Dr. Melanie LaForce has twenty years of experience in research and evaluation. She is an expert in research design, project management, analysis and synthesis. Dr. LaForce was the principal investigator of multiple large-scale grants at the University of Chicago, where she worked for 12 years. Her work has influenced public policy at the district, state, national, and international level. LaForce has a human-centered perspective on research, developing comprehensive methods that best capture and describe the experiences of those we serve.

LaForce has broad experience in program evaluation, particularly quasi-experimental and mixed-methods designs. A social psychologist, LaForce develops social research measures (such as surveys, interviews, and secondary data analysis) with a focus on precision and power.