Sophia Arredondo is a technical assistant specialist at AIR with experience in projects related to youth, family, and community development. She is responsible for providing specialized direct assistance and training to local educational agencies (LEAs) impacted by community violence to expand their capacity to implement community- and school-based strategies that ...
The Simulated Instruction in Mathematics Study is a pilot study of a new professional development program which leverages new technologies for virtual classroom simulation and tests its use in professional development to support strong instructional practice in middle school mathematics.
Tamara Linkow is a senior director at AIR. In this role, she provides direction and support across AIR’s portfolio of federal education evaluation studies. With over 15 years of experience in research and evaluation, she has led impact and descriptive studies that inform foundation, state, and federal decisions.
Her areas ...
The National Center on Safe Supportive Learning Environments (NCSSLE) maintains a compendium of valid and reliable surveys, assessments, and scales of school climate that can assist educators in their efforts to identify and assess their conditions for learning. The intent of this compendium is to gather student, faculty and staff, ...
A comprehensive approach to school safety requires a focus on the root causes within the school and larger community setting. In support of the National Institute of Justice's Comprehensive School Safety Initiative, AIR—in partnership with Virginia Tech, The Wandersman Center, and a group of nationally recognized school safety experts—is conducting ...
In 2008, the Indiana Department of Education (IDOE) launched a diagnostic assessment program in which teachers in Grades K–8 classrooms administered commercially available interim assessments to their students. Results from each test were available to teachers, who were expected to use them to diagnose students’ strengths and weaknesses and adjust ...
In the aftermath of the school shooting in Parkland, Florida, education leaders in Pasco County renewed their commitment to improve school safety and student mental health—which, according to research, can also improve academic learning. With guidance from AIR experts, a core team of district and school stakeholders examined research and ...
While the DC Free Summer Meals program offers no-cost food to students throughout the city, families have often had difficulty finding the locations where meals are available. As a part of AIR’s Socially Responsible Analytics Initiative, we partnered with the District of Columbia Public Schools to build a website that ...
Chronic absence is a nationwide problem, even among young students. Those with poor attendance are more likely to face challenges later in school and in life. This study tested four versions of an adaptive text messaging strategy to see which, if any, would reduce chronic absence among 26,000 elementary school ...
Jessica Heppen, a nationally recognized expert in education research, policy, and practice, is the president & CEO of AIR. Dr. Heppen been with AIR for 20 years and, in that time, has held several key roles during her tenure.