Archived Webinar
Presenter Bios from “Leading the Way to a Smooth Ninth Grade Transition”
April 28, 2006
The following were presenters at the Friday, April 28, 2006 Webinar.
Tony Cavanna | Don Dailey | James Kemple | Rebecca Powell
Principal Research Scientist, AIR
Dr. Tony Cavanna is a Principal Research Scientist at AIR. Previously, he served as superintendent of schools in Fort Lee, N.J., Plainview-Old Bethage, N.Y., Rahway, N.J., and New York City. He also has served as deputy superintendent of schools in New York City and as principal of one of the city’s most successful magnet schools.
Hallmarks of Dr. Cavanna’s work as superintendent of schools in troubled urban and suburban school districts include: significant gains in student achievement, thus reducing the achievement gap; awards for modeling efficient and effective budgeting; establishment of regional literacy; mathematics, science, and technology training centers for teachers; and effective business/educational partnerships, resulting in major school reform in mathematics, science, and technology.
As deputy superintendent in Community School District Two in New York City, he helped transform a diverse, troubled inner-city district into a much replicated model for school reform. Dr. Cavanna was the founding principal of the Mott Hall School, a magnet school that attracted students from one of the most poorly achieving and overcrowded districts in New York City to provide an academic environment that fostered student success. The school has been cited as a model of urban excellence since achievement level measures have ranked Mott Hall at the top of the list of schools in New York City consistently since its inception.
Dr. Cavanna began his teaching career in the South Bronx. He holds an Ed.D. and a Professional Diploma in Urban Education, Leadership and Policy from Fordham University and an M.S. in Educational Technology and B.A. in Mathematics and Education from City University of New York. Related Resources for Tony Cavanna’s Presentation
Don Dailey
Co-Director, National High School Center and
Principal Research Scientist, AIR
Dr. Don Dailey is a Principal Research Scientist at AIR, and over the past 25 years, has led a multifaceted career that weaves together technical assistance leadership and research, and expertise uniquely aligned with the National High School Center's priorities for cross-cutting experience and knowledge related to high schools, state and district policy, and special education. At AIR, Dr. Dailey has led a number of technical assistance activities for the Office of Special Education Programs (OSEP). Recently he served as co-director of the Access Center, an OSEP-funded national technical assistance center designed to help states learn about research-supported practices that help students with disabilities access the general education curriculum.
Previously at AIR, Dr. Dailey has served as a co-principal investigator of a study examining state, district, and school change occurring as part of the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation's High School Initiative, and he directed an evaluation of the Carnegie Corporation's Schools for a New Society initiative, a national effort focused on district and high school change in urban and rural settings. Before joining AIR, Dr. Dailey served as the Director of Research for the National Association of State Boards of Education (NASBE), where he provided technical assistance by facilitating two national study groups of state policy makers studying state accountability systems and high school leadership.
Dr. Dailey's career began with the Alabama Legislature, where he became the senior education analyst and a state leader in formulating legislative policies as part of the first wave of education reform emerging in the 1980s. He earned his Ph.D. in public policy from Vanderbilt University and his M.A. in education studies and B.A. in history and political science from the University of Alabama.
James Kemple
Director of K - 12 Education Policy, MDRC
Dr. James Kemple leads MDRC's work in education, with expertise in evaluation design, site selection and engagement, experimental and quasi-experimental impact analyses, field research, and project management. Dr. Kemple led the site selection process for the National Reading First Impact Study and serves as co-director for that study, which MDRC is conducting with Abt Associates. He advises on evaluation design and site selection for the demonstration and evaluation of Academic Curricula in After School Programs and for the evaluation of Professional Development for Early Grade Literacy.
Dr. Kemple has served as principal investigator for MDRC's Career Academies evaluation and for the evaluation of the Talent Development Middle School and High School models; he also advises on research design and impact analysis for MDRC's evaluation of Project GRAD and Scaling Up First Things First. In earlier work for MDRC, Dr. Kemple coauthored the final implementation report on the National Job Training Partnership Act study; managed an implementation and impact evaluation of Project Independence, Florida’s JOBS program; and was the impact analyst for an evaluation of Florida’s Family Transition Program, the nation’s first time-limited welfare reform initiative.
Prior to joining MDRC, Dr. Kemple taught high school math and managed a three-phase academic and high school placement program for disadvantaged youth in Washington, DC. He coordinated a qualitative implementation study of the Boston Public School Curriculum objectives for the Citywide Education Coalition, and, with Richard Murnane and others, he coauthored Who Will Teach? Policies That Matter. Dr. Kemple holds a masters degree and a doctorate in education policy from Harvard University. Related Resources for Jim Kemple’s Presentation
Rebecca PowellCommunications and Outreach Task Leader and Technical Assistance Liaison, National High School Center, Communications and Outreach Specialist, AIR
Becky Powell is a Communications and Outreach Specialist at the American Institutes for Research (AIR). In this capacity, Ms. Powell works with educators, researchers, and families to identify research-based practices and strategies. She is experienced in managing strategic outreach campaigns, including overseeing constituency relations, designing and managing Web sites, and coordinating and presenting at national education conferences. At AIR, she serves as the Communications and Outreach Task Leader and Technical Assistance Liaison for the Mid-Atlantic Region Comprehensive Center for the National High School Center and manages the day-to-day outreach and communications efforts for the What Works Clearinghouse (WWC), an initiative of the U.S. Department of Education's Institute of Education Sciences to provide evidence of effectiveness of educational interventions to educators, policymakers, researchers, and the public.
Prior to joining AIR, Ms. Powell was the Director of Outreach for New American Schools, a national non-profit education organization that provides support to state departments of education, school districts, charter authorizers, and networks of schools, and offers key stakeholders the tools and external assistance needed to facilitate and sustain student learning. In this role, Ms. Powell worked with educators to identify solutions to increase student learning, led the organization's strategic plan for constituency outreach, coordinated and directed the organization's participation in national education conferences and comprehensive school reform design fairs, and managed overall outreach activities. Ms. Powell holds early childhood teaching credentials and has experience working with college applicants through the admissions process at Boston University. She received her master's degree in Policy, Planning, and Administration from the School of Education at Boston University.
