Mind & Life Podcast

Ed Taylor – Leading by Example

· ·

April 20, 2023

View or download a transcript of this episode

In this episode, Wendy speaks with University of Washington vice provost and dean of Undergraduate Academic Affairs, Ed Taylor. Ed has made major contributions in the areas of contemplative education and leadership, with a focus on moral and integrative education and social justice. This conversation covers many topics, including:

Ed Taylor, PhD
  • growing up embedded in community and giant sequoias;
  • learning to be still with the mind;
  • teaching meditation amidst anger dysregulation;
  • embodying contemplative skills in the classroom;
  • the gap between our mind’s story and our body in the moment;
  • the relevance of contemplation to wise and effective leadership;
  • moving from ego-system to ecosystem awareness (systems thinking);
  • implementing systems change in university settings;
  • normalizing failure and modeling vulnerability;
  • letting students lead in defining the community they want;
  • imagining the world you want to live in when things are not OK (reflections on the days after George Floyd was killed);
  • understanding critical race theory in education;
  • and the central role of community in healing.

Edward Taylor, PhD, is vice provost and dean of Undergraduate Academic Affairs at the University of Washington where he oversees educational opportunities that advance and deepen the undergraduate experience. He is also a professor in the UW College of Education, which he joined in 1995. His research and teaching center on comparative education in the US and South Africa, moral dimensions of education and integrative education, and leadership in education and social justice. He has written, taught and presented extensively on these topics. Active in the community, Ed is a founding board member of Rainier Scholars, a scholastic preparation program for high-achieving children of color; serves on the board of the Seattle Foundation; is a trustee of Gonzaga University; is on the Seattle mayor’s Education Summit Advisory Group; and also serves on the boards of College Spark Washington and the Rwanda Girls Initiative. Ed also served as faculty for the Academy for Contemplative and Ethical Leadership, an initiative of the Mind & Life Institute. Internationally, he has worked with South African township schools and school leaders to help form a coalition of schools to serve children living in township communities. In 2014, Taylor received the Distinguished Graduate Award from the College of Education.

Resources

Faculty website, University of Washington
Undergraduate Academic Affairs, University of Washington