The Measure of a Career

After leading the National Center on Educational Outcomes (NCEO) at the Institute on Community Integration and contributing to its success as a bellwether for testing access and appropriate accommodations for students over the course of her career, Sheryl Lazarus has announced her retirement, effective November 27.

Lazarus’ work to include students with disabilities and English learners with and without disabilities in instruction and assessments helped make schools more accountable for providing appropriate education for all students, said Amy Hewitt, ICI director.

“She is one of the nation's leading experts on educational assessment for students with disabilities and those who are English language learners and is highly sought after by state and federal agencies to share her knowledge and provide consultation,” Hewitt said. “Dr. Lazarus’ steadfast commitment to leading the NCEO team’s work and the numerous outcomes achieved by NCEO and many other projects during her career are a testament to the success and longevity of this line of research at ICI. I am so appreciative of the leadership she has provided, the many researchers she has trained, and the legacy she leaves behind at ICI.”

Lazarus joined NCEO as a graduate research assistant in 2001 and earned a doctorate in educational policy and administration from the University of Minnesota in 2004. After serving as a research scientist for the Institute of Education Sciences (IES) at the U.S. Department of Education, she returned to the University of Minnesota in 2007 as a research associate. She served as assistant director of NCEO from 2016 until she was named director in 2019. She also served as director of the National Technical Assistance Center on Inclusive Practices and Policies (TIES Center) from 2017 until 2021. She also directs the Making Improved Decisions for Students on the Cusp of Alternate Assessment Participation Using Multiple Measures of Academic Achievement from Multiple Sources (MIDAS) subcontract. MIDAS is a U.S. Department of Education project that is creating materials for educators on using data from multiple measures of academic achievement to inform instructional decision-making for students with disabilities who move from alternate to general assessments.

“Sheryl is a leader who is nationally known and respected by state departments of education,” said Martha Thurlow, who led NCEO prior to Lazarus’ appointment. “I was honored to work with her as a graduate student, during her time with the Institute of Education Services, as an NCEO staff member, and most recently as the director of NCEO. She will be missed, and I wish her the best.”

Going forward, NCEO Assistant Director Kristin Liu and Andrew Hinkle will co-direct NCEO. Hinkle and Linda Goldstone will direct the MIDAS project.

Liu praised Lazarus’ leadership in developing assessment accommodation resources that state education agency staff and others can use to form policy.

“She has the ability to envision universal technical assistance products that are needed, as well as to streamline existing products so they stay relevant,” Liu said, citing Lazarus’ role in creating a web-based accommodations toolkit with information on state accommodations policy and summaries of related research literature.

During her career, Lazarus oversaw national projects funded by the U.S. Department of Education and other entities, served on numerous technical advisory committees for individual states, and participated as a peer reviewer for the Office of Elementary and Secondary Education. She authored 10 book chapters, including a historical look at how accessibility supports, and accommodations have been provided over time for the 2023 book Assessment in Special and Inclusive Education . She contributed over two dozen papers to peer-reviewed publications and authored over 200 reports.

NCEO was founded in 1990 by Robert Bruininks, who later became president of the University of Minnesota. Lazarus credited Bruininks and Thurlow with lighting the torch that has carried NCEO through a long line of successful refunding competitions. Lazarus also noted that she was fortunate to have an incredible staff.

“I am extremely honored to have had the opportunity to serve as director of NCEO,” she said. “Anything I accomplished was accomplished because of the dedication and assistance of the team."

When Lazarus began her doctorate program, she received three graduate research assistantship offers. She asked her adviser which to take.

“He said, ‘Go with Martha; you’ll learn more with her,’” Lazarus said. “I took his advice and came to NCEO. At the time, I had no clue that the assistantship would lead to an incredible career at a center whose work has truly improved outcomes for students with disabilities, English learners, and English learners with disabilities.”