Ila is an expert on K12 measurement and assessment, college and career readiness and innovation in education. She provides strategy and research support to funders, nonprofit leaders, and state and district education leaders. A first-generation American and woman of color, Ila believes that building coherent, effective and more-responsive systems for students of color and students living in poverty in the United States requires us to see and tackle structural inequities head on. Ila’s clients have included: Chan Zuckerberg Initiative, Equal Opportunity Schools, EL Education, NewSchools Venture Fund, Oak Foundation, Overdeck Family Foundation, and the Gates Foundation.
Ila previously served as TNTP’s Director of External Evaluation where she launched and/or completed six studies in partnership with leading researchers and some of the nation’s largest school districts. Ila was a key contributor to TNTP’s $20M+ i3 grant and served as Project Director. Ila also taught mathematics and was research director at the Boston Plan for Excellence.
Ila holds a bachelor’s degree in Political Science & Education from Swarthmore College and a PhD in Child Development from Tufts University. She lives in Boston, MA with her husband and two young children.
