Dr. Diana Cordova-Cobo

What I Work On:  In my role as a Research Fellow, I provide guidance and support for our research and program evaluation activities. I collaborate with my colleagues to ensure our methods and tools are aligned with equitable research practices and work towards our broader goal of focusing on the needs of historically underserved students. Additionally, I provide project-based advisement in the areas of Culturally Responsive-Sustaining Education, public policy, and racial equity in the education field.

Why I Work Here: As a first-generation college students and former middle school teacher turned education researcher, I believe in the potential of research to inform practice in ways that can create a more just and equitable education system for our students. SAP’s dedication to directly naming and addressing the inequities built into our education system that have left racially marginalized students and multilingual learners at the margins is what brought me here.

My Education and Experience:  Prior to joining Students Achievement Partners in 2021, I worked as a Research Associate at the Center for Understanding Race and Education/The Public Good at Columbia University's Teachers College. I have also worked as a Research Scholar at The National Research Center on Hispanic Children and Families, as a Senior Research and Policy Analyst at the NYU Furman Center, and as a research consultant for education agencies, universities, and nonprofits. As part of my work with these organizations, I have authored and co-authored several public and confidential reports that aim to shift the education field towards racially-just practices and policies. In addition to my current work at SAP, I sit on the advisory board for The Just Education Policy Institute. I hold a Ph.D. in Sociology and Education and an M.A. in Social Studies Education from Columbia University's Teachers College and a B.A. in Political Science with honors from the University of Florida.

More About Me: I live in the Hudson Valley of New York by way of South Florida and New York City. In the evenings and on the weekends, you can find my partner and I chasing around our three very energetic daughters and our rescue dog Rocky.

A Quote That Inspires Me: “If you have come here to help me, you are wasting your time. But if you have come because your liberation is bound up with mine, then let us work together.”- Lilla Watson