Staff
Dan O'Brien, PhD, Director
Jim Parsons, Assistant Director
Rodney Andrews, PhD, Research
Leigh Hausman, Technology
Scott Horn, Data Management
Kimberly Jones, Evaluation Services
Janie Jury, Administration
Kristin Klopfenstein, PhD, Research
Kristin Kuhne, PhD, Evaluation Services
Zhixiang (Mark) Lu, Data Management
Nidhi Mehrotra, PhD, Research
Katie Patterson, Communications
Priyanka Singh, PhD, Evaluation Services
Graduate Research Assistants
Dan O'Brien, PhD, Director
Phone: (972) 883-2554 | obri@utdallas.edu
Dan O'Brien is the Director of the Texas Schools Project and the University of Texas at Dallas Education Research Center (UTD-ERC).
Over the past decade he has helped to develop the Texas Schools Project data base, a compendium of individual level data for all Texas public school, college, and university students.
A retired Assistant Professor of Economics, Dan teaches econometrics and mathematical economics at UT Dallas. Dan’s research is focused on understanding and improving the educational attainment of minority and economically disadvantaged students, including studies of teacher quality, reading programs, early education, summer fallback, transition to middle school, high school completion, college preparation, college choice, transition to college, concurrent enrollment and affirmative action.
In addition, he works with school districts as an external evaluator and to develop value added measures of student progress. Prior to joining UT Dallas, O’Brien spent 25 years working in information technology.
Jim Parsons, Assistant Director
Phone: (972) 883-2555 | jparsons@utdallas.edu
Jim Parsons is Assistant Director of Texas Schools Project. In this position, he oversees the Data Management and Evaluation Services groups, among other responsibilities.
Jim brings a wealth of experience to TSP as he has been involved with Texas education data for more than twenty years, first as a graduate researcher and, most recently, as Executive Director of Accountability for Humble Independent School District.
Jim was also a founding member of the Joint Advisory Board, the group responsible to overseeing Texas' three designated education research centers. In this capacity he was involved in drafting and approving operating policy and procedures that TSP's UT Dallas Education Research Center abides by.
In addition to his extensive career in education research and evaluation, Jim has also served as the Texas LEA representative for the U.S. Department of Education's National Forum on Education Statistics, as a member of the Policy Committee on Public Education Information for the Texas Education Agency, and as a member of the ESC Region IV Data Advisory Committee.
Jim holds an MS in Educational Psychology from Texas A&M University. He also completed his Doctoral studies (ABD) in Educational Psychology, Research Measurement & Statistics at Texas A&M.
Rodney Andrews, PhD, Research
Phone: (972) 883-2548 | rodney.j.andrews@utdallas.edu
Rodney Andrews, a Harvard University Robert Wood Johnson Foundation Scholar, recently joined Texas Schools Project as a Senior Researcher. In addition, he has also joined the UT Dallas School of Economic, Political & Policy Sciences faculty as an assistant professor of economics.
Rodney’s areas of expertise include economics of education, labor economics, public finance, and applied microeconometrics.
While he has investigated a range of topics including health policy, Rodney's recent research, “The Effects of the Kalamazoo Promise on College Choice” and “Estimating the Responsiveness of College Applications to the Likelihood of Acceptance and Financial Assistance: Evidence from Texas,” focuses on the college application process and how it is impacted by financial assistance.
Rodney’s primary responsibility at Texas Schools Project is to conduct research relevant to Texas education. Through this research, he will focus on the effectiveness of various educational initiatives and interventions.
Rodney received his PhD in Economics from the University of Michigan.
Leigh Hausman, Technology
Phone: (972) 883-6410 | lhausman@utdallas.edu
Leigh Hausman is the Computer Systems Technologist for Texas Schools Project.
Her primary responsibilities include managing the computing and security infrastructure for Texas Schools Project, including an 8-node Cray CX-1 compute cluster and more than four terabytes of storage.
Prior to joining TSP in 2008, Leigh spent ten years managing computer systems for other academic institutions, including building a 100+ node compute cluster for Texas A&M University in Qatar.
Scott Horn, Data Management
Phone: (972) 883-2555 | Seh082000@utdallas.edu
Scott Horn is the Data Manager for Texas Schools Project. As such, he oversees plans and policies related to information assets, including the supplier to customer data process life-cycle.
In addition to working at TSP, Scott is also pursuing his doctorate in Geospatial Information Sciences on Remote Sensing. Before joining TSP, Scott was a Systems Administrator in Washington.
Scott holds a BA in Physics from The Colorado College, an MS in Physics from the University of Washington, a Certificate in Geospatial Information Systems from Penn State, and a Certificate in Software Engineering from the University of Washington.
Kimberly Jones, Evaluation Services
Phone: (972) 883-5429 | kimjones@utdallas.edu
Kimberly Jones is a Research Scientist with the Evaluation Services group at Texas Schools Project. In this role, she conducts research-based program evaluations for school districts, education organizations, foundations, and the business community.
Prior to joining TSP Kimberly worked as a Research Assistant at UT Dallas, conducting program evaluations for various educational nonprofits such as Education Is Freedom and the Williams Institute. She has also conducted various research studies on high school students in the Dallas Independent School District, looking at the under representation of minorities in health careers and evaluating best practice models in student-based funding methodologies.
Kimberly’s previous experience also includes working as an independent consultant, specializing in organizational development and strategic planning, and serving as a Budget Manager at UT Dallas.
In addition to her work with TSP, Kimberly is also working on her doctorate in Public Policy and Political Economy, “The Impact of the Education Is Freedom Program on Student Achievement and Attainment: A Longitudinal Study of from High School Through College Enrollment.”
