Laura Bernhard, Phd Email & Phone Number

I conduct qualitative and mixed methods research about the intersection of higher education and workforce development to guide decision makers in developing and implementing policies that bolster equity in the state of California. Some of my current project include: - Working with two institutions in to reframe academic probation to be more student centered.- Highlighting bright spots in online education in the CA public postsecondary systems.- Studying how community colleges across the state approach and implement adult learner-focused Strategic Enrollment Management plans. Read more about our policy priorities here: https://californiacompetes.org/resources/california-competes-policy-priorities/

I am serving as a volunteer mentor to Oakland students attending college. This year I am working with a wonderful young person going to UC Berkeley. Excited to listen, offer advice, and support her through this exciting time! Please reach out to me if you'd like to get involved in this awesome organization.

Working as part of a volunteer committee to craft educationally robust materials and resources. Specifically we are tasked with maintaining Transitional, Collegiate, and Collegiate Select level rating forms in close collaboration key stakeholders.

I currently serve as the Northern California Representative for the CWLOA. I am a National Elite official working all levels: NCAA D1, D2, D3, WCLA Club, and high school. I am passionate about contributing to the growth of the game I love and working with, supporting, and building up other women.

Certified L3 official, observer, and trainer. I officiate high school games during the regular season and at summer and fall tournaments throughout the state. I also serve as clinician for L3 ratings for the NCWLO.

Oakland, California, United States

I led free workouts every week and facilitated a community of fantastic humans who enjoy waking up early and moving their bodies. I worked with my co-leader to design interactive, inclusive, and adaptable workouts for members of our local community. I captured and curated content to maintain our brand's presence on multiple social media platforms and put together fantastic playlists. In addition to workouts, I planned various social events and volunteer opportunities to stay civically engaged with our local community. While I am no longer co-leading, the community lives on! Every Wednesday at 6:28am by Lake Merritt. Find NP Oakland on IG or Heylo!

I strive to understand people and their choices, identify challenges and areas for improvement, and develop data-driven and action-oriented recommendations to improve programs and the student experience. My passion is in qualitative work (individual interviews, surveys, focus groups, and observations), and I excel in taking a large amount of data and distilling it down to rich takeaways and actionable insights for my stakeholders. I lead a group of researchers on a large biannual qualitative project that focuses on the pathways and decision-making processes of undergraduates, and handle other data requests that range widely in scope, timeline, and complexity for the Vice Provost and other internal stakeholders. In this role I serve as lead on multiple projects, take on additional project management responsibilities, and propose my own generative or evaluative projects.

I served as the Interim Director of Evaluation maintaining a full project load, steering assessment and evaluation priorities and objectives, managing stakeholder relationships, and assisting the Vice Provost and Senior Management in making data-informed decisions.

I served as the assessment consultant for a NSF RCN-UBE grant between multiple institutions and non-profit organizations. I prepared and delivered presentations, facilitated workshops, revised surveys, and helped the group develop a logic model and overall assessment plan in an iterative and collaborative environment. I also learned a lot about ornithology, ecology, and the efforts that local organizational leaders are making to maintain our natural environment, and truly appreciated the opportunity to learn from others.

I provide research support for the Vice Provost with a focus on evaluating and assessing undergraduate programs. My work consists of writing survey questions and protocols, conducting focus groups and interviews, analyzing quantitative and qualitative data, synthesizing large amounts of data, writing reports, and presenting to various campus stakeholders. In my work, I use (or have used) SPSS, Stata, NVivo, Dedoose, and Altas.ti for data analysis. I work closely with clients and stakeholders to draft assessment plans, and have extensive experience collaborating as part of a team as well as serving as project manager from planning to completion.

Student-Athlete Development And Academic Services

I provided administrative assistance to the Director of Student-Athlete Development and later to the Associate Director of Academic Services. My main responsibilities included completing midterm reports on all student-athletes, planning, coordinating and creating after-action reports of major events, and co-facilitating the Bruin Advisory Council. Given my academic background I was also able to suggest and spearhead various research initiatives within the department that led to significant changes to the post-season survey and exit interview processes for all student-athletes.

Department Of Recreational Sports

I served as the assistant coach (working mainly with goalies and the defense) for a team that earned a bid to the WCLA National Tournament 4 out of 5 years, came in 2nd in 2012, and 3rd in both 2014 and 2015. I served as a mentor, academic coach, and proud supporter of over 60 phenomenal young women.

Choices: Access, Equity And Diversity In Higher Education

Project Director: Dr. Walter R. AllenI conducted both quantitative and qualitative data analysis for long-term mixed-methods studies on issues of diversity, equity, and inclusion in education. I was responsible for maintaining the IRB for various longitudinal studies and helping train, onboard, and manage a team of undergraduate and graduate student researchers. This work on the role of diversity in the classroom led to multiple presentations at national conferences and one highly regarded peer-reviewed publication.

I worked as a researcher for the Cooperative Institutional Research Program (CIRP) at the Higher Education Research Institute (HERI). As part of a research team, I analyzed large-scale datasets from 45 years of annual surveys of a national sample of college students and faculty. I extracted insights from the survey data and developed research briefs, monographs, and conference presentations on the student and faculty experience in higher education. I also conducted outreach, communicated with stakeholders, and provided customer service.

Department Of Athletics

For a full academic year I had the distinct pleasure of working for Cricket Lane, Director of Student-Athlete Development. Under her excellent tutelage I co-facilitated the Student-Athlete Advisory Council, planning monthly meetings, various events, and helping the student-athletes set and achieve realistic initiatives. I assisted with the nationally renowned Carolina Leadership Academy, where we helped student-athletes learn about and practice servant leadership via workshops, readings, and events. I also assisted with various events and projects focused on the community and civic engagement. This role allowed me to work with a diverse array of stakeholders and constituents, to suggest and implement various programs and events, apply project and time management skills, and practice my keen observational and communication skills.

Doctor Of Philosophy (Ph.D.), Higher Education And Organizational Change

Dissertation: Toward a Better Understanding: Three Studies on Diversity in Intercollegiate Athletics

Ma, Higher Education

Ma, Sport Administration

Thesis: Along ethnic lines: A quantitative analysis of football athletes’ interest and intent in coaching as a career.

Ba, Black Studies

BA with Highest Honors, minor in Athletic Coaching