David J. Chard

Dr. David J. Chard is dean of Boston University Wheelock College of Education & Human Development. Previously, Dr. Chard was president of Wheelock College before its merger with Boston University. He was also founding dean of the Simmons School of Education and Human Development at SMU in Dallas, Texas.

Since becoming dean at BU, Dr. Chard has led the college through a significant vision setting and strategic planning process resulting in a Guide Star focused on equity and justice. Under his leadership, BU Wheelock has raised more than $15 million in student scholarship and faculty support, including three new endowed professorships.

With a focus on hiring strong education researchers, the college has more than doubled the amount of external funding for research since 2018 and is now host to several research centers and institutes, including the National Center on Improving Literacy, which is funded by the US Department of Education. In addition, the college has created a number of national and international academic partnerships and has refocused its efforts to be a strategic partner with the Boston Public Schools.

Prior to becoming an academic leader, Dr. Chard was an active researcher focused on studying instructional practices that are most effective at meeting the needs of students with learning disabilities. He has directed or co-directed grants and contracts totaling more than $15.5 million. He has held faculty positions at Boston University, the University of Texas at Austin, and the University of Oregon.

A frequent presenter at national and international education conferences, Dr. Chard has taught courses in education leadership and special education. He has served on more than 30 doctoral dissertation committees across a range of disciplines and has published more than 100 articles, monographs, book chapters, and books. He is the author of numerous instructional programs on early literacy, language arts, and mathematics spanning K-12 education and has been a classroom teacher in California, Michigan, and in the US Peace Corps in Lesotho in southern Africa.

Dr. Chard is a member of the International Academy for Research in Learning Disabilities, and has served in leadership roles in numerous professional organizations. He serves as a board member for several national nonprofits. He also served for two terms on the National Board for Education Sciences (nominated by President Barack Obama).

Recent News

• Can STEM Prepare Students to Make a Difference?
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• How Can Educators Improve Literacy and Instill a Joy of Reading?
• Promoting Equity and Diversity in the Classroom
• Three Faculty Rated Top Educational Policy Influencers
• How Higher Education Can Support First-Gen Students
• Investing in Early Education
• BU Wheelock’s Global Impact
• BU Wheelock Program Advances Educational Leadership in Bahrain
• BU Wheelock’s Chard and Goodman among Top Educational Policy Influencers

In the Media

• Early Literacy Education is Among Healey’s Priorities in Her 2nd Year in Office
• How Does Harvard Choose Its President, Anyway?
• Wheelock’s David Chard Leaving as Dean, Proud of Faculty and Staff Who Built Something Together
• POV: We Need to Be Better at Teaching Kids to Read
• When Colleges Close, Students Aren’t Likely to Re-Enroll
• My Coming Out Story: David Chard