Mariesa Herrmann

Principal Researcher
Name Pronunciation: Mah-REE-sah Her-MAN
Pronouns: she/her
Expertise
  • Design and conduct of rigorous evaluations
  • Quantitative data collection and analysis
Focus Areas
  • Human Services
  • Education
  • Teacher and Principal Effectiveness
  • Teacher and Principal Preparation and Support
  • School Reform
About Mariesa

Mariesa Herrmann specializes in designing and conducting education evaluations. Her research has focused on interventions intended to improve educator effectiveness such as teacher and principal evaluation, professional development, and pay for performance.

Since joining Mathematica in 2012, Herrmann has worked on a range of projects in the education area. Currently, she is deputy project director for the U.S. Department of Education’s national evaluation of teacher residency programs. Past projects include a synthesis of research evidence on assistant principals, the national evaluation of Race to the Top and School Improvement grants, and research-practice partnerships with the School District of Philadelphia and New Jersey Department of Education.

Herrmann attended underresourced public schools. This informs her interest in understanding how to improve students’ access to high quality education that allows them to realize their full academic and social potential. She has published in the Journal of Labor Economics, Journal of Research on Educational Effectiveness, Journal of Human Resources, and Statistics and Public Policy. She holds a Ph.D. in economics from Columbia University.
Key Projects
  • SIG practices graphic
    Evaluating Race to the Top and School Improvement Grants

    In this study of more than 500 schools, 60 districts, and all 50 states and the District of Columbia, Mathematica is conducting an implementation and impact analysis of Race To the Top and School Improvement Grants, two programs that aim to foster systematic school reform.

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  • Value-Added Assessment for DC Schools
    Value-Added Assessment System for DC Schools and Teachers

    We designed value-added models to measure teacher and school effectiveness and have produced annual estimates of educators’ contributions to achievement in grades 4-8 since the 2008-2009 school year. These estimates are combined with other measures of educator effectiveness in DCPS’s IMPACT system.

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  • Pay-for-Performance: Evaluating the Teacher Incentive Fund

    This study is evaluating these performance-based compensation systems to examine issues like the impact of pay-for-performance on student achievement and educator effectiveness, and helping to answer pressing policy questions about how the programs are designed, communicated, and implemented.

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