Dr. Alisha Martinez has been in the field of education, both public and private, for the last 19 years. She began her career as a third grade classroom teacher in a Title I school in the Atlanta Public Schools. She has been fortunate to work in a variety of settings which has broadened her perspective about how to gather and present data, work with senior officials, and engage families. At her core, she believes all students should have access to a high quality education and all families should feel safe and welcomed at their child’s school. She currently serves as a Project Manager, Educational Support in the Chief Equity Office in the Fairfax County Public Schools. Prior to taking on this role, she served as a data specialist in the Office of School Support in Fairfax County Public Schools for three years and as a Senior Director of Research and Business Analytics at an educational technology firm, K12 Insight, where she led large-scale projects for school districts. She served as the primary investigator on program evaluations, research design, data collection, and analytics and reporting on stakeholder engagement projects like Family Engagement, Employee Engagement, Student Engagement, and strategic plans.

Dr. Martinez received her bachelor’s degree from Haverford College and her Master of Science in Social Policy from the School of Social Policy and Practice at the University of Pennsylvania. She has a PhD in Education from George Mason University. She is originally from Brookline, Massachusetts and currently resides in Virginia with her husband, Oscar, and their two children.

“The MSSP program prepared me for developing research-based reform agendas aimed at improving access, equity, and performance of students from underrepresented backgrounds, as well as broadened my perspective on how policies have addressed social problems. Upon graduating from the program, I completed an internship (as part of the Capstone Seminar requirement) at the American Youth Policy Forum. One of the most beneficial experiences at this placement was the opportunity to interact with policymakers and attend presentations on strategies to increase student achievement at the secondary level made on Capitol Hill.”