Our Team

Clare McCann
Managing Director of Policy and Operations

Clare McCann leads the Center’s policy work and directs its operations. Prior to joining the PEER Center, she was the Director of Higher Education at Arnold Ventures. McCann also worked as a senior policy advisor for the U.S. Department of Education on issues related to higher education in both the Office of the Under Secretary and the Office of Planning, Evaluation, and Policy Development; and with New America’s Higher Education Program.

Research Staff

Kristen Allen
Graduate Research Assistant

Kristen Allen is an education researcher and PhD student in Public Policy and Administration at American University. Her research interests and expertise include accountability in higher education, student outcomes in the labor market, and socioeconomic mobility through postsecondary educational attainment. She previously worked at Hanover Research as an education research director and senior analyst. She holds a BA in Religious Studies from Elon University and an MEd from the George Washington University.

Tia Caldwell
Research Associate

Tia Caldwell contributes to the PEER Center’s research and policy analysis. Before joining PEER, she was a senior policy analyst at New America, where she collaborated with policymakers, researchers, and advocacy groups to improve student loan policy and higher education financing. She previously worked at the Congressional Budget Office, helping to model federal spending on Pell Grants and student loans. Tia holds a master’s degree in public policy from the University of Michigan and a bachelor’s degree in economics and political science from Washington University in St. Louis.

Rajeev Darolia
Senior Fellow

Rajeev Darolia is a professor of public policy and economics at the University of Kentucky, where he also holds the Wendell H. Ford Professorship. He is also currently a Visiting Scholar at the Federal Reserve Bank of Philadelphia, a Research Fellow at the IZA Institute of Labor Economics, Member of the Board on Higher Education and Workforce at the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine, and Co-Editor for the Journal of Policy Analysis and Management. He previously served at the U.S. Department of Education as the Chief Economist and a Senior Advisor, and as an Advisor for federal rulemaking on college affordability and student loans. His research interests include questions about how public policy affects postsecondary educational decisions and outcomes and more broadly, economic mobility and financial security.

Sarah Davitian-Reiner
Graduate Research Assistant

Sarah Davitian-Reiner is pursuing a Master of Public Administration at The George Washington University, focusing on social policy and advocacy. She holds a bachelor's degree in Political Science and International Affairs from Northeastern University, with minors in Psychology and Political Communication. Before joining PEER, Sarah gained experience across multiple policy areas, including through campaigning and investigating resilience-oriented ways for communities to recover from disasters. She is dedicated to creating a meaningful impact through research, public leadership, and strategic communication.

Chris Johnston
Graduate Research Assistant

Chris Johnston is pursuing a PhD in Public Policy and Administration at the American University School of Public Affairs with a research focus on the interface between education policy and labor economics. He received a Master of Science in Applied Economics and a Bachelor of Science in Finance from the University of Maryland, College Park. Before starting his PhD, he worked in commercial banking and as a long-term substitute high school math teacher.

Leonardo Restrepo
Graduate Research Assistant

Leonardo Restrepo is an education researcher and PhD student in Public Policy and Administration at George Washington University. He uses applied statistics and computational methods to evaluate policy approaches to school segregation, school finance, and student-life outcomes. He has previously worked at the Urban Institute’s Center on Education Data and Policy, the Community College Research Center at Teachers College (Columbia University), and Sesame Workshop. Prior to his work as a researcher, Restrepo worked as a middle school teacher in Brooklyn, New York. He holds a BA in political science from the University of Chicago and an MS in Learning Analytics from Teachers College.

Maria Luisa Vásquez
Graduate Research Assistant

Maria Luisa Vásquez is a Ph.D. student in Public Policy and Administration at George Washington University. Her research interests include secondary education, student financial aid, and accountability in higher education systems. She has previously served as an Evaluation Coordinator at the Ministry of Economy and Finance of Peru, a Senior Policy Manager at the Abdul Latif Jameel Poverty Action Lab Latin America and the Caribbean (J-PAL LAC), and a consultant for the International Initiative for Impact Evaluation (3ie). María Luisa holds a bachelor's degree in Political Science from the Pontifical Catholic University of Peru and a Master of Public Policy from Duke University.

Research Advisory Council

• Dominique Baker, Associate Professor of Education and Public Policy, University of Delaware

• Susan Dynarski, Patricia Albjerg Graham Professor of Education, Harvard Graduate School of Education

• Stella Flores, Professor of Higher Education and Public Policy, University of Texas at Austin

• Adam Looney, Executive Director of the Marriner S. Eccles Institute for Economics and Quantitative Analysis, The University of Utah

• Jesse Rothstein, Professor of Public Policy and Economics, Director, Center for Studies in Higher Education, University of California, Berkeley

• Judith Scott-Clayton, Professor of Economics and Education, Teachers College, Columbia University

• Kevin Stange, Professor of Public Policy, University of Michigan 

• Lesley Turner, Associate Professor, Harris School of Public Policy, University of Chicago

• Sarah Turner, University Professor of Economics and Education, University of Virginia