La Sierra education professor Margaret Solomon receives women’s association award

Solomon, a two-time Fulbright Scholar and a current Fulbright Specialist through 2026 is an education researcher and creator of unique programs designed to better educate Indian children in poor communities. She has served at La Sierra University as a professor of administration and educational leadership in the School of Education since 2010. The Association of Adventist Women recognized Solomon as Woman of the Year for Professional Life, one of the conference’s six awardees.

Solomon’s award was presented by her colleague, La Sierra Professor of Curriculum and Instruction Elissa Kido, founder and co-director of La Sierra University’s Center for Research on K–12 Adventist Education. The annual event was organized under the theme “Reducing Authoritarianism in Our Communities.” The association also celebrated its 40th year of operation with the 2022 conference. Kido served as one of three conference speakers and presented on the topic of education’s effects on authoritarianism. Bonnie Dwyer, editor emerita of Spectrum magazine and Katrina Blue, associate professor of theology at Pacific Union College also gave presentations. The association’s Champion of Justice award was presented to Randy Roberts, senior pastor of the Loma Linda University Church.

“Committing myself to follow God's plan for my life was the secret of my successful career." -- Dr. Margaret Solomon, professor, Administration and Leadership, School of Education

Noted Kido, "It was an honor to present this prestigious award to my colleague Margaret Solomon who worked and continues to work tirelessly for marginalized students and their teachers in rural and urban India."

“I was greatly surprised when I heard the news and wondered how this came about,” said Solomon in her acceptance speech which she gave via Zoom video conferencing. “I found the purpose of my life to become a teacher when I was at Spicer College (now university) in India. I thank God for my parents who provided me the Adventist education even at the college level. I enjoyed every bit of my training at Spicer.  I had great teachers who taught me ideas that brought meaning and purpose for my life.

“There have been many inspirational moments in my life like divine appointments giving me direction for my teaching work,” she continued, noting her first Fulbright Scholar Award to explore the education of children in the slums of India. She received the award not long after arriving to teach at La Sierra University. A second Fulbright was awarded in 2017.

“I went to this slum community in Roorkhee India to see its condition and find out what type of education the children were receiving there," said Solomon. "After I looked around the slum I asked the children, ‘Where is your school?’ One of them held my hand and took me to their school which was a small blackboard standing under a tree on a pile of sand in one corner of the slum. I stood there in utter shock and wept,” Solomon said.

“I went back to India and did an experimental study in four slums to find out if specialized instruction would improve the cultural capital of poor children reflected in their self-esteem and sense of hope. The study showed that through specialized instruction those two constructs could be certainly improved to a great degree.”

Based on her research, Solomon and her doctoral student Heidi Weiss Krumm, director of La Sierra’s International Student Services, are writing a book of instructional strategies for teachers who teach children from underprivileged communities.

“Committing myself to follow God's plan for my life was the secret of my successful career. I praise Him for guiding me in this journey,” noted Solomon.

Solomon grew up in the southern portion of India where she attended a Seventh-day Adventist church established in 1906 as the first Adventist church in India. In 1978 she and her husband immigrated to the United States where Solomon pursued a master's in curriculum and instruction at Andrews University while her husband entered Andrews' seminary. Solomon was hired by the Grand Rapids public school district in Michigan as a special education teacher in 1980. Her 23-year public school teaching career included five years as vice principal of Union High School in Grand Rapids, the largest high school in that district. 

In 1999 she completed a doctorate in K-12 educational administration at Michigan State University and in 2003 accepted a faculty position at Redlands University in Redlands, Calif. She taught there as an assistant professor for seven years and developed doctoral and master's program courses. At La Sierra she taught educational leadership courses and directed fieldwork in educational administration for students earning state credentials.

In addition to her broad teaching experience, Solomon has published numerous articles, co-authored books, conducted extensive research and made numerous conference presentations at the state and national level.

In 2019 she presented during the American Education Research Association annual meeting in Toronto. The organization is described as the largest gathering of education researchers in the world attended by more than 14,000 members, scholars, policy experts and practitioners. Solomon’s paper titled “The Challenges in Teaching Western Conceptualization of Transformational Leadership to Eastern Educators” was presented during a Special Interest Group Teaching Leadership session.