Robert J. Marzano, Executive Director
Robert Marzano, Ph.D., is the Chief Executive Officer of Marzano Research Laboratory in Centennial, Colorado. Dr. Marzano’s research has been synthesized into a multitude of practical books for educators. His work includes standards development and translation into classroom instruction and assessment techniques, evaluation studies and classroom research, and K-12 curriculum development.

Dr. Marzano earned his bachelor of arts at Iona College in New Rochelle, New York and his master of education at Seattle University in Washington. He also received his Ph.D. in Curriculum and Instruction from the University of Washington, Seattle. Dr. Marzano has received the Teacher’s Choice Award for his book, Formative Assessment and Standards-Based Grading. He has also been awarded the Brock International Prize in Education, has been named Outstanding Researcher in the Field of Reading by the Colorado Council of the International Reading Association, and was a finalist for the National Council of Teachers of English competition for “Promising Researcher.”  Robert.Marzano@marzanoresearch.com

Terri L. Martin, Deputy Director
Terri Martin, Ed.D., is the Vice President of Research and Development at Marzano Research Laboratory in Centennial, Colorado, and the Deputy Director of the Regional Education Laboratory-Central. She has experience as a classroom teacher, assistant principal, and principal. She was also an adjunct professor where she created and taught courses based on analysis of student achievement data and needs assessment.

Dr. Martin earned her bachelor of science degree from Stephen’s College in Columbia, Missouri. She also holds both a master of education degree in Early Childhood Education and Middle School Administration, a specialist of education in Elementary Administration, and an Ed.D.in education in General Administration from the University of Missouri, Columbia. Dr. Martin is the recipient of the Excellence in Teaching Award and The School Portfolio Achievement Award. Terri.Martin@marzanoresearch.com

Shelley H. Billig, Associate Director
Shelley Billig, Ph.D., is the Vice President of RMC Research Corporation in Denver, Colorado. She serves as Principal Investigator of several national, state, and local research and evaluation projects, is Associate Director of the Southwest Comprehensive Center, and is on the board of several research journals. She also serves as the qualitative team leader for the Broad Prize for Urban District Excellence and the director of qualitative research for the Broad Prize for Charter School Management Organizations. In the past, Dr. Billig has served as Director of the Title I Technical Assistance Center and the Director of the Rural Technical Assistance Center.

Dr. Billig received her bachelor of arts from Boston University where she graduated Magna Cum Laude. She earned her master of arts degree and Ph.D. in sociology from Tufts University in Medford, Massachusetts. She graduated both with honors and was awarded a Predoctoral Fellowship from the Andrew Mellon Foundation at Tufts University, has been designated as a Distinguished Scholar by the International Association of Research in Service-Learning and Community Engagement.  billig@rmcdenver.com

John T. Sutton, Deputy Associate Director
John Sutton, Ph.D., is a Senior Research Associate at RMC Research Corporation in Denver, Colorado. He is the Evaluation Director for a number of different state Math and Science Partnerships. In this role, he is responsible for instrument selection and administration, data collection, data analysis, report writing, and state and national conference presentations. Dr. Sutton has previous experience as a classroom teacher, K-12 Mathematics Consultant, and Assistant Superintendent.

Dr. Sutton earned his bachelor of science degree and his master of arts degree in mathematics education from the University of Iowa. He also received his Ph.D. from the University of Iowa in mathematics education and administration. Dr. Sutton has received the Nebraska Science KICKS Recognition Award, the Council of State Science Supervisors Recognition Award, the Catalyst Award from the Nebraska Association of Teachers of Science, and the Association of State Supervisors of Mathematics Recognition Award.sutton@rmcdenver.com

Robert M. Palaich, Associate Director
Robert Palaich, Ph.D., is the President of Augenblick, Palaich, and Associates, Inc., in Denver, Colorado. His previous work includes serving as the Vice President of Augenblick, Palaich, and Associates, Inc., as well as Vice President of the Education Commission of the States in Denver, Colorado. He has been the team leader for a variety of education policy-related studies and has experience in project leadership and management, program evaluation and research design, school finance, and state policy analysis and design.

