R. L'HEUREUX LEWIS-MCCOY, PH.D.
R. L’Heureux Lewis-McCoy is a sociologist whose scholarship and activism centers issues of race, education, and opportunity. He is an Associate Professor at New York University in the Sociology of Education program in
the School of Culture, Education and Human Development.
In the area of education, he critically engages how educational resources and opportunities are hoarded. His first book, Inequality in the Promised Land (Stanford University Press, 2014) tackled how inequality persisted in an “integrated” school and suburban community. In 2023, he co-edited a special double issue of RSF: The Russell Sage Foundation Journal of Social Sciences on Suburban Inequality. He is currently fielding a multi-site ethnographic study in Westchester County that examines residents’ experiences with housing and schools. His larger research interests include race and racism, gender justice, and community mobilization. He has lectured widely and been a featured expert on the role of race in the contemporary political landscape, suburban and urban regional issues, as well as social justice.
He is a frequent commentator and contributor to international and US-based outlets such as the Guardian (UK), National Public Radio, Diversity in Higher Education, the New York Times, NBC Nightly News, Al Jazeera America, CBS News, the Amsterdam News, Vice News, Ebony Magazine, The Grio, and The Root.
Prior to joining NYU, he held faculty appointments at the City College of New York and the Graduate Center – CUNY. Dr. Lewis-McCoy holds a Ph.D. in Public Policy and Sociology from the University of Michigan and a B.A. in Sociology from Morehouse College.
He is a scholar-activist with years of experience working with grassroots organizations, not for profits, think tanks, and school districts. In New York City, he co-leads the Ndugu and Nzinga African Rites of Passage program. He lives in New York City with his partner, Aisha, and they are parents to two wonderfully curious, creative, and free Black children.
A note about names: In 2010, Professor Lewis-McCoy (née Lewis) officially hyphenated his last name. Additionally, he is also known by his given name Dumi, which he uses interchangeably with L’Heureux. Hear his name.