from Rice University News and Media Relations, Office of Public Affairs
Ruth López Turley, a prolific education researcher, professor of sociology and director of Rice University’s Houston Education Research Consortium (HERC), has been selected as the next director of the university’s Kinder Institute for Urban Research after current director Bill Fulton steps down June 30, 2022.
Turley, who currently serves as an associate director for the Kinder Institute, has been at Rice since 2010. Raised on the U.S.-Mexico border, she experienced firsthand the hardships caused by educational inequities. That inspired her academic work and led her to found HERC, which brings researchers and school district leaders together to improve educational opportunities for all students. She is also the founder of the National Network of Education Research-Practice Partnerships, which develops and connects partnerships like HERC across the nation.