Dr. Palaich earned his bachelor of science degree from the University of Norte Dame in South Bend, Indiana and his master of arts degree in education administration from the Teachers College at Columbia University in New York, New York.  rmp@apaconsulting.net

Dale M. DeCesare, Deputy Associate Director
Dale DeCesare, J.D., is a Senior Associate with Augenblick, Palaich, and Associates, Inc., in Denver, Colorado. In this role, he leads a variety of education policy studies, works with school districts to identify and address teacher recruitment and retention challenges and to evaluate the impact of education program changes; and conducts evaluations of educational interventions in hard-to-staff schools and schools that struggle to close student achievement gaps.

Mr. DeCesare also has experience working as a writer and policy analyst for the Education Commission of the States in Denver, Colorado. Mr. DeCesare earned his bachelor of arts degree from Trinity University San Antonio, Texas, and his doctor of Jurisprudence from the University of Denver College of Law. He was awarded the American Jurisprudence Award.  dmd@apaconsulting.net

Stephen J. Meyer, Research and Evaluation Director
Stephen Meyer, Ph.D., is a Senior Research Associate at RMC Research Corporation in Denver, Colorado. He has been responsible for study design and implementation, case study data collection, and analysis for a variety of agencies. He currently works as the Principal Investigator for the Developing a Program of Postsecondary Academic Instruction in State Prisons Study where he examines the effectiveness of a model for delivering postsecondary academic instruction to youth offenders in state prisons. He is also an Evaluator for the National Evaluation of Learn and Serve America which uses an experimental design to measure the impact of service-learning programs on academic and civic outcomes for students.

Dr. Meyer earned his bachelor of arts degree from the University of Wisconsin, Madison, and his Ph.D. in education from the University of Chicago. He has been awarded the Searle Dissertation Fellowship from the University of Chicago, the American Educational Research Association Dissertation Grant, the Spencer Foundation Research Training Grant, the University of Chicago Century Scholarship, and the Scholl Fellowship from the Chapin Hall Center for Children at the University of Chicago.  meyer@rmcdenver.com

Jane St. John, Dissemination Director
Jane St. John is the Vice President of Operations at Marzano Research Laboratory. In her role, Ms. St. John works to forge, manage, and coordinate the partnership between Marzano Research Laboratory and Solution Tree. Her previous experience includes Vice President of Marketing and Director of Marketing and Sales at Solution Tree. Ms. St. John serves on the Foundation for Monroe County Community Schools and the Board of Parks Commissioners in Bloomington, Indiana.

Ms. St. John earned her bachelor of arts degree from Columbia University in New York, New York, and her master of public affairs at Indiana University, Bloomington. She has received the Annual Conservation Award of the National Audubon Society for outstanding contributions toward the conservation, preservation, and enhancement of the natural environment; the Governor’s Award for Excellence in Recycling for Schools Recycling Program and for individual contribution to recycling and waste reduction and holds a Certificate in Fund Raising Management from the Indiana University Center on Philanthropy. Jane.StJohn@marzanoresearch.com

John G. Augenblick, CEO of APA
John Augenblick, Ed.D., is the former president of Augenblick, Palaich, and Associates, Inc., in Denver, Colorado. He has previous experience as an elementary school teacher; at the Education Commission of the States in Denver, Colorado, where he worked with school finance systems; and as the President of Augenblick, Palaich and Associates, Inc.

Dr. Augenblick earned his bachelorof science degree from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and his master of arts degree at the Teachers College at Columbia University in New York, New York. He also received his Ed.D. from the University of Rochester.  jga@apaconsulting.net

Jeffrey C. Jones, President of MRL
Jeff Jones is the president of Solution Tree, a leading provider of educational strategies and tools that improve staff and student performance. He is also the co-founder and Chief Operations Officer of Marzano Research Laboratory, located in Centennial, Colorado and the co-founder, Chief Operations Officer, and vice chairman of Hawker Brownlow Professional Learning Solutions, located in Melbourne, Australia.

Mr. Jones received his bachelor of science degree from the Kelley School of Business at Indiana University, Bloomington. He has current board membership with the Indiana University Art Museum, New Horizons Foundation, CIMA Systems, and Transworld Radio.

