School Choice and School Improvement

Mark Berends is Professor of Sociology, director of Notre Dame's Center for Research on Educational Opportunity, and director of the National Center on School Choice. He also serves on several editorial boards, technical panels, and policy forums and recently ended his term as vice president of the American Educational Research Association's Division L, Educational Policy and Politics. Professor Berends' research focuses on the ways school organization and classroom instruction are related to student achievement, with special attention to disadvantaged students. Within this agenda, he has applied a variety of quantitative and qualitative methods to understand the effects of school reforms on teachers and students. He is the author or editor of numerous articles and books, most recently including Examining Gaps in Mathematics Achievement Among Racial-Ethnic Groups, Charter School Outcomes, Leading with Data: Pathways to Improve Your School, and Handbook of Research on School Choice.

Marisa Cannata is senior research associate in the department of Leadership, Policy, and Organizations and associate director of the National Center on School Choice at Vanderbilt University. Her research interests focus on school choice and teacher quality policies, including induction, teacher career decisions, work experiences, and hiring. Dr. Cannata has a PhD in Educational Policy from Michigan State University.

Ellen B. Goldring is Patricia and Rodes Hart Chair and Professor of Education Policy and Leadership, and chair of the Department of Leadership, Policy and Organizations, at Peabody College of Vanderbilt University, where she has received the Alexander Heard Distinguished Professor award. Professor Goldring's two primary research foci are school reform efforts that connect families, communities, and schools, with a focus on schools of choice; and the changing roles of school leaders and leadership effectiveness. Her books include School Choice in Urban America, Leading with Data: Pathways to Improve Your School, and From the Courtroom to the Classroom: The Shifting Landscape of School Desegregation.