Dear Colleagues,

I’m thrilled to announce the inaugural cohort of the JDEED–OpEd Project Commentaries Fellowship, a new initiative from the Journal of Diversity and Equity in Educational Development (JDEED) in partnership with The OpEd Project.

After a competitive selection process, the selection committee has chosen five outstanding Fellows whose voices, perspectives, and ideas will help shape the future of public discourse in educational development and higher education.

Please join me in celebrating our 2025 Fellows:

Ashley Harlow (University of California Irvine)
Ijeoma Njaka (Georgetown University and North Carolina State University)
Jaime O'Connor (The Evergreen State College)
Lina Rincón, Ph.D. (Sacramento State University)
Christina Smith (Brown University)

The Fellows will participate in the OpEd Project’s signature “Write to Change the World” workshop and receive ongoing mentorship as they develop a Commentary (op-ed) for potential publication in JDEED.

This Fellowship is rooted in JDEED and the OpEd Project’s shared commitment to amplifying historically underrepresented voices. Through this initiative, we aim to foster public scholarship that explores the complexity and possibility of diversity, equity, inclusion, and belonging (DEIB) in educational development.

Founded in 2024, JDEED aims to develop and sustain a scholarly space for minoritized voices in higher education and center dynamic conversations about DEIB (diversity, equity, inclusion, and belonging) practices, theories, and possibilities in educational development.

Specifically, the journal (1) publishes educational development scholarship that centers minoritized groups and/or inquiries into diversity, equity, inclusion, belonging, and social justice theories and practices; and
(2) implements practices and policies to diversify academic scholarship by supporting educational developers from historically minoritized backgrounds at various stages in their writing career with resources needed to advance their research projects and interests. Our first issue will be published later this fall.

We are truly thankful to everyone who applied. The range and thoughtfulness of applications highlights a shared commitment to public engagement and equity-centered approaches to educational development. We’re excited to support our inaugural Fellows and look forward to the perspectives they will share with the field.

Derisa Grant, Co-Editor-in-Chief of JDEED

October 2025