Tony Petrites, Research Editor
Tony Petrites is the Research Editor for REL Central at Marzano Research Laboratory. In this role, he edits deliverables and products, manages the online bank of resource articles, and supports researchers in literature searches and data analysis.

Petrites earned his bachelor of science degree from the University of Missouri–Columbia, and his master of science degree from Brown University. Prior to joining MRL, he worked on the editing and development of college science textbooks at W. H. Freeman Publishers in New York. He has extensive experience in communicating research and scholarship to a general audience of instructors and students. Tony.Petrites@marzanoresearch.com

Megan Schutz, REL Administrator
Megan Schutz is REL Central administrator at Marzano Research Laboratory. Ms. Schutz is responsible managing REL materials, organizing meetings and calendar events and making professional contacts, and providing support for webinars.

Ms. Schutz has a bachelor of science from Indiana University in Bloomington , IN in psychology and has an Indiana Teaching license as part of a master of arts degree from Indiana University.  She has worked as an elementary classroom teacher where she was also part of the Positive Behavior Support Team and Teacher Assistance Team.  She also has extensive experience working in the Professional Development department at Solution Tree in Bloomington, IN, where she designed multi-year professional development plans for school districts throughout the United States and Canada. Megan.Schutz@marzanoresearch.com

Helen S. Apthorp, Research
Helen Apthorp, Ph. D., is a Senior Researcher at Marzano Research Laboratory in Centennial, Colorado. Dr. Apthorp is responsible for the design and conduct of studies with three REL Central Research Alliances focusing on formative assessment, developing teacher effectiveness, and implementation of Common Core State Standards. Prior to joining Marzano Research Laboratory, Dr. Apthorp was Principal Investigator for An Efficacy Trial of Elements of Reading: Vocabulary, an evaluation of professional learning community academies, a content analysis of 7-states’ professional teaching standards, and a meta-analysis of the effects of identifying similarities and differences strategies on student achievement. Her research publications are included in Journal of Research on Educational Effectiveness and School Science and Mathematics.

Dr. Apthorp earned her bachelor of arts degree from Hampshire College, Amherst, Massachusetts, master’s degree in Educational Psychology from the University of Colorado, and Ph.D. in Special Education from the University of Connecticut.  Helen.Apthorp@marzanoresearch.com

R. Marc Brodersen, Research
R. Marc Brodersen, Ph.D., is a Senior Researcher at Marzano Research Laboratory.  Dr. Brodersen currently serves as director of REL Central’s Common Core Research Alliance and leads several technical assistance and analytical support projects for states in the central region. Dr. Brodersen has extensive experience serving as director and quantitative specialists for research and evaluation projects studying educational, non-profit, and health care programs. This work has involved leading a variety of short-term and multi-year formative and summative evaluation and research projects at the local, state, federal, and international levels.

Dr. Brodersen earned his bachelor of science degree from Cal Poly San Luis Obispo, master’s degree in Experimental Psychology from Central Washington University, and Ph.D. in Applied Social Psychology from Colorado State University.
Marc.brodersen@marzanoresearch.com

Andrew L. Brodsky, Analytic Resource
Andrew Brodsky, Ph.D., is a Senior Associate with Augenblick, Palaich, and Associates, Inc., located in Denver, CO. In this role, he offers expert consultation on child care financing and cost estimation as well as K-12 school reform, standardized assessment, and school accountability. Dr. Brodsky has worked at the Colorado Children’s Campaign as the Director of Research an Evaluation and has many years experience as an education and evaluation consultant.

Dr. Brodsky received his bachelor of science degree from the University of Massachusetts, Amherst and completed the Extended Teacher Education Program at the University of Southern Maine, Gorham. Dr. Brodsky earned his Ph.D. from the University of Colorado, Boulder, in Education, Research, and Evaluation Methodology.  alb@apaconsulting.net

Stephany Brown, Research
Stephany Brown  joined RMC Research as a Research Associate in January 2002 and brings to her position 24 years of experience in education, government, philanthropy, and nonprofit management.  She is skilled in qualitative and quantitative research and evaluation methods, case study analysis, school/district quality reviews and instructional audits, education policy analysis, needs assessments, strategic planning, project management, and resource development.

