LAEP’s Evaluation, Accountability, and Impact (EAI) department’s mission is to authentically partner with our colleagues, interest holders, and clients to design and implement culturally responsive and racially equitable evaluations that amplify stories of impact. Aligned with the lived experiences of the people we serve, our highly qualified and diverse team designs human-centered evaluations, shares data in innovative, accessible and actionable ways to support decision-making, and strengthens the evaluation capacity of interest holders.
At LAEP, our EAI team merges community-rooted experience with data-driven insights to make your impact easier to measure and your equity goals easier to advance.
Evaluation, Accountability, and Impact
For over 25 years, Dr. Rosa Valdés has conducted applied research on educational programs and teaching approaches, focusing on improving educational outcomes of underrepresented people. She worked at UCLA’s Center for Research on Evaluation Standards and Student Testing, helping to improve instructional and assessment approaches and conducting school-based program evaluations. At LAUSD’s Program Evaluation and Research Branch, she directed several multi-tier, multi-pronged studies of the impact of districtwide policies and programs spanning from Kindergarten to grade 12. Dr. Valdés has mentored educational researchers, research fellows, and interns, and she has advised executive staff on leadership professional development. She was recognized for her work on school-based interventions for struggling readers at the Association for Public Policy Analysis and Management and for outstanding evaluation by the American Education Research Association. She currently oversees evaluations in the areas of early education, community empowerment, teacher learning, and Early Head Start. Rosa is a native of Los Angeles and loves to explore LA neighborhoods through her love of running and hiking. She also lived in Mexico City and enjoys traveling, gardening, crocheting, and listening to her two sons’ music.
Positionality Statement: I am a cisgender bilingual Latina evaluator and community researcher with a background in Education and Program Evaluation. As a former foster youth, a first-generation college graduate, the daughter of Central American immigrants, a mother of a mixed-heritage 10-year-old boy, I acknowledge the rich personal experience that I bring to the evaluation of various initiatives. While my personal and professional experiences inform my evaluation and research, I also strive to approach my work with humility and amplify the experiences of diverse community members, especially those who face inequities while supporting their families and communities.
Positionality Statement: I identify as a transgender, queer, Latinx evaluator and community-based researcher with a background in education and educational evaluation. I am second-generation Mexican American and come from a background wherein education was uplifted and supported by family. I acknowledge the inherent privilege that comes from being able to access and be supported through my educational journey, and it is my personal ethos to use the knowledge and experience I have gained from my education to empower and uplift the communities I work within. I strive to bring my personal experiences, identity, and education into my work to amplify and work in service of diverse communities.
Melissa Peña serves as the Chief Program Officer at the Los Angeles Education Partnership (LAEP), bringing more than two decades of experience advancing educational equity, youth development, and community-centered systems change. A mission-driven and strategic leader, she has dedicated her career to eliminating barriers to learning and seeking equitable outcomes for historically underserved youth. Prior to joining LAEP, Melissa spent over 14 years at Green Dot Public Schools where she launched and scaled high-impact initiatives that reduced chronic absenteeism by 27%, expanded access to wellness services, and built network-wide support systems for more than 600 homeless and foster youth across 18 schools. Her leadership is rooted in both entrepreneurial vision and disciplined execution—designing programs, teams, and infrastructure that strengthen outcomes for students while supporting the adults who serve them.
Melissa’s commitment to equity has shaped her work across roles in education, youth development, and human services, including senior leadership positions at The Door in New York City and national diversity recruitment efforts at Teach For America. She began her career as a fourth-grade teacher in Newark, New Jersey, a formative experience that continues to ground her belief that the key to ensuring every young person meets their full potential lies in the power of family–school–community partnerships. At LAEP, Melissa leads program strategy with empathy, clarity, and a deep belief that children thrive when systems work together from “diapers to diplomas.” She holds a Master’s in Education from the Harvard Graduate School of Education and a B.A. in Sociology from UC Santa Barbara. Outside of work, she enjoys researching her family history, exploring nature, and family movie nights with her husband and two children.
LaCora is a seasoned communications professional with a passion for using multimedia
storytelling to empower movements for social justice and equality. For over 13 years, she has
honed her skills as a versatile multimedia director, overseeing media operations across diverse
organizations, including the NAACP Beverly Hills-Hollywood Branch and The Shirley Chisholm
Education Foundation. Her deep understanding of the education and equity landscape fuels her
creative vision, allowing her to craft impactful narratives that resonate with audiences.
With strategic communication and collaboration, LaCora excels in developing and executing
compelling multimedia campaigns that not only raise awareness of critical issues but also
inspire action and drive meaningful change. Her proficiency in concept development, production
execution, and team leadership ensures projects are delivered with exceptional quality.
Furthermore, LaCora fosters strong relationships with internal and external stakeholders,
cultivating partnerships that maximize campaign reach and impact.
LaCora's educational foundation began with a Bachelor of Science in Theatre Education from
Florida A&M University. She then pursued a master’s degree in TESOL (Teaching English to
Speakers of Other Languages) from Alliant University of San Diego. This passion for
storytelling, fueled by her background in education, translates to her belief in the power of
shared narratives. Her work in this area was recognized through her selection as a Women in
Film Mentee and film director for Viola Davis’ sponsored film showcase, Diversity in Cannes.
Now, LaCora leverages her love of storytelling and commitment to educational equity in her role
leading marketing and communications for Los Angeles Education Partnership, while also
serving on the board of the Pasadena African American Film Foundation.
Dr. Eric Barela has worked as a measurement & evaluation professional for over 2 decades, helping organizations to better understand and act on their social impact. He’s currently a Senior Consultant with Raya Cooper Impact Consulting and previously worked at Salesforce, where he led efforts to measure the social impact of the company’s work with nonprofits and educational institutions across the globe. He began his career working with the Los Angeles Unified School District and with the nonprofit, Partners in School Innovation. Eric previously served on the Board of the American Evaluation Association and currently serves on the Editorial Advisory Board of the American Journal of Evaluation.
Eric grew up in East LA and was educated in the Montebello Unified School District. He holds a Ph.D. in education from UCLA. He loves a good road trip, with his husband serving as trusty navigator.
