UW–Madison is home to the top-ranked school of education in the nation for a second consecutive year, according to the 2025 U.S. News & World Report Best Education Graduate Schools rankings published in April.
In addition to the overall ranking, 11 graduate programs were also highly rated by U.S. News — including No. 1 rankings in Curriculum and Instruction, Educational Psychology, and Rehabilitation Counseling.
Dean Marcelle Haddix says the rankings are a call to all in the School to continue their work as leaders in their fields, working on the cutting edge of teaching, research, and service.
“The rankings are great, but they’re the cherry on top,” Haddix says. “For me, it’s a focus on the impact and the work. How are we addressing the pressing issues of our time and leading in those spaces?”
The question of how the No. 1 school of education in the nation is leading on the top issues in education is answered by even a small sampling of the groundbreaking work happening across the School.
Student mental health
A recent initiative backed by the Madison Education Partnership within the Wisconsin Center for Education Research provided mental health screening and interventions for middle school students in the Madison Metropolitan School District. During the 2022-23 school year, Madison Education Partnership’s Resilient Response to the Effects of Stress and Trauma program screened nearly 3,000 students and linked nearly 700 with relevant interventions.
Teacher shortage
The UW–Madison School of Education Wisconsin Teacher Pledge program was launched in 2020 and the donor-backed program is currently funded through the 2029-30 academic year. Under the program, students receive the equivalent of in-state tuition and fees, testing, and licensing costs in exchange for pledging to teach in any public or private school in Wisconsin for at least four years — or three years in high need subject areas or school districts. As of spring 2025, 1,093 students had taken the Teacher Pledge. Of those, 489 were already teaching in 110 public school districts and 14 private schools across Wisconsin.
Impact of the COVID-19 pandemic
Ongoing research related to the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic continues across the School. That includes a recent report from WIDA researchers Glenn Poole and Narek Sahakyan on a continued decline in proficiency scores for English language learners, a new book from faculty member Xueli Wang on how community colleges innovated for the better in their response to the pandemic, and a study from faculty member Mollie McQuillan on how remote learning uniquely affected the mental health of LGBTQ+ students.
Educational access
In April, the Multicultural Student Achievement Network hosted the 2025 MSAN Institute, a two-day professional development opportunity for K–12 teachers, principals, school staff, and school district leaders to learn about current research and best practices to create schools that help all students feel at home and be successful. Each institute features a student panel discussion, which helps MSAN realize its goal of centering student identity, leadership, and voice. Now in its 26th year, MSAN is a national coalition of 22 school districts.