Aysha Jerald
Aysha Jerald brings a diverse range of research and education expertise to Public Policy Associates (PPA). Prior to PPA, she served as a Program Evaluation Associate at the University of Michigan’s Center for Education, Design, Evaluation, and Research (CEDER). In this position, she played a crucial role in evaluating the effectiveness and equitable practices of higher education programs, developing skills in quantitative and qualitative data collection, analysis, instrument design, and reporting.
In addition to her evaluation work, Ms. Jerald contributed to two University of Michigan initiatives as a Qualitative Research Assistant. For the Center for Global Health Equity, she honed her literature review writing skills, synthesizing scholarship related to the anthropology of migration and immigrant/migrant access to education. She also worked with the Cultivate Belonging Collaborative, gaining practical experience in qualitative data analysis and intercoder reliability to explore how belonging-centered instruction develops in K-12 classrooms.
Ms. Jerald’s dedication to educational equity also extends to her earlier work as an educator. Before transitioning to evaluation and research, she dedicated two years to teaching English/Language Arts at Meadowcreek High School, a Title I school in Norcross, Georgia. There, she taught a variety of students, from ninth-grade college preparatory and gifted/honors classes to combined ELL/sheltered courses. Beyond classroom instruction, she also served as the school’s Gifted Program coordinator. She valued this role, as it allowed her to advocate for her students by encouraging faculty to recognize potential biases, promote equity, and work to minimize achievement gaps.
As a PPA research associate, Ms. Jerald contributes to all phases of project delivery, from data collection and analysis to report writing, presentations, and client interaction. Her work includes literature reviews, survey and focus group design and implementation, data management, and the creation of client presentations and data visualizations. She also collaborates directly with clients, providing research, analysis, meeting support, and writing assistance.
Education
Ms. Jerald earned her master’s degree in educational studies, program evaluation and improvement research from the University of Michigan, and her bachelor’s degree in English/English education from the University of Georgia.
Also Notable
Ms. Jerald is a TRIO McNair Scholar, a member of the Phi Beta Kappa Honor Society, and a member of the Comparative and International Education Society (CIES). She has been published in the peer-reviewed American Journal for Undergraduate Research.
