Joseph DeStefano

Joseph DeStefano has 30 years of experience with a full range of K-12 education issues, including teacher policy, teacher professional development, early grade reading assessment, school-community relations, education system finance, EMIS, and policy and institutional reform. He has provided policy analysis and data support to several urban school districts in the U.S. and to numerous ministries of education throughout the developing world.

In his current role, Mr. DeStefano is leading RTI's work on supporting education system reforms related to the policies, strategies, and management capacities necessary to improve learning outcomes on a large scale. He provides technical assistance and policy support to programs throughout sub-Saharan Africa and Asia and contributes to building countries' capacity to improve education and governance.

He has researched a variety of topics, including the political economy of education reform, the effectiveness and efficiency of community-based schooling, education system contributions to meeting workforce demand, and teacher deployment. Most recently, he has authored numerous analytical reports, facilitated high-level dialogue, and supported policy decision-making related to improving the teaching and learning or reading in the early grades of primary school.

He has expertise in project design, management, and support, as well as research, data analysis, and evaluation.