Louise Jaffe and Family
Louise at PTA Rally

Dissertation Awards

My dissertation Mathematics from High School to Community College: Preparation, Articulation, and College Un-readiness received the 2013 award for Dissertation Excellence from The Research & Planning Group for CA Community Colleges and the 2013 Outstanding Ed.D. Dissertation Award from the UCLA Department of Education.


Presentations & Papers

Since receiving my Ed.D., I have been presenting my research findings at numerous education conferences and meetings across the state:

  • Quantitative Leap! Webinar 3: High School Math Course-Taking and College Readiness. Panelist. September 21, 2016

  • Mathematics from High School to Community College: Using Existing Tools to Increase College-Readiness Now. (Policy Brief No. February or March 2014). Stanford, CA: Policy Analysis for California Education.

  • College Readiness. Co-presenter to the SMMUSD BOE, February 2013.

  • Using High School Data For Improving College Readiness, Advising, and Placement. Panelist, Research and Planning Conference, April 2013.

  • Mathematics from High School to Community College. Presentations to and discussions with secondary principals and secondary counselors facilitated by Assistant Superintendent of Educational Services, SMMUSD, September and December 2103, January 2014.

  • The Gatekeeper: Mathematics and College Access/Success. UCLA Educational Leadership Program Symposium, Twenty Years: Leadership Across the Educational Continuum, September 2013.

  • Using Shared Research to Clear Pathways to College-Readiness. Research and Planning Group for CA Community Colleges Strengthening Student Success Conference, October 2013.

  • Launchpad to College-Readiness in Math: Repositioning Senior Year. ACSA Leadership Summit Launching Our Bold New Future, November 2013.

  • Can Collaborative K-12/Community College Research Give Us the Lift We Need? CCLC Annual Convention California Community Colleges Soaring to New Heights, November 2013.

  • Reclaiming Senior Year: The Effects of No Math in Grade 12. CSBA Annual Conference, December 2013.

  • Using the API to Increase College Readiness in Mathematics Now. Presentation to the California Department of Education's Public Schools Accountability Act Advisory Committee, February 20, 2014.

  • Reclaiming Senior Year: The Effects of No Math in Grade 12. Leadership Institute of Riverside County (LIRC) Secondary Counselors Network Meeting on College-Readiness, February 25, 2014, and College Readiness for All Conference, April 17, 2014.

  • Opting In to 12th-Grade Math Helps Students Say Yes to College Success. College Board Destination Equity 2014 Conference: A Roadmap for Counselor Success, April 12, 2014

  • Focus on Institutional Effectiveness and Setting Standards. Community College League of California Excellence in Trusteeship Program Regional Training, Bakersfield College, May 9, 2014.

  • Can Collaborative K-12/Community College Research Give us the Lift We Need? Accuplacer National Conference, Indianapolis, IN, June 12, 2014.

  • College Begins in Middle School. A-G Forum, Silicon Valley Education Foundation, GSVlabs, Redwood City, CA, May 13, 2015.

  • Moderator and presenter for League of Women Voters Pasadena Area California Public Higher Education for a New Century: Challenges and Changes, February 4, 2016

I enjoy my work as an education researcher. This is a dynamic period in the history of American education; it is a privilege to contribute my skills and experience to improve the high school to community college transition.