Lorraine McDonnell

University of California, Santa Barbara

Professor Emerita, Department of Political Science

Lorraine McDonnell is an emerita professor of political science at the University of California, Santa Barbara. Prior to coming to UCSB, she was a senior political scientist at RAND. Her research has focused on the design and implementation of K-12 education policies and their effects on school practice. In recent studies, she examined the politics of student testing, particularly the curricular and political values underlying state assessment policies. Her publications have focused on various aspects of education policy and politics, including teacher unions, the education of immigrant students, and the role of citizen deliberation. She served on the National Research Council's Board on Testing and Assessment, and the NRC's advisory committee for the Division of Behavioral and Social Sciences and Education. She was the 2008-09 president of the American Educational Research Association.