People

William T. Gormley, Co-Director

William T. Gormley, Jr. is University Professor and Co-Director of the Center for Research on Children in the U.S. (CROCUS) at Georgetown University.  He is the author of numerous books, including, most recently, The Critical Advantage:  Developing Critical Thinking Skills in School (Harvard Education Press, 2017).  Other books include:   Bureaucracy and Democracy: Accountability and Performance (Congressional Quarterly Press, 2017), 4th ed., with Steven Balla; Organizational Report Cards (Harvard University Press, 1999), with David Weimer; and Everybody’s Children: Child Care as a Public Problem (Brookings Institution Press, 1995). His book, Taming the Bureaucracy: Muscles, Prayers, and Other Strategies (Princeton University Press, 1989), won the Louis Brownlow Best Book Award from the National Academy of Public Administration.

Since 2001, Dr. Gormley has directed an evaluation of Oklahoma’s universal pre-K program, focusing on the effectiveness of the Tulsa Public Schools pre-K program in promoting school readiness. Results of that evaluation have appeared in Science (June, 2008), the Policy Studies Journal (February 2005), the Journal of Human Resources (Summer 2005), and Developmental Psychology (November 2005).

Dr. Gormley helped to found Georgetown University’s day care center, Hoya Kids, and has served as a member of the National Commission on Reinventing the NAEYC. He is a Fellow of the National Academy of Public Administration and a past president of the Public Policy Section of the American Political Science Association.

Dr. Gormley’s Curriculum Vitae

Deborah Phillips, Co-Director

Deborah Phillips, Ph.D., is Professor of Psychology and former Vice Dean of Faculty, College of Arts & Sciences, Georgetown University. She is also Co-Director of  CROCUS. Prior to this, she was the first Executive Director of the Board on Children, Youth, and Families of the National Research Council’s Commission on Social and Behavioral Sciences and the Institute of Medicine. She also co-edited: From Neurons to Neighborhoods. The Science of Early Child Development and is now a member of the organization that was created to continue the work of Neurons to Neighborhoods: The National Scientific Council on the Developing Child (based at Harvard University). Her research focuses on the developmental effects of early childhood programs, including both child care and pre-k settings. Current studies are focusing on how children who vary in temperament are differentially affected by child care experiences and on an evaluation of the Tulsa Oklahoma pre-k program as it affects both cognitive and social-emotional development. As a Congressional Science Fellow of the Society for Research in Child Development, Dr. Phillips served as an analyst at the Congressional Budget Office and on the personal staff of Congressman George Miller. She was a mid-career fellow at Yale University’s Bush Center in Child Development and Social Policy, and Director of the Child Care Information Service of the National Association for the Education of Young Children. She has served on numerous task forces and advisory groups, including the Carnegie Corporation’s Task Force on Meeting the Needs of Young Children and the Secretary’s Advisory Committee on Head Start Quality and Expansion of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. Dr. Phillips is a Fellow of the American Psychological Association and the American Psychological Society.

Dr. Phillip’s Curriculum Vitae

Shirley Adelstein – Nonresident Senior Fellow at CROCUS.  Social science research analyst, Office of Policy Research and Evaluation, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. Shirley previously worked as a Research Associate, Center on Labor, Human Services and Population at the Urban Institute and as an analyst on work-life policy for the Office of Personnel Management.  She received her Ph.D. in Government from Georgetown University in 2016.  Her dissertation utilized surveys of federal civil servants to better understand work-life challenges, especially for women, in the federal workforce.  Shirley received an MPP from Georgetown University and a B.A. from New York University.  Her interests include programs and policies that promote family well-being and gender equity.

Sara Amadon is a Nonresident Senior Fellow at CROCUS.  She is currently a Senior Research Scientist at Child Trends.  Sara completed her Ph.D. in Child Development from Tufts University. She received her M.A. from the University of New Hampshire in psychology and B.A. in psychology from Whitman College. Dr. Amadon formerly served as a Postdoctoral Researcher at the Center for Promise at Tufts University, as a Postdoctoral Fellow at Georgetown University, and as an Assistant Professor of Child Development at West Virginia University. Her research interests include how residential mobility and neighborhood socioeconomic status are related to child and adolescent outcomes and has published and presented in these areas. She also has interests in how social and education policy can promote positive development among children and adolescents.

