Much of our work involves partnerships with experts in specific content areas or methodologies. Below is a list of the subject matter experts committed to lending their expertise to our evaluation work.
Jennifer. C. Greene, Ph.D. – Mixed Methods and Social Equity in Evaluative Research
Jennifer Greene is a professor of Educational Psychology in the College of Education at the University of Illinois, Champaign. Jennifer’s work emphasizes evaluation as a venue for democratizing dialogue about critical social and educational issues, emphasizing evaluation as a “public good.” She holds a Ph.D. in Educational Psychology from Stanford University. Her research focuses on the intersection of social science and social policy, and seeks to advance the theory and practice of alternative forms of evaluation including qualitative, democratic, and mixed methods approaches. Jennifer has authored and co-authored numerous articles and books on evaluative research, most recently Mixed Methods in Social Inquiry. She is the recipient of the 2003 Paul F. Lazarsfeld Award from the American Evaluation Association for contributions to evaluation theory.
Charles (Chip) Hatcher, Ph.D. – Consumer Economics
Charles (Chip) Hatcher has 14 years of experience teaching and conducting research on how individuals and families manage their finances. He holds a Ph.D. in Consumer Economics from Cornell University and has held professorships at the University of Georgia, Iowa State University and, most recently, the University of Wisconsin at Madison where he was also an affiliate of the Institute for Research on Poverty. Chip has published articles on retirement behavior, household risk management, optimal asset allocation strategies, and the measurement of household economic well being. He has consulted with major organizations including Farmer’s Insurance, the Lumina Foundation for Education and Jim Martin’s 2008 Campaign for the U.S. Senate.
Edward A. Morante , Ed.D. – Higher Education Administration
Edward Morante retired as Professor Emeritus from the College of the Desert in Palm Desert, California in 2005 after having worked there for 14 years as a faculty member, counselor, grant writer and administrator. As the College’s Dean of Student Services and Learning Resources, Ed was responsible for 16 different institutional programs. He holds an Ed.D. in Counseling Psychology from Teachers College at Columbia University. Prior to his career at the College of the Desert, Ed worked for nine years at the New Jersey Department of Higher Education, first as statewide director of the Basic Skills Assessment Program and then as the Director of the College Outcomes Evaluation Program. His career also includes the Director of Counseling at New Jersey Institute of Technology, and a member of the Assessment Council for Western Governors University. Ed is the author of a number of journal articles and book chapters and has been a frequent speaker, trainer, workshop leader and grant writer.
John A. Muffo , Ph.D. – Higher Education Institutional Research
John Muffo specializes in assessment, including the evaluation of academic programs and learning systems. He has been active in promoting professional development among international higher education organizations for several decades and is a frequent contributor to the literature on institutional research. John holds a Ph.D. in Higher Education Administration from the University of Denver . His career includes service at the Ohio Board of Regents, the Indiana Commission for Higher Education, Cleveland State University and the University of Illinois at Urbana Champaign. John has been a reviewer for the Southern Association for Colleges and Schools on Institutional Effectiveness. He is retired after 20 years of service from the Virginia Polytechnic Institute of the State University (Virginia Tech), the last 15 as the Director of the Academic Assessment Program.
John, C. Painter, Ph.D. – Research Statistics
John Painter specializes in the application of statistical techniques to evaluating social and human service programs. He holds a Ph.D. in Research, Statistics and Evaluation from the Curry School of Education at the University of Virginia . His professional interests include survey research, longitudinal analysis, psychometrics, survival analysis, and qualitative analysis. He has worked on numerous projects over the years, mainly in the areas of evaluating professional training programs, understanding the experiences of families and children in the foster care system, assessing the effectiveness of family courts, understanding the predictors of employee turnover, usability testing of websites and online training systems, and analysis of knowledge test data.
Helen Seidler , M.S. Ed and M. International Administration – International Social Change Organizations
Helen Seidler is Principal in the consulting firm Somerset Global which offers strategy and technology solutions for nonprofit and philanthropic organizations. She is a Senior Executive with over 25 years devoted to work in domestic and international nonprofit social change organizations, Helen brings expertise in the areas of: program design & evaluation, training & workshop facilitation, coalition building, representation, fundraising, budgeting, staff hiring and management, project implementation, financial oversight and reporting, and publishing. She is co-author of the book International Grantmaking III: An Update on U.S. Foundation Trends (2004).
Robert Toutkoushian , Ph.D. – Higher Education Economics Research
Robert Toutkoushian is an economist who performs studies of faculty compensation and consults with institutions and organizations to identify factors underlying student enrollment decisions including models of the interrelationships among enrollments, finances and other objectives. He also helps organizations identify the costs and benefits of various institutional and system strategies. Robert holds a Ph.D. in Economics from Indiana University , and is currently an Associate Professor of Education at Indiana University .
Patricia Windham, Ph.D. – Higher Education Research
Patricia Windham specializes in database research and longitudinal studies. She has worked at both the institutional and state systems levels where she focused on institutional research and evaluation. Patricia holds a Ph.D. in Educational Research and Testing from Florida State University . She is the former Associate Vice-Chancellor for Research and evaluation with the Florida Community College System and is currently a consultant with Jobs for the Future on the Lumina Foundation for Education’s Achieving the Dream national initiative.
John Wittstruck , Ph.D. – Higher Education Policy and Planning
John Wittstruck has extensive experience in leading statewide initiatives in planning, research, policy analysis and development. He has been engaged in institutional mission review and differentiation, performance measures and accountability, student financial assistance, and proprietary school certification. His expertise also includes community colleges, postsecondary technical education, and research as well as information technology data processing and computer support. John has served the Missouri Coordinating Board for Higher Education in a variety of roles, including that of Deputy Commissioner. He holds a Ph.D. in Higher Education Administration from Syracuse University.