Sarah Coleman is the author of The Walls Within: The Politics of Immigration in Modern America (Princeton University Press, 2021) which traces the struggle of politicians, activists, interest groups, communities and the courts to define the rights of immigrants in the United States after the passage of the Hart-Celler Act of 1965. The Walls Within was named the winner of the Theodore Saloutos Book Award for best book on any aspect of the immigration history of the United States from the Immigration and Ethnic History Society.
Coleman’s current research explores the political power and impact of Sam Rayburn, a figure whose influence in the corridors of American power and policymaking resonated for more than half a century. Sam Rayburn served as Speaker of the House of Representatives three separate times for a total of over 17 years. Through previously unexplored archival materials, this work will provide new insights Rayburn’s leadership and decision-making and how Congress successfully passed legislation that addressed questions of grave consequence for the nation during Rayburn’s time. This work will offer critical lessons for today on addressing partisan polarization, building consensus, developing institutional respect, and achieving bipartisan legislative accomplishments.
Dr. Coleman holds a BA from Yale University, a MPhil from the University of Cambridge and a PhD in History from Princeton University. She was a Postdoctoral Fellow at the Center for Presidential History at Southern Methodist University.
Prior to academia, Coleman worked in the White House during the Obama administration as a senior policy analyst focused on domestic policy and justice issues and on the United States Senate Judiciary Committee for Senator Joseph R. Biden.
She lives in Austin with her husband, son and daughter. When she is not writing, you can find her running, on tennis courts, enjoying her family and occasionally missing her hometown, Brooklyn.
