William Berry

Overview

William Berry, Research Associate with WestEd, works with the Charters and School Choice team on a variety of projects that include both qualitative and quantitative research, performing a variety of data collection (e.g., interviews, quantitative data gathering) and data analysis (e.g., qualitative coding/memo writing, statistical analysis, data visualization) activities. Current and recent projects include providing research support for a project that facilitates professional learning and technical assistance for magnet schools in Connecticut, supporting a professional learning community of charter school authorizers working to establish new ways of monitoring school performance, and supporting the analysis of the implementation of California’s billion-dollar investment in arts education in the state’s public schools.

Prior to joining WestEd, Berry performed policy research and data analysis at a variety of education-focused nonprofit organizations. Most recently, he was a policy and research analyst at the Southern Education Foundation. Additionally, Berry has served in a variety of roles in organizations such as the Learning Policy Institute and the AmeriCorps programs Citizen Schools and City Year. He is currently a doctoral candidate in education policy at The George Washington University, where his research interests focus on school reform, school choice, and the politics of school reform. He is working on a dissertation focused on the alignment between school districts and community-based nonprofits in providing high-dosage tutoring aligned with Science of Reading Standards.

Education

• EdD (candidate) in education policy studies, The George Washington University
• MEd in curriculum and instruction with a focus in education policy, American University
• BA in comparative literature, Cornell University

Select Publications

Berry, W., & Evan, A. (2024). Identifying indicators of distress in your schools: A guide for charter school authorizers. WestEd. 

Glazer, J. L., Greany, T., Duff, M., & Berry, W. (2022). Networked improvement in the United States and England. In D. J. Peurach, J. L. Russell, L. Cohen-Vogel, & W. Penuel (Eds.),The Foundational Handbook on Improvement Research in Education (pp. 165–187). Rowman & Littlefield.  

Griffith, M., & Berry, W. (2020). COVID-19 and state education budgets: The story behind the numbers. Learning Policy Institute.