Ms. Brown is currently working on RMC’s school and district quality reviews, including those for the Broad Prize for Urban Education.  She recently assisted with Broad Foundation diagnostic audits for the Guilford County Schools (North Carolina) and the Austin Independent School District (Texas), as well as a district audit of the Ogden School District (Utah) conducted by RMC Research using the Broad Prize framework.  Ms. Brown received her BA in International Relations from Lewis and Clark College in Portland, Oregon; her MPA from the University of North Carolina at Charlotte; and a Certificate in Nonprofit Management from Duke University.  brown@rmcdenver.com

Trudy L. Cherasaro, Research
Trudy L. Cherasaro, Ph.D., is a Senior Researcher at Marzano Research Laboratory. Currently Dr. Cherasaro leads research and technical support projects under the Regional Educational Laboratory contract. Prior to joining Marzano Research Laboratory, Dr.Cherasaro directed several research and evaluation projects. Most recently, she directed the evaluation of the teacher performance assessment system in Denver Public Schools, the evaluation of a Teacher Quality Enhancement grant at Metropolitan State College of Denver and served as a study director on a large scale randomized controlled trial of a supplemental vocabulary program.

Dr. Cherasaro has provided leadership in the evaluation of several federally funded state and district initiatives including the Early Reading First program in Des Moines, Iowa, the Reading First Initiative in Virginia, South Dakota and the Advanced Placement Incentive Program in Maine. She also served as a Coordinator of Research and Evaluation in Albemarle County Public Schools in Virginia where she directed the evaluation of district- and school-based programs and initiatives, advised leadership on district and school improvement planning, and advised instructional administrators, principals, and lead teachers on the development, analysis and administration of assessments. She has taught graduate and certification courses in instructional strategies, curriculum differentiation, gifted education, child development, research methods, and standards and assessment. Dr. Cherasaro holds a Ph.D. in Educational Psychology from the University of Virginia and is certified as a What Works Clearinghouse (WWC) reviewer. Trudy.Cherasaro@marzanoresearch.com

Linda Fredericks, Research
Linda Fredericks is a Research Associate at RMC Research Corporation in Denver Colorado. Her responsibilities include project management; qualitative data gathering and analysis; report writing; and proposal development. She currently directs the evaluation of multiple projects including the national service-learning project from Youth Service America; a Teaching American History grant based at the Windham Southeast Supervisory Union in Vermont; the Lakota Language Project at Red Cloud Indian School on the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation in South Dakota; and a GK-12 grant from the National Science Foundation and based at the University of Colorado at Denver.  For the Regional Educational Laboratory Central, Ms. Fredericks works on a Research Alliance on Native American education, as well as identifies and evaluates resources, and assists with regional needs assessment activities.

Ms. Fredericks has earned a Bachelor of Arts from the University of Colorado at Boulder in education where she graduated with honors, as well as a Masters of Arts in Counseling Psychology from Northwestern University, Evanston, IL. She is a member of Collaborative for Academic, Social, and Emotional Learning, Northwestern University Alumni Association, and Phi Delta Kappa.  fredericks@rmcdenver.com

Brandie M. Good, Research
Brandie Good is a Research Associate at RMC Research Corporation located in Denver, Colorado. In her role, she is responsible for managing evaluation projects, the preparation of survey instruments, coordination of survey administration, and quantitative analysis of survey responses and content knowledge assessments for various agencies throughout the country. She also has a variety of experience in working with human development and family interactions.

Ms. Good earned both her bachelor of science degree and master of science degree from Iowa State University in Ames, Iowa. She received the Continuing Graduate Student Scholarship, the New Graduate Student Scholarship, and was recognized by the Iowa State University President as a scholar in the highest two percent in the Liberal Arts and Sciences College. brandie.good@rmcdenver.com

Jason E. Harlacher, Research
Jason E. Harlacher, Ph. D., is a Senior Researcher at Marzano Research Laboratory in Centennial, Colorado. Dr. Harlacher is responsible for designing and facilitating REL Central research projects. Prior to joining Marzano Research Laboratory, Dr. Harlacher’s experience includes working as a school psychologist, as a consultant with schools on Positive Behavioral Interventions and Supports (PBIS) and as a Response to Intervention (RTI) consultant for Colorado Department of Education (CDE) in the RTI/PBIS Unit.   He also worked for PBS-Nevada as the state director.

