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Press Release

Learning Policy Institute Researchers Garner Two Awards at American Educational Research Association Annual Meeting

Researchers receive recognition for studies exploring community schools as a school improvement strategy and how charter school management organizations engage stakeholders.
Published
AERA 2018 920

NEW YORK, NY—Learning Policy Institute (LPI) researchers who examined community schools as an evidence-based strategy for school improvement and who explored charter school brand management are among the award winners who will be honored at the  2018 American Educational Research Association annual meeting in New York City.

A team of researchers from LPI and the National Education Policy Center (NEPC) received the Division L Outstanding Policy Report (Short) Award for Community Schools: An Evidence-Based Strategy for Equitable School Improvement.

The report was co-authored by Julia Daniel, a doctoral candidate and Graduate Student Researcher, NEPC at the University of Colorado Boulder; Anna Maier, Research and Policy Associate at LPI; and Jeannie Oakes, Senior Fellow in Residence at LPI and Presidential Professor Emeritus in Educational Equity at UCLA. It synthesizes the findings from 143 rigorous research studies on the impact of community schools on student and school outcomes. Its aim is to support and inform school, community, district, and state leaders as they seek school intervention and support strategies under the Every Student Succeeds Act and consider community schools as a strategy for providing high-quality education that promotes greater equity.

Laura Hernandez, Senior Researcher at LPI, received the Division A Outstanding Dissertation Award for Managing the Brand: Racial Politics, Strategic Messaging, and the Coalition-Building Efforts of Charter Management Organizations, written while she was earning her doctorate in Education Policy at the University of California—Berkeley.

Hernandez’ dissertation explores how leaders of charter management organizations approach stakeholder engagement in the context of competing priorities and challenges, including those related to increased competition, organizational legitimacy, equity commitments, and the broader political and racial climates.

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About the Learning Policy Institute

The Learning Policy Institute conducts and communicates independent, high-quality research to improve education policy and practice. Working with policymakers, researchers, educators, community groups, and others, the Institute seeks to advance evidence-based policies that support empowering and equitable learning for each and every child. Nonprofit and nonpartisan, the Institute connects policymakers and stakeholders at the local, state, and federal levels with the evidence, ideas, and actions needed to strengthen the education system from preschool through college and career readiness.