Research for Action

Eva Gold

Founder and Principal egold@researchforaction.org	Eva Gold is a Founder of RFA and a research director of the Learning From Philadelphia’s School Reform project. She has served as primary investigator for numerous local and national studies examining the dynamics of parent, community, school relations, including a national study (with Elaine Simon) which presents a process for documenting the contributions of parent/community organizing groups to strengthening communities and improving schools (see below). Gold’s other research interests include home and school literacies, civic capacity for school reform, and the politics of urban education. She received the Ralph C. Preston Dissertation Award in 2000 from the Graduate School of Education, University of Pennsylvania for her study of community organizing at a Philadelphia high school. She is a Guest Lecturer in the Urban Studies Program and Graduate School of Education at the University of Pennsylvania, where she teaches courses on community activism and school reform and methods of data analysis and reporting.
Selected Research for Action projects: School Choice in a City of Neighborhoods: Philadelphia’s Approach to High School Reform: William Penn Foundation A documentation of a collaborative high school planning process: Philadelphia Education Fund Learning from Philadelphia's School Reform Youth Civic Engagement in Urban School Reform All Projects
Selected Publications: Gold, E., Simon, E., Cucchiara, M., Mitchell, C. A., & Riffer, M. (2007, Dec). A Philadelphia Story: Building Civic Capacity for School Reform in a Privatizing System. Philadelphia: RFA. Christman, J. B., Gold, E., & Herold, B. B. (2006, Jun 2). Privatization 'Philly Style': What Can Be Learned from Philadelphia's Diverse Provider Model of School Management (Updated edition with important new information and findings). Philadelphia: Research for Action. Gold, E., Hartmann, T. A., & Lewis, K. S. (2005, Nov). Children and Families First: An Evaluation of the Philadelphia Say Yes to Education Program. Philadelphia: Research for Action. Gold, E., Simon, E., & Brown, C. (2002, Mar). Strong Neighborhoods, Strong Schools: Successful Community Organizing for School Reform. Chicago: Cross City Campaign for Urban School Reform. All Publications
Educational Background: Ph. D.: University of Pennsylvania, Graduate School of Education M.Ed.: Temple University B.A.: University Pennsylvania