About Us
Mission
The Hildreth Institute, a trusted source of independent research, is committed to driving systemic change in higher education by promoting affordability, accountability, and equity, empowering advocates and decision-makers with student-centered, equity-driven policy analysis, thereby, fostering an inclusive and transformative educational landscape.
Vision
At the Hildreth Institute, we envision an inclusive world-class higher education system that ensures students have the support and financial resources they need to fully realize their educational and career goals.
Our Strategies
At the Hildreth Institute, our emphasis is on shaping state-level practices and policies to enhance affordability, access, and success in public higher education.
By examining existing and potential policies with a focus on equity, and by leveraging peer-to-peer insights from various states, we aim to provide stakeholders with the essential information required for developing fair and effective higher education practices and policies.
We strive to:
Conduct Research with an Equity and Empowerment Lens
Inspire Transformational Policy Change in Public Higher Education
Work Towards Achieving Equitable Outcomes and Closing Racial Wealth Gaps
Our History
Co-founded in 2018 by Bob Hildreth and Dr. Bahar Akman Imboden, the Hildreth Institute is an independent research and policy institute that seeks to confront the inequities that are embedded in our higher education systems. After a decade of working directly with students and families from underserved communities, we recognized that transformational change could not be achieved without addressing the underlying systemic factors that perpetuate those inequities.
Our Why
Meet Our Team
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Dr. Bahar Akman Imboden is a researcher and influential thought leader, passionately committed to driving social justice change through insightful research and analysis. Holding a PhD in Political Science, she has dedicated her career to the study of higher education policy, with the aim of developing innovative solutions that advance social, economic, racial justice, and equity. With over 15 years of experience, Bahar has refined her expertise in program evaluation, policy analysis, community-engaged participatory research, coalition building, legislative strategy, and communication.
Bahar's dedication to achieving equity in higher education was ignited during her time at Inversant, an organization committed to delivering financial education and savings incentives for college to families and aspiring students. At Inversant, she gained firsthand insight into the systemic nature of social, economic, gender, and racial disparities. Serving as the Research Director, Bahar leveraged her program evaluation expertise to craft scalable interventions for marginalized communities. In partnership with the Massachusetts Treasurer's Office of Economic Empowerment and the Massachusetts Educational Financing Authority (MEFA), she played a key role in designing, launching, and evaluating state-funded pilot programs. Her efforts culminated in the establishment of the BabySteps Savings Plan in 2020, a universal educational savings program in Massachusetts seeking to empower families through financial education and college savings incentives.
Currently serving as the Managing Director of the Hildreth Institute, Bahar leads the organization's research and policy agenda focused on equity, inclusion, and affordability in higher education. Her notable accomplishments include providing critical research informing policy debates on the need for a more robust and simplified student financial aid system, the adequacy of higher education funding, and the importance of strengthening student loan borrowers’ consumer protections.
Through her efforts to elevate, democratize, and distribute equity-focused research and policy analyses, Bahar remains dedicated to shaping the educational landscape and driving change toward a more just and inclusive society.
Bahar Akman Imboden, PhD
Managing Director, Founding Member
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Hiba is an experienced research professional interested in issues related to social justice and how to confront socio-economic hurdles on a macro scale. She is particularly interested in how to break down systemic issues that contribute to the disempowerment of communities. She believes that rather than placing the burden to overcome systemic barriers on individuals, families and communities whilst maintaining the status quo, we must think about how to remove those barriers altogether and how to make systems more inclusive, diverse, just and equitable.
Hiba holds a B.A. in Middle Eastern Studies from the American University in Cairo and an M.A. in political science from McGill University and has experience managing programs, managing research departments, capacity building initiatives, grant-writing and collaborating on projects with external stakeholders.
Hiba continues to learn about how to improve systems and how to break down barriers. She is interested in conducting more community-engaged research, with the belief that the communities affected are the ones that are best placed to find solutions to the problems they face.
Hiba Agha, M.A.
Director, Strategic Initiatives
Meet Our Fellows and Volunteers
Sara Jean Francois
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Sara Jean-Francois is a Massachusetts native passionate about racial justice, educational opportunity, and women’s rights.
She holds dual degrees in Psychology and Health Policy & Management from Providence College, a Master of Public Policy, and is pursuing an MBA at Brandeis University. Her graduate research focused on evaluating campuses through “race-consciousness” metrics.
As Director of Partnership at OneGoal Massachusetts, she fosters collaborations to ease students’ transitions from high school to college.
A 2020 APPAM Equity and Inclusion Fellow, she earned a Nonprofit Management certification in 2023. Sara has served on YW Boston's Advocacy Committee and the Minds Matter Boston Associate Board, with expertise in partnerships, program development, and organizational support. She aims to promote inclusive practices in education.
Eraste Talla
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Eraste Talla is a passionate advocate for equity and social change, with a strong interest in addressing systemic barriers and fostering inclusive solutions.
He believes in empowering communities by addressing the root causes of inequality and creating innovating and sustainable systems of support.
Eraste holds an associate’s degree in computer science from Bunker Hill Community College and is pursuing a Bachelor of Science in Quantitative Economics at Tufts University.
His background in policy research, advocacy, and student empowerment reflects his commitment to promoting equity and driving meaningful change on both local and global scales.
Muhammad Raees
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Muhammad is a Ph.D student who is in pursuit of wisdom and excellence. He has a research focus on Human-Computer Interaction and Data Science. He brings expertise in human‑centered (interactive) design applying quantitative and qualitative methods with a strong foundation in statistics, analytics, and proficiency in programming (Python, SQL, Web).
