Gardner Center staff produce a wide range of publications, from articles in peer-reviewed journals to research reports for community partners, case studies, and more.
Gardner Center staff produce a wide range of publications, from articles in peer-reviewed journals to research reports for community partners, case studies, and more.
This report, based on almost ten years of research by the Gardner Center, examines California’s complex English learner reclassification system and how it produces unequal outcomes across school districts. It also demonstrates how districts have been able to improve reclassification rates by aligning leader mindsets, streamlining procedures, and expanding pathways to meet reclassification criteria.
Gardner Center research shows that English Learners (EL) who were reclassified as fluent in English under revised criteria performed better than their peers who retained the EL label, both academically and socially.
Long-Term English Learners are students who have been classified as English Learners for more than seven years — and Gardner Center research sheds important light on who these students are and what they need to thrive.
In a Texas school district at the center of a recent measles outbreak, student absences increased 41% compared with the two prior years — an impact 10 times greater than expected for the number of reported infections. Researchers attributed the unexpectedly high figure to precautionary absences, such as parents choosing to keep their children home.
A small study of high school freshman and parents identified practices that can foster a sense of belonging during the significant transition from middle school to high school.
A five-year study of a college access program in San José shows how communities can support youth in underserved neighborhoods pursue a path toward postsecondary education.
With guidance from the Gardner Center, student fellows from Hawai‘i conducted a research project to document students’ journeys to postsecondary success and offer recommendations to the Hawai‘i Community Foundation, the project sponsor.
Since 2020, the Gardner Center has been following over 500 students participating in the San Jose Aspires program to examine the relationship between their participation and their readiness for and persistence in higher education.
California law now requires that school districts report outcomes for Long-Term English Learners, and new Gardner Center research identifies real-world improvements to the reclassification process as a way to support their academic success.
San Mateo County seeks to be a good steward of “community data”—information regarding residents’ demographics, experiences, perspectives, and needs. Funded by Stanford's Office of Community Engagement, the Gardner Center partnered with the county to conduct a landscape analysis to understand how, to what extent, and why departments, units, and supervisorial districts gather and use community data as a way to identify strategic opportunities for advancing the county’s goals.
Faculty Director Thomas Dee has continued his ongoing study of absenteeism, and his latest research shows a concerning increase in student absences in school districts experiencing intensified immigration enforcement.
Research led by Thomas Dee shows that a new college-level AP Computer Science class — focused on concepts in computing — draws more female, Black, and Hispanic students without affecting participation in the original course and increases participation in other AP subjects.
Between 2020 and 2024, the Gardner Center supported six cohorts of youth researchers to engage in qualitative research studies of their peers. This brief summarizes common themes across these six studies, particularly as they pertain to the factors that supported or complicated student experiences on their journeys to and through college.
San Mateo County's SPARK program (Shaping Positive and Resilient Kids) was developed to ensure that children living in homes affected by domestic violence receive the support they need to heal and thrive. The Theory of Change developed by the Gardner Center provides a framework for the county to understand and track the program's progress.
This study examines a controversial, equity-focused mathematics reform in the San Francisco Unified School District (SFUSD) that delayed Algebra I until ninth grade for all students.
The Gardner Center documented the implementation and benefits of a mental health crisis response pilot program in San Mateo County, California.
This report details the complementary roles of law enforcement and clinicians when co-responding to a mental health-related emergency.
This implementation brief focuses on a defining feature of the CWCRT program that makes it unique from more traditional emergency response strategies: clinician follow-up focused on supporting continuity of care.
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