Departments and Positions: 

Vanderbilt University, Director and Principal Investigator

Credentials: 

Stanford University, Bachelor of Arts

Michigan State University, Doctorate

Biography: 

Marisa Cannata is a Research Associate Professor in the Department of Leadership, Policy, and Organizations at Vanderbilt University and Director of the National Center on Scaling Up Effective Schools. Dr. Cannata has experience overseeing large mixed-method research projects in schools and districts. Dr. Cannata’s substantive expertise on continuous improvement research, charter schools, teacher career decisions and work experiences, implementation, and scaling up contributes to the Center’s ability to identify the programs and practices of highly effective schools and work collaboratively with districts to design innovations. She is the co-editor of School Choice and School Improvement, published by Harvard Education Press, and Mapping the High School Reform Landscape, forthcoming by the National Society for the Study of Education. Dr. Cannata has a Ph.D. in Educational Policy from Michigan State University.