College of Education and Human Development

Department of Organizational Leadership, Policy, and Development

People

Christopher Johnstone

  • Professor, Department Chair

Christopher J. Johnstone is a Professor of Comparative and International Development Education and Chair of the University of Minnesota-Twin Cities' Department of Organizational Leadership, Policy, and Development.

    DEGREES

    Ph.D., University of Minnesota, comparative and international development education
    M.S., Syracuse University, special education
    B.S., State University of New York, Plattsburgh, special education

      AREAS OF INTEREST
      • Inclusive Education
      • International Development
      • Internationalization of Higher Education
        BIOGRAPHY

        Christopher Johnstone is a Professor of Comparative and International Development Education and Chair of the University of Minnesota-Twin Cities' Department of Organizational Leadership, Policy, and Development. His research he explores operationalizations of inclusiveness as they relate to both international development, K-12 education, and campus internationalization. He has worked on education or development-related projects on every continent except Antarctica, but has primarily focused his research in Sub-Saharan Africa and South Asia. His current projects include studies of livelihoods (Kenya and Tanzania), disability identity (India), and equity issues in internationalization (University of Minnesota).

        Current projects include a grant focused on inclusive employment in Bhutan, academic directorship of the Mandela Washington Fellowship, and a global evaluation of inclusive education for UNICEF.

          AWARDS
          • Fulbright Specialist, Czech Republic (2018)
          • Outstanding Mentoring and Advising Award, Council of Graduate Students (2016)
          • Global Engagement, University of Minnesota (2015)
            TEACHING
            • OLPD 5104 - Strategies for the International Development of Education Systems
            • OLPD 5080 - International Higher Education
            • OLPD 8002 - Critical Issues in Contemporary Education
              PUBLICATIONS

              Johnstone, C., Elsayed, N., Antunovic, D., Buchanan, M., Meyer, K., & Stuart, J. (2025). Engaging faculty experts. In  Chapman, K. E., & Beard, D. E. (2025). Power of One: Theories, Strategies and Case Studies in Internationalizing the Student Experience. University of Minnesota Libraries Open.  https://open.lib.umn.edu/powerofone/

              Berman, S. & Johnstone, C. (2025). Inclusive Practices as Positive Disruptors for Systems Change in Education (Policy Brief 114). Special Olympics Global Center for Inclusion in Education. https://www.flipsnack.com/SpecialOlympicsGlobalYouth/brief-114-inclusive-practices-as-positive-disruptors-for-systems/full-view.html

              Johnstone, C.J., Hunt, P.F., Allen, I., Garaghty, R., Cibuzar, K., & Elias, N. (2025). Global Formative Evaluation of UNICEF Work on Disability Inclusion 2018-2022. UNICEF. https://evaluationreports.unicef.org/GetDocument?documentID=19890&fileID=55469

              Limaye, S., Johnstone, C., & Kayama, M. (Eds.). (2024). Disability as Diversity in India: Theory, Practice, and Lived Experiences. Routledge. 

              Johnstone, C.J. (2024). Bourdieu’s field, habitus, cultural contestation, and Disability Studies: Concluding thoughts on Disability and Diversity in India. In Limaye, S., Johnstone, C., & Kayama, M. (Eds.). (2024). Disability as Diversity in India: Theory, Practice, and Lived Experiences, pp. 235-248. Routledge.  

              Postiglione, G., Johnstone, C. & Teter, W. (Eds.). (2023). Elgar Handbook of Education Policy. Elgar.  

              Johnstone, C.J., Schuelka, M., Yetsho Choeki & Tashi Yetsho. (2023). Disability-inclusive education, development and dialectics: Complex cases in Bhutan. Comparative Education Review, 67 (1), 147-166.      

              Engsig, T. T., Johnstone, C. J., & Schuelka, M. J. (2023). Creating inclusive educational spaces: Assessing assessment in a post-pandemic world. International Journal of Inclusive Education (online first). https://doi.org/10.1080/13603116.2023.2274107 

              Johnstone, C. & Niad, H. (2023). Curriculum and inclusive education: universal design for learning as a “traveling” phenomenon. In: Tierney, R.J., Rizvi, F., Erkican, K. (Eds.), International Encyclopedia of Education, vol. 7. Elsevier, pp. 440–446. https://dx.doi.org/10.1016/B978-0-12-818630-5.03076-1. ISBN: 9780128186305.  

              Johnstone, C.J., Smith, T.L., & Malmgren, J. (2020). Academics as arbiters: Promoting equity and cultural responsibility in group-based study abroad. Frontiers: The Study Abroad Journal, 32 (2), 120-144. https://doi.org/10.36366/frontiers.v32i2.470

              Schuelka, M., Johnstone, C.J., Thomas, G., & Artiles, A. (2019). Sage Handbook on Inclusion and Diversity in Education. London: Sage.

              Johnstone, C., Lazarus, S., Lazetic, P., & Nikolic, G. (2019). Resourcing inclusion: Introducing finance perspectives to inclusive education policy rhetoric. Prospects, 47(4), 339-359. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11125-018-9432-2

              Johnstone, C., Higgins, J., & Fedorchak, G. (2019). Assessment in an era of accessibility: Evaluating rules for scripting audio representation of test items. British Journal of Educational Technology, 50(2), 806-818. https://doi.org/10.1111/bjet.12603

              Johnstone, C., Kayama, M., & Limaye, S. (2019). Inclusion or assimilation? Program development in disability-focused organizations in India. Disability & Society, 34(9-10), 1595-1612. https://doi.org/10.1080/09687599.2019.1601068

              Lihwa, F., Johnstone, C., Thomas, M. A., & Krause, B. (2019). Remoteness as a gendered construct. Development in Practice, 29(4), 501-513. https://doi.org/10.1080/09614524.2019.157735

              Kayama, M., Johnstone, C., & Limaye, S. (2019). Adjusting the “self” in social interaction: Disability and stigmatization in India. Children and Youth Services Review, 96, 463-474.  https://doi.org/10.1016/j.childyouth.2018.11.047

              Johnstone, C., Yefanova, D., Woodruff, G., Montgomery, M. L., & Kappler, B. J. (2018). “It Would Be Better If You Can Hang Out With Different People”: An Examination of Cross-National Interaction in Postsecondary Classrooms. Journal of Teaching and Learning, 12(2), 23-37. http://dx.doi.org/10.22329/jtl.v12i2.4927

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