About RAND Education
Our mission is to bring accurate data and objective analysis to education policy. We are a division of the RAND Corporation, a nonprofit institution that helps improve policy and decisionmaking through research and analysis.
Our Beginnings
We were the first to do rigorous independent evaluations of school reform programs. We established an empirical basis for determining the validity of various approaches to testing how much students learn.
One of our earliest studies evaluated school reform efforts in the 1970s. We examined 293 local projects in 18 states and found that most reform efforts had no lasting effect. Lasting change depended not so much on a program's content but on its implementation, particularly on the active commitment of district leaders, including the superintendent and school principals.
The Change Agent study, as it came to be called, is credited with introducing the "implementation perspective" into the public policy debate on education and establishing RAND's reputation in education research.
RAND Education Today
RAND Education's staff includes more than 50 experts from a wide range of disciplines. Sponsors of our research include government agencies, foundations, and private-sector organizations. For over three decades, RAND Education has applied its expertise to almost every aspect of the education system.
Our research findings have helped the policy community understand the choices they face in educating America's citizens.
Our Ongoing Commitment to Diversity
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Catherine Augustine (center),
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At the RAND Corporation, diversity is a core value. We believe a broad spectrum of backgrounds and perspectives provides creativity, imagination, and innovative thinking. RAND Education's commitment to diversity includes engaging in research activities that address important social and economic issues impacting education today. Recent research addressing the accessibility and quality of education in underserved populations and communities includes:
- Examining Gaps in Mathematics Achievement Among Racial-Ethnic Groups, 1972-1992
- Challenges of Conflicting School Reforms: Effects of New American Schools in a High-Poverty District
- Goal: To Double the Rate of Hispanics Earning a Bachelor's Degree
- Closing the Education Gap: Benefits and Costs
RAND's commitment to diversity is a valuable asset in our work with communities and governments around the globe. Most recently, RAND Education staff have been involved in K-12 education reform in Qatar in a large, multi-year project. The success of this project relies heavily on interdisiplanary and cross-cultural collaboration. Learn more about RAND's activities in the Middle East.
Learn more:
RAND Education Informational Brochure
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