Heather J. Hough

heather_hough
Heather J. Hough
Senior Policy and Research Fellow,
Policy Analysis for California Education, Stanford University

Heather J. Hough is a senior research and policy fellow and former executive director of Policy Analysis for California Education (PACE) at Stanford University. As executive director, she led major statewide initiatives connecting research, policy, and practice. Hough is also an independent consultant and nationally recognized expert in education policy and governance. She works with state and local leaders to strengthen education systems with a focus on strategic planning, policy coherence, system improvement, and collaborative decision making. Her consulting practice helps organizations translate evidence into action by aligning goals, policies, and resources to improve student outcomes and rebuild public trust in education. She is an active volunteer and board member at the local and state levels, where she advances meaningful policy changes that improve people’s lives and strengthen public services delivery. Hough received her PhD in education policy from Stanford University.

updated 2025

Contributing topics
Access, quality & alignment in early childhood education
College access & postsecondary success
Continuous school improvement & support
Education finance
Educational governance & policy
Educator workforce & effectiveness
Supporting students’ social-emotional, mental & physical health
Understanding, measuring & improving student outcomes
Contributing initiatives
Continuous Improvement and Support Systems in California
CORE-PACE Research Partnership
COVID-19 Recovery
Getting Down To Facts II
LCFF Research Collaborative
Organizing Schools to Serve Students with Disabilities
PACE/USC Rossier Voter Poll
Commentary by Heather J. Hough
: Why Aren’t Students Showing Up for School?: Understanding the Complexity Behind Rising Rates of Chronic Absenteeism
: Chronic Absenteeism Post-Pandemic: Let’s Not Make This Our “New Normal”
: California Test Scores Show the Devastating Impact of the Pandemic on Student Learning
: Implementing a Restorative Restart by Planning for the Four Ts: Time, Talent, Training, and Technology/Materials
: COVID-19 and the Educational Equity Crisis: Evidence on Learning Loss From the CORE Data Collaborative
Heather J. Hough in the Media
Reversing Pandemic-Related Reading Losses
 | The Free Lance-Star
Covid-19, the Educational Equity Crisis, and the Opportunity Ahead
 | Brookings Institution
Mental Health, Equity Should Be Schools’ Focus as Students Return
 | EdSource
Debate Over School Re-Openings Rages in US
 | NHK World-Japan
Lower Rates of Oral Reading Fluency Across Nation
 | American Federation of School Administrators
Publications by Heather J. Hough
Report Polikoff Feb 2020
Californians and Public Education
Views from the 2020 PACE/USC Rossier Poll
In the run-up to 2020 elections, where do California voters stand on key education policy issues? This report examines findings and trends from the 2020 PACE/USC Rossier poll. Key findings include rising pessimism about California education and…
R_Perry_Feb20
What’s Next for California Schools?
A Progress Report One Year After Getting Down to Facts II
The 2018 Getting Down to Facts II research project drew attention to California’s continued need to focus on the achievement gap, strengthen the capacity of educators in support of continuous improvement, and attend to both the adequacy and…
Can We Measure Classroom Supports for Social-Emotional Learning?
This study uses value-added models to explore whether social-emotional learning (SEL) surveys can measure effective classroom-level supports for SEL. Results show that classrooms differ in their effect on students' growth in self-reported SEL,…
School Differences in Social–Emotional Learning Gains: Findings From the First Large-Scale Panel Survey of Students
School Differences in Social-Emotional Learning Gains
Findings From the First Large-Scale Panel Survey of Students
This article discusses the use of standardized tests as the primary tool for assessing school-level growth in student outcomes, despite the emerging importance of social-emotional learning (SEL). It presents results from large-scale surveys of…