Dr. Harlacher earned a bachelor of arts degree in psychology from Ohio University, master’s degree in School Psychology from Utah State University, and Ph.D. in School Psychology from the University of Oregon.  Dr. Harlacher holds a license for Nationally Certified School Psychologist (NCSP), and Initial Special Services License (Colorado). Jason.harlacher@marzanoresearch.com

Tamara R. Heflebower, Associate
Tammy Heflebower, Ed.D., is the vice president of Marzano Research Laboratory in Centennial, Colorado. She has experience as an elementary school teacher; middle school administrator; director of curriculum, instruction, and assessment; and university graduate adjunct instructor. In both national and international settings, she is a professional development consultant for teachers and administrators in the areas of curriculum, instruction, and assessment.

Dr. Heflebower earned her bachelor of arts degree from Hastings College in Hastings, Nebraska, and her principal certification from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln. She also holds a master of arts degree from the University of Nebraska, Omaha, and an Ed.D.from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln. Dr. Heflebower is a contributor to The Teacher as Assessment Leader, The Principal as Assessment Leader, and The Highly Engaged Classroom. Tammy.Heflebower@marzanoresearch.com

Clare Heidema, Research
Clare Heidema, a Senior Research Associate at RMC Research Denver, has a background of teaching, curriculum development, professional development, dissemination, and product development mostly in areas involving mathematics and literacy education.  She is a former middle school, high school, and college mathematics teacher and has teaching experience at all levels from elementary school to graduate school.  Clare holds a B.A. and M.A. in mathematics and teaching certification from the University of Michigan, and completed M.S. and doctoral requirements (ABD) in mathematics from Syracuse University.  Presently, she is working on an NSF funded research and development project examining the effects of a coach’s knowledge for coaching in mathematics, with a number of state and NSF Mathematics and Science Partnership programs on project evaluation, and with local or state education agencies providing customized professional development and technical assistance in mathematics, especially related to implementation of Common Core State Standards.

In addition, she contributes to a number of other RMC Research projects involving research, evaluation, technical assistance, materials development, and professional development to improve curriculum and instruction for all students.  Clare has conducted curriculum audits and/or quality reviews for schools and districts in Colorado, Nevada, Texas, Utah, and Wyoming, and conducted site visitations as an external evaluator for the state Mathematics / Science Partnership programs in Illinois, Idaho, and Nebraska.  She was part of the district appraisal teams for school districts in Utah, performed reviews of mathematics teaching with classroom observations, and conducted mathematics curriculum reviews for several districts in North Dakota, Wyoming, and Colorado. heidema@rmcdenver.com

Jan K. Hoegh, Associate
Jan K. Hoegh is associate vice president of Marzano Research Laboratory in Englewood, Colorado. She has been a classroom teacher, building-level leader, professional development specialist, high school principal, and curriculum coordinator during her 27 years in education. Jan also served as assistant director of statewide assessment for the Nebraska Department of Education, where her primary focus was Nebraska State Accountability test development.

An active member of several educational organizations, she was president of the Nebraska Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development and also a member of the National Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development andNebraska Council of School Administrators. Her article “Behind the Scenes of Nebraska State Accountability” was published in Nebraska Council of School Administrators Today.

Ms. Hoegh has a bachelor of arts in elementary education and a master of arts in educational administration, both from the University of Nebraska Kearney. She also earned a specialization in assessment from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln. Jan.Hoegh@marzanoresearch.com

Dawn Jaramillo, Research
Dawn Jaramillo joined RMC Research in 2006.  She is currently serving as Research Associate.  She is highly skilled in qualitative research and analysis, reporting, project management, and logistics and data management.  Ms. Jaramillo presently serves as the project manager for the Youth Service America (YSA) State Farm Good Neighbor evaluation.  She also contributes to other multiple, simultaneous evaluations with tasks of analysis, data management and/or coordination, and reporting.  including interviews, focus groups, observations, and administering surveys; data management, data cleaning for quantitative analysis, project logistics, and literature reviews.

