Nancy Bier
Nancy Kamprath Bier, Ph.D., is an education researcher in SRI International's Center for Education Policy. She has more than 15 years of experience in research and evaluation of programs and policies related to child and youth development that take into account the interrelated contexts of families, peers, schools, and communities. She is expert in conducting large- and small-scale research projects, coordinating process and outcome evaluations, using qualitative and quantitative research methods, and working with organizations and community members to design evaluations that meet their needs. Bier has considerable experience not only in designing evaluations and collecting data, but also in analyzing and interpreting data for a wide range of audiences. She has provided technical assistance on data collection processes and on the use of evaluation for program improvement and writing articles and reports for both academic and nonacademic audiences.
Since joining SRI, Bier has focused on education reform, teacher professional development, and out-of-school learning opportunities for children and youth. She has served as a researcher on multiple projects addressing educational reform and teacher development, including an evaluation of a high school reform program for the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation (National School District and Network Grants program), a four-year longitudinal evaluation of educational reform in Texas (Evaluation of the Texas High School Project), and a study of the status of the teaching profession in California (Teaching and California's Future). Bier has also served as project director or co-project director on a number of projects related to out-of-school learning (East Bay Center for the Performing Arts, Communities Organizing Resources to Advance Learning).
Bier is currently a co-principal investigator for SRI’s Afterschool Science Network Study investigating quality science curriculum in the afterschool hours and the ways organizations use networks to support their efforts to provide high-quality science programs. She is also supporting SRI’s work with the California Subject Matter Project (CSMP), an organization providing professional development for teachers in California. In addition to conducting evaluations of the CSMP, Bier has supported project staff in enhancing their internal evaluation capacity.
Bier received her Ph.D. in developmental psychology from the University of California, Santa Cruz.
