Alexander J. Holt

Research Fellow

Alexander J. Holt is a Research Fellow at the Center for Educational Improvement (CEI) and a Doctoral Candidate in Sociology, with a doctoral portfolio in African and African Diaspora Studies, at the University of Texas at Austin. He also serves as a Visiting Scholar and Assistant Research Professor at Wake Forest University.

Born in Greensboro and raised in Winston-Salem, North Carolina, Holt’s interdisciplinary research sits at the intersection of Sociology, Black Studies, Critical Pedagogy, and Social Work. His work examines how systems of power shape Black diasporic vulnerability and agency, with a particular focus on trauma, care, and wellbeing. His dissertation research explores the school bus as a developmental site in the American South, using qualitative methods to understand how youth experience and navigate psycho-emotional and social dynamics within this space. Holt earned his BA in Sociology with minors in French and American Ethnic Studies from Wake Forest University and his MA in Sociology from UT Austin. Through his research and teaching, he seeks to elevate embodied and community-rooted knowledge in pursuit of more equitable educational and social systems..