Madelaine Adelman (she/her), Ph.D., is a professor of justice studies in the School of Social Transformation at Arizona State University. She teaches and mentors undergraduate and graduate students across several disciplines.
Motivated by the possibilities for social change when people work together toward shared goals, Madelaine integrates insights from community-based advocacy into her research and teaching. Her scholarship focuses on gender-based violence and LGBTQ+ issues in K–12 education. Current projects examine transgender-affirmative education amid anti-trans backlash and how K–12 educators navigate growing restrictions on inclusive curriculum.
Madelaine brings extensive leadership experience in both academic and nonprofit settings. After more than a decade of board service, she was elected president of the Association of Political & Legal Anthropology, a section of the American Anthropological Association. She also serves the profession through journal editorial boards, peer review, and award and fellowship committees.
At ASU, Madelaine has helped advance research equity and public engagement. She served on the steering committee of the Collective for Research Equity and Diversity and leads two signature programs in her department: Seeking Justice in Arizona, which brings community leaders and advocates to campus, and the John P. Frank Memorial Lecture, which features prominent scholars and leaders addressing pressing justice issues. Past speakers have included U.S. Supreme Court Associate Justice Sonia Sotomayor.
Madelaine is also the founding board chair and president of Just Schools, an education organization working to create LGBTQ+ inclusive K–12 schools. Previously, she held numerous regional and national leadership roles with GLSEN, including service as chapter founder and chair, and on its National Advisory Council, Research Ethics Review Committee, Board of Directors, and Executive Committee, culminating in service as Co-Vice-President of the board.