Bio
By way of Palmyra, NJ and Cheswold, DE, Dr. Ridgway is of Black and Nanticoke Lenni-Lenape descent from Philadelphia, PA. They are a writer and research with a interdisciplinary background in discourse analysis, archival research methods, and creative writing, based in Cambridge, MA.
They earned their M.A and Ph.D in History, as well as a Graduate Certificate in Native American and Indigenous Studies at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign. They earned their B.A in Psychology and Gender and Sexuality Studies at Swarthmore College.
As a writer, Dr. Ridgway’s work includes data-driven research, poetry, fiction, and creative non-fiction. Much of their writing is interested in structural inequities, how people build capacity and momentum for success, and the impacts of systems change on individual, local, and national scales. As a creative writer, they are, in some way, always writing about grief, love, and the perpetual search for utopia.
Regardless of genre, Dr. Ridgway is concerned with the work of community development, how we survive the unsurvivable, what supports we need as humans to create livable lives, and the joy of racing toward the future. Their work can be found or is forthcoming in Women’s Studies Quarterly, Diode Poetry Journal, The Blog of the Journal of the History of Ideas, and elsewhere. (see Writing).
In addition to their writing, Dr. Ridgway’s voice and expertise has been featured in various news outlets and podcasts, such as NPR-affiliate WHYY, as well as public lecture series (see Media).
Previously, Dr. Ridgway was a Research Associate at PHI where they supported various applied research projects with a focus on outlining clear and actionable evidence-based recommendations for public policy. Prior, they were a lecturer in History and Literature at Harvard University, and Instructor at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign where they designed and facilitated learning experiences, built toolkits and resource libraries that help build confidence and capacity over time, and guided over 100 individual undergraduate research projects with many students receiving departmental, campus, and national awards.
At the intersection of research, storytelling, and strategy, Dr. RIdgway’s goals are the same: to translate knowledge into understanding, opportunity, and positive change.
Morgan Ridgway, PhD (Black and Nanticoke Lenni-Lenape descent) is a writer and researcher from Philadelphia, now based in Cambridge, MA. They hold a Ph.D. and M.A. in History and a Graduate Certificate in Native American and Indigenous Studies from the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, and a B.A. from Swarthmore College. Their interdisciplinary work spans research, poetry, fiction, and creative nonfiction, often exploring structural inequity, community, and collective futures. Their writing appears in Women’s Studies Quarterly, Diode Poetry Journal, and more. Morgan has also taught at Harvard and UIUC and previously worked as a researcher supporting evidence-based policy.