality and Agency summer teaching institute. In 2016 Heffernan developed the UOTeach-In, an annual conference on Educational Equity and Anti-Oppressive Pedagogies. In 2010 Heffernan developed UOTeach-OUT, an annual education studies conference on gender identity and sexual orientation issues in education.
Heffernan's primary research interests are in culturally sustaining pedagogy, teacher identity development, and gender and sexuality studies in education. Her research and policy work address anti-oppressive pedagogy, diversifying the teacher workforce, and sexual orientation and gender identity exclusion in curriculum, classrooms and larger educational settings.
2010 PhD. Critical and Socio-Cultural Studies in Education, University of Oregon.
2004 M.A. Educational Leadership, University of Oregon.
2004 Oregon Education Administration Certification, University of Oregon.
1998 Texas Teaching Certification, Southwest Texas State.
1990 B.A. English Literature, Catholic University of America.
2021 President’s Leadership Academy, University of Oregon.
2019 Ally of the Year. TransPonder, Eugene, OR.
2018 Appointed to Provost’s Teaching Academy Board, University of Oregon.
2017 Recognition of Distinguished Service. Oregon Safe Schools and Communities Coalition.
2016 Proudly Recognizing Indigenous Devotion to Education (PRIDE) Award. Sapsik’ʷałá Education Program.
2015 College of Education Diversity Award. University of Oregon.
2015 Alumni Award, College of Education. University of Oregon.
2014 College of Education Diversity Award. University of Oregon.
2013 Dick Walker Award. Oregon Safe Schools and Communities Coalition (OSSCC).
2010 Dissertation of the Year. American Education Research Association. Queer SIG.
Policy Leadership:
2019-21 Student Success Act Rules Advisory Committee (RAC member), Oregon Department of Education (ODE).
2017-21 ODE Equity Community Advisory Group (CAG) (member), Oregon Department of Education, Governor’s Appointee.
2020-21 Multiple Measures for Assessing Teacher Knowledge Committee (MM Committee), Oregon Teaching Standards and Practices Commission (TSPC).
2017- 21 Teaching Standards Setting Committee for edTPA (member), Oregon Teaching Standards and Practices Commission (TSPC).
2020-21 Provost’s Teaching Academy Board (member), University of Oregon (UO).
2018-21 Diversity and Equity Committee (member), UO College of Education.
2017-21 Provost’s Teaching Academy (member), UO Office of the Provost.
2018- 21 Williams Council on Teaching and Research Innovation (member), UO Office of the Provost.
2019-21 Equity and Pedagogy in Preservice and First Year Teaching Evaluations (chair), UO COE Consortium.
2016-21 COE Consortium for the Improvement of Professional Education (chair), UO.
Book Chapter:
2015 Heffernan, J. and Gutierez-Schmich, T. (2015) Public Pedagogy in Rodriguez, N. et al. (eds.), Queer Studies and Education: Critical Concepts for the Twenty-First Century. New York: Palgrave Macmillan.
2014 Heffernan, Julia and Gutierez-Schmich, Tina. (2014) We Recruit: A Queer Pedagogy for Teacher Educators. Pending Book Chapter 12 in Voices of LGBTQ Students and Teachers: Changing the Culture of Schooling, Anna Wilson and Veronica Bloomfield, Editors.
Peer Reviewed Article:
2017 Rosiek, Schmitke, and Heffernan. Queering Teacher Education Curriculum: A Case Study of Lessons Learned in the Transformation of a Teacher Education Program. Curriculum and Teaching Dialogue: Volume 19, Numbers 1 & 2.
2013 Rosiek, Jerry and Heffernan, Julia. Can’t Code What the Community Can’t See: A Case of the Erasure of Gendered Harassment. Qualitative Inquiry: Special Issue Analysis After Coding.
Statewide Reports:
2020 Heffernan, J. and Gutierez-Schmich, T. (2020) The 2020 State of Safe Schools Report: Unsafe, Unseen, and Unknowable | Addressing Hostile Educational Conditions for LGBT youth in Oregon. Portland, OR.: OSSCC
2019 Heffernan, J. and Gutierez-Schmich, T. (2019) The 2019 State of Safe Schools Report: Unsafe, Unseen, and Unknowable | Addressing Hostile Educational Conditions for LGBT youth in Oregon. Portland, OR.: OSSCC
2018 Gutierez-Schmich, Tina and Heffernan, J. (2018) The 2017 State of Safe Schools Report: Sticks and Stones | Persistent Unsafe Conditions for LGBT Youth in Oregon Schools. Portland, OR.: OSSCC
2017 Heffernan, J. and Gutierez-Schmich, T. (2017) The 2016 State of Safe Schools Report: Deliberate Practices for a Safe and Inclusive School Climate in Oregon. Portland, OR.: OSSCC
2016 Heffernan, J. (2016) TeachSpringfield (TeachOregon) What have we learned so far? Promising Practices and Cautionary Tales. Oregon Higher Education Coordination Commission Report. Portland, OR.
2015 Heffernan, J., Gutierez-Schmich, T., and Rath, C. (2015) Culturally Sustaining Pedagogy in an Era of Standards and Accountability. UO