Heather L. Schwartz

Heather L. Schwartz is vice president, director, and senior policy researcher in the Education and Labor Division at RAND Corporation, where she is codirector of the American School District Panel and American Youth Panel. She is also a professor at the Pardee RAND Graduate School. Her research focuses on education and housing policies aimed at reducing the negative effects of poverty on children and families; her work spans economically integrative housing and school programs, early childhood learning, school choice, and school accountability measures. She has expertise in benefit-cost analyses, survey design, and qualitative and quantitative research methods. As codirector of two national survey panels, she gathers insights from youth and school district superintendents on a wide range of education issues. Schwartz received her PhD in education policy from Columbia University.

updated 2025