Noelle Caskey joined WestEd’s Innovation Studies program in 2010 as a Senior Research Associate after nearly 10 years with the WestEd Comprehensive School Assistance Program (CSAP).

Caskey's work for Innovation Studies includes evaluating the federally funded State Charter Schools Facilities Incentive Grants program, participating in a study of seven foundation-funded innovative schools in Cleveland, and managing the BuildingChoice.org website. She has also assisted with evaluations of the Southwest Comprehensive Center and the California Comprehensive Center.

During her work for CSAP, Caskey specialized in helping low-performing schools and districts meet state and federal student achievement goals, working with schools and districts in California, Nevada, and Hawaii. Other projects she has carried out for WestEd include serving as a training facilitator with the agency's Strategic Literacy Initiative; acting as a member of the training team for Developing an Effective School Plan, a WestEd publication focusing on helping schools and districts succeed in effective reform; and directing a federally funded pilot project that brought Supplemental Educational Services Providers and Faith Based and Community Organizations together to increase student success in No Child Left Behind tutoring services.

Prior to joining WestEd, Caskey designed and carried out studies of statewide school reform efforts, state-funded teacher development programs, Title VII projects, data-driven school reform efforts and family literacy programs as part of her consulting practice. She has also been a leader in the Bay Area in developing resources for schools with diverse student populations, acting as founding facilitator for the Bay Region IV Diversity Coalition (now Bay Area Advocates for Excellence and Equity in Education).

Caskey continues to demonstrate her commitment to equity by providing Bridging Cultures workshops on request and by serving on WestEd’s Equity Council. She is also a trained facilitator and has provided consulting services for both public and nonprofit agencies.

She taught English at the Berkeley and Davis campuses of the University of California. Her poetry has been published in anthologies internationally.

She received a BA with honors in history and literature from Harvard University and a PhD in literature, psychology, and linguistics from the University of California, Berkeley.