Nancy Hurley Research and Evaluation Associate Senior Research Associate Nancy Hurley directs evaluation and research projects that focus on teacher professional development, ultimately improving student achievement. A member of Learning Innovations (LI) at WestEd since 1998, Hurley conducts program evaluations in teacher induction and retention initiatives, school- and districtwide change, learning community development, leadership development, special education, and science education. Hurley currently directs the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institute research project, How Scientists and Teachers Can Best Work Together to Improve Science Education K-12; and the evaluation of a National Science Foundation-funded Teacher Professional Continuum Grant, Building Systems for Quality Teaching and Learning in Science. Since several recent and current LI projects evaluate or provide teacher training in science, Hurley will explore how lessons learned from across these projects might be useful for dissemination to a larger audience. She also evaluates programs that focus on mentoring new teachers, including the Lowell, MA, Teacher Academy and the Prince George's County, MD, Faculty Support Team Program. The Lowell Teacher Academy, implemented in 2005-2006 to enhance teacher induction and improve retention in a diverse, urban setting, has made improvements based on data gathered by Hurley and colleagues from focus groups, interviews, questionnaires, and on-site observation. Formative evaluation continued in 2007, and summative evaluation results will be reported in June 2008. Hurley serves on WestEd's monitoring team for the Institute of Education Sciences-funded Mathematica Study on the Impact of Mentoring on Teacher Induction and Retention. As a team member, she conducted site visits in Illinois, New Jersey, and Florida to gather data about the consistency and fidelity of the study implementation. As coauthor of Collaborative Evaluation Led by Local Educators: A Practical, Print- and Web-Based Guide, Hurley has cofacilitated collaborative evaluation institutes in Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New York, Vermont, and Puerto Rico. For the past two years, directors of special education programs from over 35 Massachusetts school districts have attended the institutes. They have returned to their districts with a school improvement plan in hand, equipped with skills to gain buy-in from stakeholders, conduct data gathering, and analyze and report findings. A member of the American Evaluation Association, Hurley received a BA in management from Lesley University. Tel: 781.481.1105 781.481.1120 Email: nhurley@wested.org Mailing Address: Learning Innovations at WestEd 200 Unicorn Park Drive, 4th floor Woburn, Massachusetts 01801-3324 Project Work: Effective Evaluation of Special Education Programs — A Collaborative Evaluation Institute for District Teams and Special Education Directors Evaluation of Quebec Community Learning Centres: An English Minority Language Initiative Evaluation of the Lowell (MA) Teachers Academy Evaluation of the Massachusetts Supplementary Educational Services Program Evaluation of the New Hampshire GSEG grant — “Beyond Access for Assessment Accommodation” Evaluation of the Prince George’s County (MD) Faculty Support Team (FST) Approach to Improve Instruction in Schools in Need of Improvement Evaluation of the School for Integrated Academics and Technologies (SIATech) Research on Collaborative Partnerships between Woods Hole Oceanographic Institute Scientists and Falmouth (MA) Public Schools SPS Online Part II -- Enabling the Homebound Student to Achieve UNH PROBE: Partnerships for Research Opportunities to Benefit Education Resource Involvement: Collaborative Evaluation Led by Local Educators: A Practical, Print- and Web-Based Guide