Tanya Grover is a Research Assistant at CROCUS and a second-year MPP student at Georgetown University. She earned her B.S. from Georgetown’s School of Foreign Service, and worked as a Quantitative Researcher for three years before returning to Georgetown. Her interests include education and fiscal policy.

Anandi Gupta is a second-year Data Science for Public Policy Master’s student at Georgetown University. She holds a BA in economics and psychology from Macalester College. Prior to joining us, she worked as a Senior Analyst at Analysis Group, an economic consulting firm, where she worked on antitrust, healthcare, and finance litigation cases as well as pro bono cases related to immigration, gender, and education policy. 

Douglas Hummel-Price works for Edunomics on school finance issues and for CROCUS on early childhood education issues. He received his MS degree in Data Science for Public Policy in 2020. His other interests include space policy and the performing arts. 

Karin Kitchens –  Nonresident Senior Fellow at CROCUS.  Assistant Professor of Political Science at Virginia Tech University.  Karin completed her Ph.D. in Government at Georgetown University in 2017.  Her dissertation focused on the effects of diversity and residential segregation on public investment in public schools.  At Georgetown, Karin worked for CROCUS, and, occasionally, for the RAND Corporation, where she previously worked as a Research Assistant.  Karin received a M.S. in statistics and a B.A. in math from the University of Tennessee.  Her interests include education policy and applied statistics.

Mireya Almazan is a graduate of the Georgetown Public Policy Institute (GPPI), who specialized in International Policy and Development. She received a B.A. in Economics from Harvard University. She is especially interested in the application of business methods to improve underperforming public sector initiatives, especially as they pertain to child welfare and poverty alleviation. She is currently a research analyst for the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, where she works on financial services for the poor.

Jon Belford –  received his MPP degree and worked as a Senior Research Analyst, Education, Child Trends. He currently works for Ethereal Brewing in Lexington, Kentucky.

Ria Sengupta Bhatt is a graduate of U.C.L.A. (B.A.) and Georgetown University (M.P.P). She has worked for the Public Policy Institute of California and California Competes. She is currently the Director of Public Policy for the College Futures Foundation in Oakland, California.

Joy Chen is a graduate of the Georgetown Public Policy Institute (GPPI), who specialized in International Policy and Development. She studied sociology at the University of Chicago and is especially interested in international education and development. She is currently working as a tax analyst for New York City’s Department of Finance.

Jean Choi is assistant counsel to the Inspector General, Department of Homeland Security. She received MPP and JD degrees from Georgetown. She also received a B.A. degree from Seuol National University.

Dan Cullinan served as the Data Manager for CROCUS from September 2006 through April 2008. He is currently Senior Associate, Postsecondary Education at MDRC in New York City, where he directs the Multiple Measures Project, focusing on community college performance assessment. He received a B.A. from the University of Mary Washington and an M.A. in Economics from Virginia Commonwealth University.

Helen Cymrot is a graduate of the Georgetown Public Policy Institute (GPPI) in the Education, Family and Social Policy Track. She spent three years teaching high school, most recently at Cesar Chavez Public Charter School in D.C.. During her time a Georgetown, Helen worked on the legislative staff of Senator Mary Landrieu, focusing on health, education, and childrens’ issues. She graduated from Brown University in 1999 with a BA in Public Policy and Education. She is currently working for a family business.

Deanna Ford is a graduate of the Georgetown Public Policy Institute (GPPI), who specialized in International Policy and Development. She was the director and co-founder of Nica HOPE, a nonprofit organization that seeks to create sustainable and long-term solutions to entrenched poverty in Central America’s poorest country. She is currently a Senior Advisor at the Yale Economic Growth Center, Yale University.

Jacob Ford received an MPP degree from Georgetown University. He graduated from Allegheny College with a B.S. in mathematics and currently works as a transportation modeler for the city of Durham, North Carolina.

Paula Ganga is pursuing a PhD in Comparative Government at Georgetown with a dissertation focusing on the participation of state within the market and the processes of privatization and nationalization, with a broader interest in the relationships between capitalism, the state and democracy. A native of Romania, Paula received a B.A. in Political Science and European Studies from Alexandru Ioan Cuza University, Iasi and an M.Sc. in Global Governance and Diplomacy from Oxford University where she was a Chevening Scholar.

