Dr. Alicia Okpareke

Alicia Okpareke is a Senior Research Associate who works with the Research Practice Partnerships teams at WestEd. Dr. Okpareke supports state departments of education, districts, schools, and community organizations with technical assistance and in designing and implementing research programs. She currently leads or contributes to multiple technical assistance and applied research partnerships focused on educator pathways, early career teacher retention, elementary literacy learning and special education systems support. 

Dr. Okpareke’s career began as a K-12 teacher and data coordinator in Chicago Public Schools. She also served as an associate professor in a department of education at an IHE in Illinois where she taught undergraduate and graduate-level courses as well as led several research projects focused on new teacher preparation and recruitment, including serving as principal investigator on an NSF-funded grant focused on diversifying the teacher workforce. She holds a PhD in Special Education as well as a graduate certificate in measurement, evaluation, statistics, and assessment.