Ms. Jaramillo received her BA degree in Psychology from the University of Colorado-Denver and her MA is Counseling Psychology from the University of Northern Colorado.  She is an active member of the National Board of Certified Counselors.  jaramillo@rmcdenver.com

Daniel M. Jesse, Research
Daniel Jesse, Ph.D., is a Senior Research Associate at RMC Research Corporation in Denver, Colorado. Dr. Jesse works as the director of various groups to coordinate evaluation design with the project leadership team, develop and implement scope of work, and develop and revise data collection protocols. He oversees the collection and analysis of observational data, teacher knowledge inventories, course evaluations, and student achievement scores for developing annual reports.

Dr. Jesse earned his bachelor of arts degree from the Metropolitan State College in Denver, Colorado, and a master of arts degree at New Mexico State University, Las Cruces. He also received his Ph.D. at the University of Colorado at Denver. He received the Colorado Scholars Award and the University of Colorado at Denver Scholarship in Educational Leadership. jesse@rmcdenver.com

Jennifer Kramer-Wine, Research
Jennifer Kramer-Wine is a Senior Associate with Augenblick, Palaich, and Associates, Inc., in Denver, Colorado. She has experience as a high school classroom teacher; program assistant for the Schott Foundation for Public Education; grant writer for the Education Commission of the States in Denver, Colorado; and a consultant, where she partnered with nine organizations across the country to plan, coordinate, and lead projects.

In her current role she assists with the writing and budgeting proposals, facilitate numerous conversations with a wide variety of stakeholders, coordinates the evaluation process for the Denver Preschool Program, and leads the evaluation process for the Leadership and School Improvement program. Ms. Kramer-Wine received a bachelor of arts degree and a bachelor of science degree from the University of Cincinnati, Ohio. She also earned her master of public affairs from the Baruch College School of Public Affairs in New York, New York.  jkw@apaconsulting.net

Arlene Mitchell – Research
Arlene Mitchell is a senior research associate at RMC Research Corporation. She works with the mathematics and science team on variety of projects that provide customized professional development, technical assistance, and evaluation.  She is also part of the mathematics content specialist’s team in developing materials to compliment IES practice guides for the Doing What Works website for the U.S. Department of Education.

Ms. Mitchell received her BA in mathematics from Wittenberg University, Springfield, Ohio.  She has an MA in mathematics with emphasis in education from the University of Northern Colorado, Greeley. Ms. Mitchell was a secondary level classroom teacher for 25 years.  She has been recognized as an outstanding secondary mathematics teacher by local and state education organizations, serving as President for the Colorado Council of Teachers of Mathematics, and appointed to chair the Professional Development Services Committee for the National Council of Teachers of Mathematics (NCTM).  She served as the co-chair for the Denver Regional NCTM Conference, program committee member for the Philadelphia National NCTM conference, and also presents workshops and webinars for NCTM.  mitchell@rmcdenver.com

Judith D. Northup, Research
Judith Northup, Ph.D., is a Senior Research Associate at RMC Research Corporation in Denver, Colorado. She works to conduct multivariate quantitative analyses for projects associated with service-learning, youth civic and literacy development, and youth civic engagement. Her role also allows her to manage projects, develop surveys, supervise survey distribution, conduct survey analysis and interviews, and report findings. She conducts interviews with state and local educational administrators and report findings and assists in the development of data collection tools to be distributed at the state.

Dr. Northup earned her bachelor of arts degree from Metropolitan State College in Denver, Colorado and her master of arts degree from New Mexico State University in Las Cruces, New Mexico. She also received her Ph.D. from the University of Colorado at Denver in Educational Leadership. Dr. Northup graduated Magna Cum Laude from Metropolitan State College. northup@rmcdenver.com

Jennifer H. Piscatelli, Fiscal
Jennifer H. Piscatelli is an Associate at Augenblick, Palaich and Associates (APA).  Previously, she has served as a legislative aide to the New Hampshire State Senate Education Committee; staff member to the New Hampshire Governor; special projects associate, researcher and policy analyst at the Education Commission of the States (ECS); and independent contractor. In addition to her Senate Education Committee responsibilities, she served as Senate staff to the joint House and Senate “Adequate Education and Education Financing Commission,” which laid the groundwork for developing New Hampshire’s new school funding formula. In the office of the New Hampshire Governor, she served as staff to the Governor’s Kids Cabinet, serving as liaison between the Governor and the twelve state agency chiefs that comprised the Cabinet. She supported the Cabinet’s work to streamline state services and pursue an agenda to improve conditions for children and families in New Hampshire.

