Biography
Katherine Reynolds Lewis is an award-winning journalist, educator, and author based in the Washington, D.C. area, who speaks about parenting, education, mental health, journalism, entrepreneurship, creative careers, freelancing, workplace equity, racial and social justice, and inclusion and belonging. Her core mission is supporting people to nurture themselves, their families, their creative and entrepreneurial ventures, and their communities.
Katherine writes about education, equity, mental health, parenting, science and social justice for publications including The Atlantic, Experience Life, The New York Times, palabra., Parents, Undark, and The Washington Post. She’s the founder of the Institute for Independent Journalists, whose mission is the emotional and financial sustainability of freelance journalists of color. She developed and taught her business of freelancing course at American University and Northwestern University. Her 2015 story on the school-to-prison pipeline became Mother Jones’ most-read article ever, and led to her bestselling 2018 book, “The Good News About Bad Behavior: Why Kids Are Less Disciplined Than Ever — And What to Do About It.” Her most recent long-form narrative project on racial justice in education was supported by the O’Brien Fellowship in Public Service Journalism and the MIT Knight Science Journalism fellowship. A biracial journalist (Asian American and White), she’s active in the Asian American Journalists Association and co-founder of the Parenting Journalists Society. Before becoming an entrepreneur in 2008, she worked as a national correspondent for Newhouse News Service and Bloomberg News. She lives with her partner Brian and their three children in a multigenerational, multiracial family in the Washington D.C. area.
Articles, Publications, and Appearances
Speaking
On Parenting, Mental Health and Education
On the Business of Freelance Journalism
Articles
Mother Jones — What If Everything You Knew About Disciplining Kids Was Wrong?
Undark — In Tennessee, an Experiment to Manage Behavior With an App
The Atlantic — One Ohio School’s Quest to Rethink Bad Behavior
The Thorny Problem of Racial Disparities in School Discipline
Elemental — Autism Is an Identity, Not a Disease
OneZero — Our Skulls Are Shrinking — And That Could Wreak Havoc on Our Health
Nieman Reports — Diverse Freelancers Play a Crucial Role in Journalism
Kiplinger’s — How to Negotiate for Anything
Washington Post — Invisible Discipline: How Do You Know If a Parenting Strategy Works?
Fortune — How ‘Culture Fit’ Can Be a Shield for Hiring Discrimination
The Atlantic — How to Make Your Company Less Racist and Sexist
Full Portfolio at Authory.com
Appearances
List of speaking appearances from 2017-present
Selected appearances in the media