The Houston Education Research Consortium is a research-practice partnership between the Kinder Institute and 11 Houston-area school districts to guide data-driven, equity-minded policy. HERC uses a jointly developed research agenda that involves both researchers and school district leaders working together on critical issues to improve educational equity. The research center follows a long-term, rather than project-based, collaboration to solve longstanding problems with a focus on informing decision-makers directly.
Initiatives
Research
The Literacy by 3 Classroom Practices and Campus Literacy Growth study is the first to examine the relationship between Literacy by 3 practices and campus literacy growth in HISD.

An Alternative Approach to Measuring Student Immigrant Generation
The goal of this methodological study is to evaluate the efficacy of an innovative approach to create a proxy indicator of immigrant generation for school districts to use when data on immigrant generation or parent birthplace are unavailable.

Long-term English Learners (LTELs): Increases in LTELs in Texas (Part 2)
This brief highlights the increasing percent of English learners becoming long-term English learners in the last two decades and points to a set of mechanisms that may serve to explain this increase.

COVID-19 Pandemic in the Houston Region (Parts 1-3)
This three-report series focuses on the impact of the pandemic on families's well-being, employment, education and more.

Changing Schools: Student mobility in Texas and across the Houston region (Parts 1-3)
Houston Education Research Consortium, in collaboration with 10 public school districts in the Houston area, embarked on a multi-year study of student mobility in Texas and across the Houston area to better understand which students change schools and the consequences those changes have for educational outcomes.

This study stems from the first annual Needs Assessment Survey created and administered by the Houston Independent School District (HISD). Findings from the survey indicate that families could use additional support in four key areas: healthcare, mental health, housing and food security, and school supplies.

House Bill 5 and High School Endorsements: How Do They Align to College Admissions?
This policy brief describes the Texas high school graduation requirements put into effect through the passage of House Bill 5 in 2013. The brief contends the introduction of academic endorsements, similar to college majors, may create clearer paths to selective college enrollment for students studying STEM.

Long-term English Learners (LTELs): Predictors, Patterns, & Outcomes, Defining LTEL (Part 1)
This is the first in a series of briefs the Houston Education Research Consortium (HERC) will release on long-term English learners (LTELs).

Pre-K Preferences: How and Why HISD Parents Choose Pre-K Programs (Part 3)
The aims of this study are to identify characteristics that drive pre-k enrollment, understand where parents receive their information about HISD pre-k options, and understand parental beliefs about which program characteristics are most important.

Preparing Today’s Students for Tomorrow’s Texas Workforce
Motivated by the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board’s 60×30TX strategic plan, this project examined the path to and through college and into the workforce for students in the Houston area and state of Texas.

Physical Address
Rice University
Kraft Hall
6100 Main Street, Suite 305
Houston, TX 77005-1892