Blair Goldstein graduated from the Georgetown Public Policy Institute with an MPP, and is a researcher at Resources for the Future. She graduated from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and worked as a reporter for newspapers in the southeast before joining the CROCUS team.

Bonnie Gordic is a graduate of the Georgetown Public Policy Institute specializing in Education, Family and Social Policy. She completed her undergraduate degree in Psychology at Yale University. Her research interests include: early childhood intervention, poverty and family support programs. She is currently working for Fair Chance, a nonprofit organization.

Angeles Gottheil received her B.A. from Georgetown University in May 2008. She lives in Yorba Linda, California, has two brothers, and loves to travel.

Samantha A.S. Harvell received an MPP from Georgetown University and completed her Ph.D. in Psychology at Georgetown. She will be spending the 2008-09 academic year as an SRCD congressional fellow. Sam received a BA in Psychology from the University of Virginia in 2002. She works on public safety performance issues for the Pew Center on the States.

Leah Hendey is a graduate of the Georgetown Public Policy Institute with a concentration in the Education, Family and Social Policy. She is currently working as a research associate in the Urban Institute’s Metropolitan Housing and Communities Center. Leah’s policy interests are in child and family well-being and urban issues. She grew up in Columbus, Ohio and earned her B.A. in Psychology with a minor in Public Policy from the University of Notre Dame in 2003.

Emily Holcombe completed her MPP degree in 2010. She received a B.A. in sociology and policy studies from Rice University in 2006. She is currently a fiscal analyst at the Congressional Budget Office.

Yi Rong (Billy) Hoo Billy works for Social Impact, in Arlington, Va., on a variety of evaluation research projects.  He received his MPP from Georgetown University.

Brent Howell MPP student, 2nd year, Georgetown University.  Prior to coming to Georgetown, Brent worked as a research analyst for the Urban Institute, focusing on housing issues.

Huade (Howard) Huo– Research Associate, American Institutes for Research. Howard specializes in applied statistics and advanced research methods. He has an MPP from Georgetown University.

Alexis Kaigler graduated from the Georgetown Public Policy Institute in Spring 2004 after specializing in the Education, Family, and Social Policy track. She received a Masters of Public Policy degree. She is particularly interested in issues related to children living in poverty. After graduation, Alexis accepted a position with the Department of Health and Human Service’s Emerging Leaders Program. She is now working for the Centers for Disease Control in Atlanta, Georgia.

Trellace Lawrimore Ph.D. student, Department of Politics, New York University.  Trellace has a special interest in international political economy.  She received her B.A. from Georgetown University and worked for CROCUS for approximately one year.

Yuqi Liao Research Associate, American Institutes for Research (AIR). At AIR, Yuqi supports research on large-scale international assessments. He has an MPP degree from Georgetown and a B.A. degree from Nanjing University.

Amy Lowenstein Amy Lowenstein completed her Ph.D. in Developmental Psychology at Georgetown University in 2009. Her dissertation compared the effects of the Tulsa Public Schools pre-K program and the Tulsa Head Start program on social-emotional development. Amy received a B.A. in Psychology from Yale University in 2000 and an M.P.P. from Georgetown University in 2006. She is currently a Postdoctoral Fellow at New York University.

Brittany McGill graduated from the Georgetown Public Policy Institute in Spring 2004 after specializing in the Education, Family and Social Policy track. She received a Masters of Public Policy degree from Georgetown and a Ph.D. in Sociology from the University of Maryland.  Brittany is currently a senior social science analyst in the Division of Family and Community Policy in the Office of the Assistant Secretary for Planning and Evaluation (ASPE) at the U.S. Department of Health & Human Services (HHS).

Kathryn Newmark is a data analyst with the KIPP D.C. Charter Schools. She taught math for several years at the Chavez Prep Middle School in Washington, D.C., after completing her MPP at Georgetown.

Marie O’Hara completed her MPP in Public Policy at Georgetown in May 2009. She is currently working for Achieve, Inc. in Washington, D.C. on secondary education reform issues, including raising state academic standards, improving assessments, and strengthening accountability to prepare all high school students for college and career-ready work.

Emily Page completed her MPP degree in 2010. She received a B.A. from Georgetown and worked for the Urban Institute before joining the CROCUS team. She is currently a policy analyst at the Department of Labor.

