Rachel Aucott

Rachel Aucott is a managing consultant at Mathematica who has expertise in technical assistance (TA), human-centered design, program improvement, and evaluation for Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) and other human services programs.

She works with state and local agencies and community-based organizations to design and implement more effective, participant-centered services. Her work includes coaching TANF and child welfare leaders, facilitating continuous quality improvement, developing and delivering trainings, and helping organizations use rapid-cycle learning and other evidence-informed approaches to test and refine program improvements.

Alcott has served as project director for several evaluation, TA, and organizational change initiatives, including a developmental evaluation within a federal agency, a TA project supporting systems integration in early childhood services, and a strategic advising engagement focused on organizational and program redesign for a TANF service provider. Currently, she serves as task lead on several federal projects that involve TA, training, facilitation, and human-centered design to strengthen the administration and delivery of TANF and Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program services. Aucott also leads grantee engagement for a multiyear evaluation of a foundation-supported initiative to improve workforce systems. Across these projects, her responsibilities include strategic advising, engaging stakeholders, facilitating learning and strategic decision-making, coaching, developing trainings, and helping organizations use evidence to improve programs and systems.

Before joining Mathematica, Aucott led strategic and social impact work at a large human services organization, where she developed an agency-wide theory of change and outcomes framework, led strategic planning, conducted program evaluations, and helped translate findings into service improvements. She holds an M.P.A. from the University of Pennsylvania and a B.A. from Swarthmore College.