Our Team

The St. Louis Research Practice Partnership is a collaborative effort between area researchers and St. Louis regional school leaders to respond to the needs of students and educators using rigorous research.

We’re a multi-institutional collaborative, convened by the St. Louis Community Foundation and guided by a Steering Committee.

Jay Hartman

Executive Director, Center for Education Leadership

Research Team

Director of Youth Connections, St. Louis Community Foundation

Renata Bule


Assistant Director, Center for Education Leadership
Assistant Director of Youth Connections, St. Louis Community Foundation

Research Associate Professor, Brown School

Saras Chung, Ph.D, MSW

Cecil T. Barnes, Ph.d

Postdoctoral Research Associate
 Director, Social System Design Lab at Washington University

Saint Louis Translational Fellowship in Education

Staff

Andy Butler

Professor of Education

Megumi Hine, Ph.D

Postdoctoral Research Associate

Saint Louis Translational Fellowship in Education

Professor of Psychological & Brain Sciences
Washington University

Committees

  • The Steering Committee of the STL RPP makes big picture recommendations for the RPP as whole, particularly in the areas of process, funding, strategy, participants, research agendas etc.


    2025-2026 Members:

    • Jay Hartman, STLCF

    • Dara Eskridge, Invest STL

    • Terry Harris, The Legacy Center

    • Adam Layne, Treasurer, City of St. Louis

    • Miranda Ming, KM Educational Design

    • Karishma Furtado, Urban Institute

  • The purpose of the PEC is to strengthen the connection between research and practice within the STL RPP by ensuring that knowledge is co-developed, meaningfully interpreted, and actively used to inform decision-making throughout the research and information dissemination process. The PEC helps to ensure that our research and focus on practice-based knowledge is relevant, equitable, and actionable.

    Relaunching in Fall 2026

  • This committees ensures research rigor and integrity, and conducts peer review of projects before publication.

    Launching in Fall 2026.