Skip to main content

Claudia Gentile, PhD, Named Senior Fellow in the Center for Excellence in Survey Research, at NORC at the University Chicago

Press Release

CHICAGO, October 4, 2017 — Claudia Gentile, PhD, a leading expert in the design and execution of studies of educational programs at national, state, and local levels, has joined NORC at the University of Chicago as a senior fellow in its Center for Excellence in Survey Research.

To her new role with NORC, Gentile brings more than 25 years of experience leading evaluation studies of Pre-K–grade 12 educational programs. Her work will include a special emphasis on enhancing the technical quality of studies through the development of new approaches and innovative tools, including surveys, protocols, and classroom observation measures.

“Claudia Gentile will greatly enhance the capacity of NORC to provide the highest-quality systems for the evaluation of educational programs, while bringing her extraordinary skills to similar studies in other subject areas,” said Don Jang, vice president and director of the Center for Excellence in Survey Research at NORC. “We are delighted with her decision to join our team.”

Jang added that Gentile also brings to her work extensive experience in leading implementation evaluation studies, with a special emphasis on providing rapid feedback to the client organizations in support of program improvement.

“To ensure that our children experience the highest-quality education, we need to ask not only do our educational programs work, but deeper questions about how programs are implemented and why they are or are not working,” said Gentile. “Evaluations, like those conducted by NORC, provide educators with vital information about how to improve existing programs and empower teachers and school administrators to optimize student learning and development. The techniques we develop in NORC’s educational studies will have applications in the many other areas of NORC research and analysis as well.”

Before joining NORC, Gentile was an associate director in the Survey and Information Services Division at Mathematica Policy Research, where she specialized in implementation and impact studies of educational programs. With Gates Foundation funding, she led the development of teacher, principal, and district surveys focused on reform efforts in 10 states. With Kauffman Foundation funding, she directed a six-year implementation study of the Kauffman Charter School in Kansas City, MO. She led a major project for the U.S. Department of Education to explore the instructional practices associated with language growth and reading comprehension in Pre-K–grade 3 classrooms in 1,000 Title I schools, and an Investing In Innovation evaluation of EL Education’s curriculum and teacher professional development program. Before joining Mathematica, Gentile was a senior researcher at Educational Testing Service, where she worked on a range of national assessment programs, including the NAEP, TOEFL, SAT, GRE, and Praxis exams.

Gentile has an undergraduate degree in English from Goucher College, a master’s degree in English education from New York University, and a PhD in English education from Syracuse University.

“Claudia Gentile will greatly enhance the capacity of NORC to provide the highest-quality systems for the evaluation of educational programs, while bringing her extraordinary skills to similar studies in other subject areas. We are delighted with her decision to join our team.”

Don Jang

Vice president and Director

“Claudia Gentile will greatly enhance the capacity of NORC to provide the highest-quality systems for the evaluation of educational programs, while bringing her extraordinary skills to similar studies in other subject areas. We are delighted with her decision to join our team.”

About NORC at the University of Chicago

NORC at the University of Chicago conducts research and analysis that decision-makers trust. As a nonpartisan research organization and a pioneer in measuring and understanding the world, we have studied almost every aspect of the human experience and every major news event for more than eight decades. Today, we partner with government, corporate, and nonprofit clients around the world to provide the objectivity and expertise necessary to inform the critical decisions facing society.

www.norc.org

Contact: For more information, please contact Eric Young at NORC at young-eric@norc.org or (703) 217-6814 (cell).