Dr. Adriana Villavicencio
Author, Scholar, Educator
Dr. Villavicencio is an Assistant Professor at the University of California, Irvine. Her research is focused on K-12 educational policy and school practice that deepens or disrupts inequities for students of colors and their families. For nearly a decade, she conducted research at the Research Alliance for New York City Schools at NYU—a Research-Practice Partnership with the NYC Department of Education (DOE).
Her book, Am I My Brother’s Keeper: Educational Opportunities and Outcomes for Black and Brown Boys, published by Harvard Education Press, examines how districts and schools can embed racial equity into policy and practice. The book also provides a set of concrete approaches, so that other districts and schools can take up similar efforts with even more robust results.
Dr. Adriana Villavicencio brings together extensive research and community engagement to share perspectives and practical tools with educators in improving equity in schools.
Dr. Villavicencio has received over $11.5 million in grants (as PI or co-PI) from several different funding sources, including the National Science Foundation, the Spencer Foundation, and the William T. Grant Foundation. Her work has appeared in a number of peer-reviewed journals, including Educational Policy, Harvard Educational Review, Peabody Journal of Education, and Teaching and Teacher Education. She is currently on the Editorial Board of Review of Educational Research. In 2021, she received a Faculty Mentorship Award for Inclusive Excellence.
Dr. Villavicencio has conducted research at MDRC, the RAND Corporation, and Westat. She is a recipient of the Founders Fellowship from New York University and a Graduate Student Fellowship from MDRC. Dr. Villavicencio served on the advisory board for the Young Women’s Initiative; as a member New York State’s Board of Regents Research Workgroup on Integration, Diversity and Equity; and as President of the Board of Directors for the Latino Alumni Association of Columbia University.
Prior to becoming a researcher, she taught high school English in Oakland, California and Brooklyn, New York. She also worked on the development of a new school in Bangalore, India. Dr. Villavicencio earned her Ph.D. in education leadership and policy from the NYU Steinhardt School of Culture, Education, and Human Development. She also holds an M.A. in English Education from Teachers College, Columbia University, and a B.A. in English from Columbia University.