C.J. Park is a graduated from the Georgetown Public Policy Institute in 2006 with a concentration in Education, Family and Social Policy. Prior to graduate school, C.J. worked in education advocacy and research in New Jersey. She a particular interest in issues related to education inequality and reform. She completed her undergraduate degree in Sociology and Economics from Rutgers College. C.J. currently works at SRI International’s Center for Education Policy, where she works on a number of projects related to high school reform.

Daniel Ready is an analyst with the Congressional Budget Office.  He received an MPP degree from Georgetown and a B.S. and MS. from Stevens Institute of Technology.

Belen Rodas is a graduate of GPPI, in the Education, Family and Social Policy track. She received a B.A. in Psychology from Amherst College, and a Master’s Degree in Social Work, with a specialization in direct practice with children and youth, from the George Warren Brown School of Social Work at Washington University in St. Louis.

Kristina Rodriguez Kristina received an MPP from Georgetown University and a B.S. in Human Communication from Northwestern University.

Katelyn Romm is a Postdoctoral Fellow at George Washington University. She received her Ph.D. in Psychology from West Virginia University. Her research interests include understanding the role of family processes on adolescents’ engagement in health-risk behavior.

Victoria Rosenboom Research Associate, Education Policy, Urban Institute.  At Urban, Victoria supports research on K-12 and postsecondary education.  She received her MPP from Georgetown and her B.S. in Political Science and Math from Nebraska Wesleyan University.  She worked as a summer associate for the Congressional Budget Office.

Emily Sama-Martin is a Spring 2004 graduate of the Georgetown Public Policy Institute. She is a 2002 graduate of the University of Pennsylvania, with a B.A. in Sociology. Emily is Principal Researcher, Mathematica Policy Research in Washington, D.C., where she directs the Home Visiting Evidence Effectiveness Review.

Cynthia Schuster is a graduate of the Georgetown Public Policy Institute in the Education/Social Policy Track. Originally from Sugar Land, Texas, Cynthia earned her BS in Public Policy from the University of Southern California in 2003. Her interests are primarily in the federal role in education policy and in school finance equity. She worked for the RAND Corporation for two years and is currently a research associate at Burr Consulting, where she is responsible for fiscal and economic analyses.

Catherine Shaw is Energy and Environmental Team lead, the Federal Bureau of Investigation. She received an MPP from Georgetown and graduated from the University of Virginia with a BA in Environmental Science and worked for five years with an environmental consulting firm before enrolling at Georgetown.

Peter Simmons is a policy analyst with the Optimal Solutions Group. He received his MPP degree from Georgetown University and his BA degree from the University of Tulsa. He taught high school in Tulsa prior to coming to Georgetown.

Tanya Tavassolie – Ph.D. student, Psychology, George Mason University. Tanya received her M.A. in Applied Developmental Psychology from George Mason University and her B.S. in Neuroscience from Franklin & Marshall College. She works in Adam Winsler’s lab, where she focuses on high-stakes standardized testing and the special challenges faced by disadvantaged and minority children.

Lindsay Warner is a graduate of the Georgetown Public Policy Institute in the Education, Family and Social Policy track, with particular interests in early education and foster care. Since her 2001 graduation from Princeton, Lindsay has worked in Chicago and Boston in child advocacy and education research. She is currently a Senior Federal Policy Associate at Fight Crime: Invest in Kids.

Kate Welti received her Master’s in Public Policy in 1998 and is a Research Scientist II at Child Trends, specializing in sexual and reproductive health.

Katy Willemin is a product manager with edX in Cambridge, Mass. She received an MPP and an MBA degree from Georgetown, after receiving a B.A. from Harvard. She worked at Abt Associates on evaluations of early childhood education programs before coming to Georgetown.

Katherine Wolfenden received a B.A. degree from Georgetown’s School of Foreign Service. At CROCUS, she helped with research on how children’s issues are “framed” in public policy debates.

Berkeley Yorkery is a graduate of the Georgetown Public Policy Institute (GPPI) in the Public and Nonprofit Management track. Her primary policy interests include child and family issues as well as management issues. She graduated from Duke University with a BA in public policy and psychology in 2001. She is currently a Research and Data Analyst at the North Carolina Child Advocacy Institute.

Jingfei Zhang is a Research Analyst with Kroll Associates, Inc., in Reston, VA. She received her MPP degree from Georgetown University and received her Bachelor of Law degree from Fudan University in Shanghai, China. She is interested in education equality and gender equality.