Brian Stecher is a senior social scientist in the Education unit at RAND. His research focuses on measuring educational quality and improvement, with an emphasis on assessment and accountability systems. Stecher’s current projects include the National Longitudinal Study of No Child Left Behind (US Department of Education), a multi-state study of the implementation of standards-based accountability (National Science Foundation), an examination of the use of formative assessment for instructional improvement, and a study of the effect of reform-oriented instruction in mathematics and science. He recently completed a four-year evaluation of the California Class Size Reduction initiative. Stecher has served on a number of expert panels for the National Academies, including the Committee on Incentives and Test-Based Accountability in Public Education, the Committee on Test Design for K-12 Science Assessment, and the Steering Committee for Taking Stock of the National Science Education Standards. He is a member of the Technical Design Group, advising the California Department of Education on that state’s accountability system. He has published widely in professional journals, and is currently a member of the Editorial Board of Educational Evaluation and Policy Analysis and Educational Assessment Journal. Stecher received his bachelor's degree in mathematics from Pomona College, his Master's degree in mathematics from the University of Oregon, and his Ph.D. in education from UCLA. Before working at RAND, he served as Professional Associate at the Educational Testing Service and as National Coordinator for Project SEED, a mathematics enrichment program for inner-city elementary school students.