Rachel L. S. Harper is an interdisciplinary scholar, curator, artist, philosopher, and educator. She is the founder of Seen + Heard, a social practice project advocating for the cultural lives and works of children, and she has led the Teacher Institute at the Museum of Contemporary Art Chicago since 2008. Harper works nationally with museums, cultural institutions, school districts, and artists on strategic planning, program development, and staff education. She is a recipient of the Stonewall Honor Book Award from the American Library Association and the Ann Lynn Lopez Schubert Memorial Fellowship in Curriculum Studies. Harper’s research, exhibitions, and projects have been supported by the Fry Foundation, the Terra Foundation for American Art, the 3Arts Foundation, the Chicago Art Department, the Ragdale Foundation, the city of Chicago Department of Cultural Affairs, and others.
Research Interests
Interdisciplinary Research; Curriculum history and theory; Arts Integration; Social Practice; Arts-based research; Anti-bias Praxis; Peace Studies; the Reggio Emilia Approach; Teacher Identity and Professional Development; Social Studies; Lifelong learning; Civically-engaged Arts Education; Interpretive Exhibitions and Museum Education; Childhood Studies and Children’s Urban Geographies; Ethical Institutional Leadership and Program Development; Disability Studies; Chicago-based Arts History; Cultural Studies; and the intellectual rights of children.