Dr Stephanie Wescott is a feminist lecturer and researcher in the Faculty of Education at Monash University where her work focuses on gender, schooling and violence prevention. Her research examines the influence of misogynistic and manosphere ideologies in education settings, school-based gendered violence, and the institutional conditions that shape how gendered harms are recognised, responded to and prevented in schools. Stephanie’s work sits at the intersection of education, sociology and gender studies, with a particular focus on schools as critical sites for both the reproduction and prevention of gender-based violence.

Stephanie is internationally recognised for pioneering empirical research on the influence of the manosphere in schools, including co-authoring the first study globally to examine Andrew Tate’s influence in education settings. Her research has informed policy and public debate nationally and internationally, including citations in violence prevention frameworks, government reviews and media reporting across Australia, New Zealand, the United Kingdom and the United States. She regularly works with schools, teachers and policymakers to support whole-school approaches to prevention and has delivered professional learning to educators across multiple Australian jurisdictions.

Alongside her research, Stephanie teaches in teacher education and humanities education, with interests in feminist pedagogy, critical social inquiry and the role of education in responding to contemporary social challenges. She is also a member of the Monash Gender and Family Violence Prevention Centre and an Affiliate Researcher with the ARC Centre of Excellence for the Elimination of Violence Against Women (CEVAW).

Dr Wescott and Professor Roberts were awarded the 2025 Sociology in Action Award by The Australian Sociological Association, in recognition of their outstanding contribution to sociological practice in Australia.