University of Wisconsin–Madison
Educational Policy (2023) Authors: Mollie T. McQuillan Abstract: As policy debates concerning LGBTQ+ students and staff continue across the American education system, there is not a clear description of the prevalence of local policy protections, even in states with legislative mandates, nor a strong understanding of how to expand reform initiatives. After conducting a document analysis …
Journal of School Leadership (2023) Authors: Mollie T. McQuillan, Erin K. Gill, and Xue Gong Abstract: PK-12 leaders use gender- and sexuality-inclusivity professional development (IPD) as a tool to improve the school climate for LGBTQ+ students, but IPD programs vary widely in their scope, breadth, duration, instructional approach, and content. In this paper, we present the …
Equity and Excellence in Education (2024) Authors: Mario I. Suárez, Harper B. Keenan, Christina Cook. Mollie T. McQuillan, Lee Iskander, Bishop Owis, Daniel Gallardo-Zamora, and Christy Glass Abstract: In this study, we use data from a sample of 296 trans PK-12 school workers in the United States and Canada to consider the impact of union membership …
Discourse: Studies in the Cultural Politics of Education (2024) Authors: Lee Iskander, Harper Keenan, Mollie McQuillan, Mario Suarez, Bishop Owis, Christina Cook, and Daniel Gallardo Abstract: This article explores how trans school employees redeploy, trouble, challenge, and refuse prevalent discourses about transness and education. Drawing from interviews with 100 school workers in Canada and the …
Educational Administration Quarterly (2024) Authors: Mollie McQuillan and Cris Mayo Abstract: If PK12 administrators aspire to interrupt bias-based bullying, they need to understand their role in perpetuating structural and social inequality. The purpose of this study was to examine administrators’: 1) awareness of gender-based bullying, 2) initial intentions to address bullying, and 3) actions that …
Educational Policy (2024) Authors: Mollie McQuillan, Benjamin Lebovitz, and LaShanda Harbin Abstract: Since 2017, hostile anti-LGBTQ+ educational bills rapidly expanded. Using traditional and critical policy analysis across three Midwestern states, we examine (1) whether state and local policymakers (n = 60) adopted trans-inclusive protections aligned with the 2017 federal Whitaker ruling, (2) the spread and scope of state and local educational …
Journal of Queer and Trans Studies in Education (2025) Authors: Bishop Owis, Harper Keenan, Lee Iskander, Mario Suárez, Mollie McQuillan, Christina Cook, and Daniel Gallardo Abstract: Although transgender people are increasingly visible in mainstream North America, trans teachers are without adequate resources or protections to support their employment in schools. Legislation in both Canada and the …
American Educational Research Journal (2025) Authors: Mollie McQuillan, Janel Anderson, and Lydia Gandy-Fastovich Abstract: PK–12 district-level administrators have been asked to navigate an increasingly complex policy landscape concerning gender-diversity reforms. We apply sensemaking theory to examine administrators’ understanding of legal and policy protections for trans and gender diverse (TGD) students. Using 36 interviews with administrators and …
Organizational Science (2023) Author: Jirs Meuris Abstract: Despite the belief that racial diversity in organizations will attenuate racial discrimination in service interactions, the extant literature suggests that it may often exacerbate discrimination by generating intergroup conflict. In this paper, I propose that the influence of racial diversity on racial discrimination in service interactions will depend …
Journal of Management (2023) Authors: Jirs Meuris and Joe Gladstone Abstract: A substantial proportion of the workforce experiences financial precarity, which is defined as persistent concern about one’s personal financial welfare. Research suggests that financial precarity often harms performance at work. In this paper, we investigate whether characteristics of the work context disproportionately occupied by people at the …