Rebecca Colina Neri is a Senior Improvement Specialist with the Improvement Science team at WestEd, which specializes in designing and utilizing improvement science principles, methods, and tools to address educational problems. Rebecca has expertise in using Improvement Science tools and methods to design equitable learning environments, support the implementation of culturally relevant pedagogies, and promote the educational and career trajectories of minoritized students into and through community colleges.
Prior to joining WestEd, Rebecca was an Assistant Professor of the Learning Sciences at Indiana University, Bloomington. In her research, she integrates conceptual and pragmatic tools from asset-based frameworks (e.g., Culturally Sustaining Pedagogy, Funds of Knowledge) with Improvement Science methods to center the experiences of minoritized students and support practitioners in addressing the context-specific realities of the systems students navigate. Rebecca also worked as a mathematics educator and instructional coach for 12+ years across K-12 and community college contexts.
Rebecca earned her PhD in Urban Schooling from UCLA, and her MA in Education and BA in Sociology from Stanford University.