During her tenure at ECS, Ms. Piscatelli developed deeper expertise in the areas of K-12 school accountability systems, teacher quality, service-learning, civic education and developmental education. She regularly prepared policy analyses and briefs in these areas and authored issues of the Progress of Education Reform, presenting recent research on particular education topics such as citizenship education, academic success of Hispanic students, and civic engagement, for policymakers. She served as a member of the team that developed ECS’ “Next Generation School Accountability Models.” Ms. Piscatelli earned bachelor’s degrees in political science and women’s studies from the University of New Hampshire and a master’s degree in political science with an emphasis in public policy from the University of Colorado, Denver.  jhp@apaconsulting.net

Marianne Reale, Research Assistant
Marianne Reale works at Marzano Research Laboratory in a dual research alliance support/editor role, which allows her to combine her love of education research and her love of language. Through her work at REL Central, she gathers data, analyzes findings, writes reports, edits deliverables, and conceptualizes protocols with the research teams.  She also supports study teams through outreach, participant recruitment, and creating and maintaining two-way communication among stakeholders and researchers.

Ms. Reale received her bachelor of arts from the University of Colorado at Colorado Springs and her master of education from Vanderbilt University. Her research interests include the identification and application of international best practices, the influence of parent involvement on student achievement, and the development of equitable education opportunities.
Marianne.Reale@marzanoresearch.com

Nathan Roberson, Research
Nathan Roberson is an Associate with Augenblick, Palaich and Associates, Inc., in Denver, Colorado. Prior to joining the team at APA he worked at the Institute of Behavioral Sciences alongside some of the most renowned social scientist. His research focuses on good governance with a special emphasis on political agency and access for marginalized and disenfranchised peoples. At APA he works extensively on the REL-Central (Regional Education Lab) and early literacy program initiatives.

Mr. Roberson graduated summa cum laude from the University of Colorado at Boulder with his BA and holds an MA from Central European University in Budapest, Hungary. He is passionate about teacher performance/evaluation, “Closing the Achievement Gap,” and innovative approaches to education including bilingual education and extended learning time. ndr@apaconsulting.net

Kathryn Rooney, Analytic Resource
Kathryn Rooney is a senior associate with Augenblick, Palaich and Associates (APA). An APA staff member since 2008, Ms. Rooney has a background in educational evaluation and extensive experience with data collection and analysis. For the past four years at APA, Ms. Rooney has managed the parent and provider survey evaluation of the Denver Preschool Program. This effort includes the creation and administration of parent and provider surveys as well as analysis and presentation of the results.

Prior to her work at APA, Ms. Rooney worked as a lead researcher at the Educational Policy Improvement Center (EPIC), where she led several large projects including a research study of 38 high schools nationwide that effectively prepare their students for college. This project involved multiple interviews, focus groups, as well as extensive qualitative analysis at each high school. Ms. Rooney holds a master’s degree in public administration from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. kcr@apaconsulting.net

Carla Sutton, Dissemination and Help desk
Carla Sutton, dissemination coordinator for REL Central at Marzano Research Laboratory in Centennial, Colorado. She has experience as an elementary school teacher, talented and gifted teacher and coordinator; as well as library media specialist and technology coordinator.

Ms. Sutton earned her bachelor of science degree from the University of Iowa, Iowa City, IA in Elementary Education. She also has a masters of library science and information management (MLS) from Emporia State University, Emporia KS.  She has endorsements in Elementary Education, Reading, School Library Media, Talented and Gifted Education and Instructional Technology.  Carla.Sutton@marzanoresearch.com

Lyn E. Swackhamer, Research
Lyn Swackhamer, Ph.D., is a Research Associate at RMC Research Corporation in Denver, Colorado. Dr. Swackhamer has experience as an elementary school teacher, middle school teacher, and adjunct professor in the Mathematics Department at Arapahoe Community College and the School of Education at the University of Colorado, Denver. She is an expert in the areas of qualitative analysis, mathematics and science education, mixed methods research design, educational research and evaluation and teacher efficacy.

