ANDREA RORRER

Dr. Andrea K. Rorrer  is a Professor in the College of Education’s Department of Educational Leadership and Policy and the Director of the Utah Education Policy Center, which is a University of Utah research center in the College of Education. The UEPC’s mission is to bridge research, policy, and practice by conducting rigorous and comprehensive research and evaluations, and providing expert and research-informed technical assistance and professional learning. We empower educators, policymakers, and leaders to make research actionable and impactful to transform education.

Andrea, who has 37 years of professional experience and leadership in education, received her master’s degree at the University of Virginia and her Ph.D. from the University of Texas at Austin. Before receiving her Ph.D., her professional experiences in education included serving as a policy analyst and a research associate in Texas, as a school administrator (i.e., principal and assistant principal), and as a teacher in Virginia. Her professional experience in the field was spent primarily working in high-need classrooms and schools, including alternative school settings. She served as associate dean for research in the College of Education at the University of Utah from 2014-2023. She has extensive experience working with local, state, and national leaders and decision-makers, including promoting and using research to inform decisions and improvement, developing capacity for change, and establishing research and practice partnerships.

Andrea’s professional areas of expertise include leadership, continuous improvement, policy development, implementation, analysis, and evaluation, research utilization, strategic planning and development, professional learning, and organizational and systems change. Her collaborative research and evaluation projects utilize both qualitative and quantitative methods.  Her research, teaching, and mentoring, including her published scholarship in journal articles, book chapters, and policy reports, reflects her focus on educational transformation. Andrea’s research and practice has been recognized in the field for its rigor, relevance, and impact (e.g., American Education Research Association, Division A Education Administration 2001 Dissertation Award for dissertation Leadership and Equity: From Reproduction to Reconstruction: An Institutional Analysis; University Council for Educational Administration Jack A. Culbertson Award for outstanding contributions to the field as an early-career professor, the College of Education Research Award; 2020 UCEA Master Professor Award, 2024 University of Utah’s College of Education Faculty Teaching Award). In collaboration with Dr. Cori Groth, Andrea has co-developed multiple leadership learning series to provide professional learning and coaching to educational leaders and organizations to ensure excellence and equity in education for all students and the educators and systems that support them. She is also the co-director with Dr. Michelle Young of the INSPIRE Leadership Collaborative, a national, multi-institutional research and development team that provides valid and reliable tools to support leadership preparation programs, districts, and schools to improve leadership learning and practice.  In addition to her committee memberships and leadership roles at the University of Utah, Andrea is a member and chair of the WestEd Board of Directors, WestEd Region 15 Comprehensive Center Advisory Board Members, and REL West Governing Board. She previously served on the University Council for Educational Administration Executive Committee between 2006-2013 (2011-2012, President).