Kimberly holds a Masters in Public Affairs from the University of Texas at Dallas.
Janie Jury, Administration
Phone: (972) 883-2555 | jjury@utdallas.edu
Janie Jury has been the Administrative Services Officer for Texas Schools Project since 2001.
In this position she manages the office affairs of the center including account management, documentation, and reconciliation.
Janie has been with UT Dallas for 15 years, previously working in a variety of departments including the Graduate Dean’s Office and the School of Human Development.
A native of Pennsylvania where she worked in the music field, Janie moved to Dallas in 1994. She holds a Bachelors of Music from Seton Hill College.
Kristin Klopfenstein, PhD, Research
Phone: (972) 883-2379 | k.klopfenstein@utdallas.edu
Kristin Klopfenstein has recently joined Texas Schools Project as a Senior Researcher.
Her responsibilities include collaborating with principal investigators, supporting TSP’s work with the Texas High School Project, participating in the federally-funded National Center for the Analysis of Longitudinal Data in Education Research, and performing independent research with data housed at the UT Dallas Education Research Center.
Of particular focus are projects that examine the factors influencing low income, rural, black, and Hispanic students’ preparation for college and successful workforce transitions.
Prior to joining TSP, Kristin was an Associate Professor of Economics at Texas Christian University.
Kristin received her PhD in Economics from the University of Colorado.
Kristin Kuhne, PhD, Evaluation Services
Phone: (972) 883-5487 | kuhne@utdallas.edu
Kristin Kuhne leads Texas Schools Project’s Evaluation Services group.
In this role, Kristin’s recent activities include examining the impact of high quality preschool on student achievement, analyzing Pre-AP teacher training, and evaluating technical assistance for teacher incentive pay programs.
Kristin has been affiliated with TSP since 2004, first as a research assistant, next for her own dissertation, and now as a full-time staff member leading Evaluation Services.
Her dissertation, “Pre-K Effects in Texas” utilized multivariate regression techniques to examine the impact of public prekindergarten in the state of Texas on measures of academic achievement and school progress.
She earned both her PhD in Public Policy and Political Economy and a Masters in Public Affairs from the University of Texas at Dallas.
Prior to joining TSP, she worked in the financial services industry as a financial analyst and a consumer services manager.
Zhixiang (Mark) Lu, Data Management
Phone: (972) 883-5478 | zxl063000@utdallas.edu
Zhixiang Lu leads the data team at Texas Schools Project.
As such, he is responsible for downloading data and managing data organization, translation, and verification.
Zhixiang joined TSP in 2006 as a Research Assistant while he was working on his master’s degree in Geospatial Information Science at The University of Texas at Dallas, which he received in August 2008.
He also holds a master’s degree in Computer Science from Prairie View A&M University.
Nidhi Mehrotra, PhD, Research
Phone: (972) 883-6419 | nidhi.mehrotra@utdallas.edu
Nidhi Mehrotra serves as an Associate Director with Texas Schools Project.
Under this role, she is responsible for the management of data access policies and protocol, research support, and FERPA compliance. Additionally, she is TSP’s liaison with the Joint Advisory Board for UTD-ERC research projects.
Prior to joining TSP in 2004, Nidhi taught graduate sociology courses at Oklahoma State University and also conducted research at OSU involving confidential data and longitudinal analysis.
She received her PhD in 1999 from the University of Chicago in Economics of Education.
A native of India, Nidhi received her Masters of Economics from Delhi School of Economics and then, upon completion of her Master’s program, worked for Eklavya, a non-profit organization dedicated to improving children’s education in India.
Katie Patterson, Communications
Phone: (972) 883-6424 | katie.patterson@utdallas.edu
Katie Patterson serves as Communications Coordinator for Texas Schools Project. In this capacity, Katie is responsible for the organization’s external communications including website, e-newsletter, news releases, and collateral pieces.
Prior to joining TSP, Katie spent 19 years in marketing for a national franchisor managing brand identity, e-mail strategy, collateral development, and more.
Katie holds a BS in Advertising from the University of Texas at Austin.
Priyanka Singh, PhD, Evaluation Services
Phone: (972) 883-5428 | pxs031100@utdallas.edu
Priyanka Singh is a Research Scientist with the Evaluation Services group at Texas Schools Project. In this role, she conducts research-based program evaluations for school districts, education organizations, foundations, and the business community.
Prior to joining TSP, Priyanka worked as a Senior Evaluation Specialist with the Dallas Independent School District (DISD), leading their College and Career Readiness program evaluation.
Additionally, she was the lead evaluator for DISD of project Destination Graduation, a project managed by United Way, and also worked on the evaluation of the Thriving Mind project, managed by Big Thought and funded by the Wallace Foundation. The Thriving Mind project focused on enriching the cultural capital of students in DISD schools and stimulating creativity and learning in students.
In addition to her work with DISD, Priyanka has been a part-time lecturer at UT Dallas, teaching several courses in Microeconomics and Labor Economics.
Priyanka earned both her PhD in Economics and master’s degree in Applied Economics from The University of Texas at Dallas. She also holds a master’s degree in Corporate Management.
Graduate Research Assistants
- Xudong Chen
- Hong Chao
- Vikas Shivamurthy
- Olayemi Olabiyi
- Oksana Zhuk
- Michael Haydel
- William Grover
- Michael Latham
- Jing Li
- Yu Xue
- Arun Rajendran
- LaVada Strickland
- Lei Wu
- Nikhil Jha
Page last updated on September 18, 2009.
