Teresa Derrick-Mills, Mpa, Phd Email & Phone Number

I am a former practitioner who returned to school later in life to pursue a PhD. I wanted to learn more about research designs, methods, and techniques so that I could study the work that I previously conducted. As a manager, program developer, systems reformer, technical assistance and family support provider, there were always issues we struggled to address the best way we could figure out how. We did our best to gather our own evidence, learn systematically, seek feedback from stakeholders, and examine our data. We also looked to places like the Urban Institute for the latest research on how to serve our clients and communities better. Now that I am on the other side, I especially appreciate projects that allow me to tap into what I learned in school about how to appropriately design research and evaluation and what I learned in practice about the important nuances of the communities where services take place, the cross-sector efforts to deliver the services, and the variations of need of the people served.It is a challenge to blend the formal and informal expertise. My perspective at the intersection of formal design training and practice has led me to using frameworks that foster systematic study, but also resonate with the practitioner in me. And, this intersection of strengths is behind my interest in translating research to practice through syntheses, capacity-building materials and webinars, and consulting with local and state governments and nonprofits. I specialize in applying implementation science and continuous quality improvement frameworks to improve practice, research, and research translation; building research, evaluation and continuous quality improvement capacities of state and local government agencies and nonprofit organizations; studying the intersections of policy and practice in an intergovernmental, cross-sector context; and studying and improving policies and practice in early care and education and workforce development.I have linked to a sample of my publications and projects since joining the Urban Institute that reflect the range of my skills. I enjoy collaborating with people in multiple firms, with multiple funders, and for multiple purposes to leverage what we all can learn through our diverse perspectives and combined expertise.