Dr. Swackhamer earned her bachelor of business administration from North Georgia College in Dahlonega, Georgia. She received her master of arts degree in curriculum and instruction and her Ph.D. in educational leadership and innovation from the University of Colorado, Denver.  swackhamer@rmcdenver.com

Jon Uebelhor, Fiscal
Jon Uebelhor is an accountant for REL Central at Marzano Research Laboratory.  He has been working in the accounting department at Solution Tree and MRL for almost 4 years.  He earned a bachelor of science from Indiana University – Bloomington in accounting, operations management, and technology management.  He is also currently in the process of earning his CPA license.

Mr. Uebelhor had the pleasure of being head golf coach at Eastern Greene HS in Bloomfield, IN for 3 seasons while also substitute teaching during that time.  He is also actively involved with Young Life, a faith-based, outreach organization for high school students.  jon.uebelhor@solution-tree.com

Phil Warrick, Associate
Phil Warrick, EdD, is associate vice president of Marzano Research Laboratory in Colorado. He was an award-winning administrator in Waverly, Nebraska, for nearly 12 years, most recently as principal of Round Rock High School, which serves nearly 3,000 students. Dr. Warrick has been an adjunct professor at Peru State College since 2005.

In 2010, Dr. Warrick was invited to participate in the Texas Principals’ Visioning Institute, where he worked with other principals to develop model practices for Texas schools. He is a past regional president for the Nebraska Council of School Administrators (NCSA). He also served on the NCSA legislative committee and was elected chair. In 2003, he was one of the first participants to attend the Nebraska Educational Leadership Institute, conducted by The Gallup Corporation at Gallup University in Omaha.

Dr. Warrick was named 2005 Nebraska State High School Principal of the Year, 2004 Nebraska Secondary School Principals Region One Principal of the Year, and 1998 Nebraska Outstanding New Principal of the Year and Nebraska Secondary School Principals Region One Assistant Principal of the Year. He earned a bachelor of science from Chadron State College and master’s and doctoral degrees from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln.  Phil.Warrick@marzanoresearch.com

Simon Workman, Research
Simon Workman is an Associate with Augenblick, Palaich and Associates, Inc., in Denver, Colorado.  Mr. Workman has extensive experience conducting state policy analyses and literature reviews, focusing on topics such as job-embedded professional development and teacher mentoring.  In his current role Mr. Workman has led an extended-learning time project with the National Center on Time and Learning, has worked extensively on an early childhood cost model for New York state and is the co-author of the 2012 Denver Preschool Program Evaluation Report.

Prior to joining APA, Mr. Workman completed an internship at the National Conference of State Legislatures where he analyzed and tracked state legislation and responded to information requests from legislators, legislative staff and members of the media.  Mr. Workman began his career with Citi Private Bank, managing professional development programs for bankers and product specialists in the European and North American regions.  In this role, Mr. Workman created online, classroom and workbook-based training modules, developed a professional development career framework, and conducted rigorous program assessments and evaluations.  Mr. Workman holds a BA from the University of Wales, Swansea, and an MA in Public Administration and Public Policy from the University of York, England.  sjw@apaconsulting.net

David C. Yanoski, Research
David C. Yanoski is the Associate Director for Research and Development for Marzano Research Laboratory. He has 15 years of teaching experience, serving as a classroom teacher, mentor coach and on school leadership teams. In addition, he served on district level curriculum, standard development, assessment development and strategic planning teams.

He has spent the last four years at MRL facilitating, reviewing, and providing feedback on the development of proficiency scales with schools, school districts, states, and national charter school organizations. In addition, he has facilitated the development of a set of proficiency scales based on the Common Core State Standards. He received a bachelor’s degree from Midland Lutheran College in Nebraska and an M.A. in education from the University of Phoenix.  David.Yanoski@marzanoresearch.com