Explore Research By Focus Area
POSTSECONDARY
FINANCE & STUDENT AID
Understanding affordability, financial aid, access, and the policies shaping postsecondary opportunity
Examining education, workforce, health, and opportunity through a place-based lens
WORKFORCE DEVELOPMENT
& CAREER PATHWAYS
Connecting education, employers, credentials, apprenticeship, and economic mobility
Research Focus Areas
Policy is a dynamic intersection of needs and solutions, not a simple two-way street. To navigate this complexity, the Education Policy Center leverages interdisciplinary research to improve the lives of people in Alabama and beyond. With a foundation of over 65 published briefs, we transform rigorous data into actionable policy — connecting research from across the UA College of Education to educators, policymakers, and communities shaping education in Alabama and the nation.
Since 2005, we have published…
67 ISSUE BRIEFS
29 JURIED ARTICLES
3 GOVERNMENT EVALUATIONS
Thanks to the Center’s work with Alabama school leaders, annual National Access and Finance Surveys,
Pell Grant studies, and our partnership with the Rural Community College Alliance, we have established
ourselves as the Deep South’s leading voice for non-partisan education policy research and reform.
Since 2005, we’ve attracted more than $4.6 million in externally funded contracts and grants. We have
published more than 65 issue briefs and reports, which are regularly cited in national education media and
mainstream publications. Our training materials can be found in all 137 city and county school districts
across Alabama. And our efforts have shaped the state’s educational infrastructure.