University of Wisconsin–Madison

Previously Sponsored Research

2020–2021 Research Awards

Given the unique circumstances and demand for evidence-based decision making, MEP has changed its process and awards for 2020–2021. We offered one award for up to $50K and up to five awards for $10K in direct costs on a variety of pressing topics through this request for proposals (PDF).

50K Award:

10K Awards:

  • Identifying innovation in family-to-family support and family-school partnerships during COVID-19 – Erica Turner, Amy Washburg & Linn Posey-Maddox (UW Educational Policy Studies & Center for Community & Nonprofit Studies) & Angela Fitzgerald-Ward, Emily Peterson & Hannah Nerenhausen (MMSD Family, Youth, & Community Engagement)
  • Radical Belonging in Racist Systems: A School-University Partnership to Enact an Antiracist Learning Community – Mariana Pacheco, Leema Berland, Carl Grant, Nicole Louie, & Kat Nichols (UW Curriculum & Instruction) and Andrea Richichi, Elizabeth Callies & Samantha Head (MMSD Lindbergh)
  • Academic and Career Planning Equity Study in MMSD – Robin Worth & Grant Sim (UW Wisconsin Evaluation Collaborative) & Cindy Green, Jen Wegner & Julia Steege-Reimann (MMSD Secondary Programs)
  • Improving Equitable Social, Emotional, and Behavioral Outcomes by Aligning and Integrating Mental Health Systems and Family-School-Community Collaboration in MTSS – Andy Garbacz & Steve Kilgus (UW Educational Psychology) and Wendy Johnson, Kristen Guetschow & Jay Affeldt (MMSD Student & Staff Support)
  • Early-grade Literacy Instruction in a Pandemic – Amy Claessens & Lesley Bartlett (UW Educational Policy Studies) and Gabi Bell & Kaylee Jackson (MMSD Curriculum & Instruction)

MEP Memos

Beyond sponsoring research studies, MEP also serves as a channel for researchers and practitioners at MMSD and UW–Madison to address problems of practice related to equity and other fundamentally important education issues.

Memos grounded in the research literature are written by collaborating staff and researchers within MMSD and UW in response to MEP-directed work and published research briefs. MEP memos must address a problem of practice related to equity and topics raised by the partnership. The purpose of such Memos is to inform conversations within the district and research community.

Fall 2019 Research Awards

Focus: School Climate

Empowering Educators to Combat Bias through Dialogue

Researchers: Stephen M Quintana and Stephanie M Campbell

Researchers Quintana and Campbell aim to increase students’ belonging in school and reduce race- and weight-bias bullying through dialogue-based training for teachers. The training will

  1. help teachers understand their self, privileges and biases that impact students and
  2. train teachers to facilitate critically conscious and appropriate dialogue with their students about race and weight bias.

How effective are MMSD’s gender-expansive discrimination policies and training at the student and school-level? 

Researchers: Mollie McQuillan with Sherie Hohs and Jennifer Herdina

Using a mixed-method approach, principal investigator McQuillan, along with co-investigators Hohs and Herdina, will research the barriers school leaders face when implementing protective practices in an administrative environment. Additionally, they will investigate the extent of gender-expansive identities used by MMSD students, and the relationship between these identities and academic and social-emotional outcomes.

Fall 2018 Research Awards

Focus: Attendance

The Impact of Sleep and Circadian Factors on Middle School Attendance in the Madison Metropolitan School District: A Mixed-Methods Investigation (PDF)

Researchers: David Plante and Elizabeth Blair

Through exploratory qualitative analysis of open-ended survey responses, Plante and Blaire investigated why and how these factors affect students’ and families’ everyday activities and school attendance. They also investigated whether sleep duration and circadian preference are significantly associated with school attendance outcomes in MMSD, using a quantitative approach.

Engaging with Parents of Multilingual Children: Exploring Multilingual Parents’ Perceptions about Their Children’s Early Care and Education Program and Their Decision-Making about Enrollment and Attendance (Executive Summary)

Researchers: Lorena Mancilla with Anna Rhoad-Drogalis

Mancilla and Rhoad-Drogalis used a mixed-method approach to:

  1. examine the reliability and validity of a survey designed for parents of young multilingual children in early care and education (ECE) programs, and
  2. to explore parents’ perceptions of children’s language learning and development and decision-making around enrollment and attendance in a MMSD 4K program.

Spring 2017 Research Awards

Focus: MMSD 4K

Family Decision Making about 4K Enrollment in MMSD (PDF) (Executive Summary)

Researcher: Beth Graue

Graue analyzed MMSD administrative data, as well as surveyed and interviewed kindergarten families to more deeply understand how families make decisions about their child’s 4K experience. Integrating data sources, Graue explored factors that shape decision-making with a focus on program structures, family needs and resources, cultural norms, and personal preferences.

Teacher-Child Interactions, Teacher Beliefs, and Student Outcomes in MMSD 4K Classrooms (PDF) (Executive Summary)

Researchers: Maribeth Gettinger and Kaitlyn Ostrander

Gettinger and Ostrander used a mixed-methods approach to:

  1. assess the overall quality of instruction in MMSD 4K classrooms and
  2. descriptively summarize the beliefs and perspectives of 4K teachers regarding 4K programming.

They also explored variance between sites, teacher characteristics, and student demographics.

Choice vs. Accommodation: How MMSD Families Decide Whether & Where Their Child Goes to 4K (PDF) ​ ​

Fall 2016 Research Awards

Focus: MMSD 4K

Family Engagement in MMSD’s 4K Program: Implications for Children’s School Readiness (Executive Summary)

Researcher: Alejandra Pilarz

With a goal of identifying the most promising strategies to increase family engagement in 4K and improve student readiness for the transition to Kindergarten, Pilarz documented 4K family engagement strategies and parents’ perceptions of those strategies. Employing surveys with 4K principals/directors and teachers, and focus groups with parents, Pilarz explored the relationship between engagement strategies and 4K students’ attendance and school readiness.

MMSD 4K: Pathways to Resilience for Children and Families Experiencing Homelessness (Executive Summary)

Researcher: Travis Wright

Aiming to identify the best strategies to improve supports for students experiencing homelessness during the first critical years of school, Wright conducted classroom observations, interviews, and focus groups with 4K staff and families—to expand understanding of the experiences of homeless families in 4K.

Understanding, Measuring, & Assessing the Development of Interpersonal Skills in 4K (Executive Summary)

Researchers: Kristin Shutts and Charles Kalish

The goal of Shutts’ and Kalish’s research was to develop high-quality measurement instruments to help teachers effectively assess students’ interpersonal skills. They conducted interviews with 4K administrators and teachers to identify priorities and interests for assessing students’ interpersonal skills; they also pilot-tested assessments with students in 4K programs.

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