Interpreting Research for Multiple Audiences

As members of the educational research community, we stay up to speed on the latest publications and developments in the field of urban education. Given the vast amount of educational research conducted across a variety of contexts, we work to gather and interpret research on education to better help our clients and our community understand the current state of knowledge on key issues.

With the client’s needs in mind, we will compile and synthesize existing research and analysis in a way that is both comprehensive and accessible to all relevant audiences.

Selected Activities

  • Member, Philadelphia Public School Notebook Leadership and Advisory Board – Philadelphia, PA
  • Member, Anthropology and Education Quarterly Editorial Board

Selected Projects

2007 -

Southeastern Pennsylvania was selected as one of four sites for funding from Communities for Public Education Reform (CPER), a national philanthropic collaborative aimed at increasing student and parent power to affect school reform. CPER-funded groups seek to improve education for all students by building the power of low-income and minority communities to influence educational policies at the local and state levels. The funded groups include ACORN, Eastern Pennsylvania Organizing Project, Good Schools Pennsylvania, Philadelphia Student Union, and Youth United for Change. RFA is providing technical assistance about how to incorporate research evidence into the coalition's campaigns. Two other groups -- Education Law Center and the Philadelphia Public School Notebook -- are also playing supportive roles. All of the funded groups are members of Philadelphia Cross City Campaign for School Reform, which serves as a forum for coordination. CPER-funded work will focus on two primary campaigns, one for school funding reform both statewide and locally and one for high school reform in Philadelphia.

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RFA occasionally publishes work on varied topics of more general interest that defy classification under one project or area of focus.

2000 - 2004

The Cross City Campaign for Urban School Reform and RFA developed the Indicators Framework, which is being used to document the impact of community organizing for school reform. RFA has used the Indicators Framework in case studies of five community-organizing groups nationwide to portray these groups\' achievements in moving forward the process of school improvement and strengthening school/community connections.