Dr. Stephen Backman is an international education and literacy specialist with over 20 years of experience managing projects as a Chief of Party and other roles including technical assistance and research on education, language, and systems issues in developing countries. Dr. Backman has worked internationally in various capacities, including senior management for nine large-scale United States Agency for International Development (USAID) education projects. He specializes in early grade literacy, foundational learning, language policy, teacher education, curriculum development, systems strengthening, and capacity building and has vast experience working directly with governments, development agencies, and research institutions to improve the quality of education in development contexts. Dr. Backman has managed a number of research studies, reviews, and assessments in the education sector and has presented and published in numerous professional forums on language, literacy, and education policy in international development.