Meet Our Board
Bob Hildreth
President
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Following a career in finance in Latin America at the IMF, Citibank, Drexel Burnham Lambert, and his own brokerage company, International Bank Services, Bob entered the nonprofit world to focus on issues of immigration and education.
Upon his return to Boston, he joined with Boston University to improve the education of immigrant children in Chelsea where he helped build the John Silber Early Learning Center. Coming from a family of educators and a stint as a high school history teacher, Bob built three organizations with complementary missions to get low-income students to college, one of which is the Hildreth Institute to advocate for student debt reform and tuition relief.
At the university level Bob has established internship programs at Harvard, BU, Johns Hopkins, Holy Cross, Bunker Hill Community College, and UMass Boston. He was also instrumental in the reconstruction of the Massachusetts Maritime Academy's official sailing ship, the Ernestina.
Bob is a graduate of Harvard University (Class of ’72), and holds master's degrees from Johns Hopkins University SAIS (Class of ‘75) in International Relations, and George Washington University (Class of ‘80) in Economics as well as an honorary doctorate from UMASS (2022). He has served on numerous boards including the BU Board of Trustees and WBUR’s Board of Overseers and presently on UMass Boston’s Board of Visitors, Bunker Hill Community College Board of Advisors .
Dr. Charles Desmond
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Dr. Desmond was appointed by Governor Deval Patrick in September 2008 to the Board of Higher Education and became chair in December 2008. He received his Ed.D in instructional leadership from UMass Amherst and his undergraduate degree from Northeastern University. He is the recipient of 3 honorary doctorates. Dr. Desmond is a US Army Veteran – where he was awarded the Silver and Bronze stars. He is active in civic and community organizations, including service as president of AARP Massachusetts and as a member of the Broad Prize in Urban Education, and Board of Governors for the Northeast and Islands Regional Educational Laboratory at Brown University. He is a member of the Dean’s Leadership Council in the College of Education at UMass Amherst and he serves as Vice-Chair of the UMass Boston Board of Visitors. He is a Senior Fellow at the New England Board of Higher Education and Chairs the Board Advisors for Inversant: the largest children’s saving account initiative in Massachusetts.
Sally Currier
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Sally Currier has been engaged in the work of services for youth and education for several years. She currently serves as a trustee for Phoenix Charter Academy Network. Sally is also an active member of Hestia Boston, a women’s giving circle whose mission is to expand opportunities for women and children from under-represented communities in Greater Boston; she previously served as co-chair and a member of the grants committee. In addition, she serves on the Board of Advisors of the Boston Symphony Orchestra and for Facing History and Ourselves. Previously, she served on the Board of Advisors for WGBH. For the past 15 years, Sally has resided in Boston.
Dr. Stacy Scott
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Dr. Stacy L. Scott is the President of the Center for Understanding Equity. He has worked as an educator, superintendent, psychologist, coach and policy maker. He consults in business, education and non-profit settings focused on strategic planning, capacity building, data driven performance and leadership development. His early research focused on adolescent resilience. He wrote Making Equity Work as a guide for leaders to manage change, increase equity and improve the performance of students and schools. He began his career as a teacher and an educational administrator at the K-12 level. He has worked as an Assistant Superintendent and Superintendent in several districts. He enjoys working on equity and leadership capacity building issues in K-12 and higher education. Dr. Scott sums up his life theme as if it was in pursuit of a single question about how we manage our performance or that of others in the face of obstacles - ‘Why do some succeed while others do not?’
Dr. Scott’s career has focused on improving public education through innovative practices drawn from his wide- ranging experiences as a leading professional in business, education and healthcare. A former teacher, licensed psychologist, author, business leader and policy maker, Dr. Scott brings a unique combination of practical experiences and solid preparation to his leadership endeavors. Dr. Scott received a B.A. in International Government with an emphasis in Spanish language and culture from Harvard College. He is proficient in Spanish, and has made improving services to English Language Learners an important emphasis in his career. In college, he focused on the educational and political systems of Germany, Brazil and the Middle East. His next area of study was in theology and pastoral counseling at Gordon Theological Seminary and Harvard Divinity School. Transferring many of these courses into the doctoral degree in psychology from Harvard’s Graduate School of Education, he focused on community psychology and adolescent development.
Dr. Monnica Chan
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Dr. Monnica Chan is an Assistant Professor in the College of Education and Human Development at UMass Boston. Her research investigates how students pay for college and the impact of financial aid on students, with a particular focus on social and economic inequalities. She explores these issues using descriptive statistics, quasi-experimental methods, and interviews with students and borrowers.
Her research is supported by the American Educational Research Association (AERA), the ECMC Foundation, the Institute of Education Sciences (IES), and the Russell Sage Foundation. Her work is published in outlets such as The Conversation, Educational Researcher and The AIR Professional File.
Dr. Chan earned her Ph.D. in Education Policy and Program Evaluation from the Harvard Graduate School of Education. She previously served as the director of policy and research at the New England Board of Higher Education and an AmeriCorps member at Burlington County College. She holds a M.Ed. from the Harvard Graduate School of Education and a B.A. from Barnard College.
Dr. Scott’s career has focused on improving public education through innovative practices drawn from his wide- ranging experiences as a leading professional in business, education and healthcare. A former teacher, licensed psychologist, author, business leader and policy maker, Dr. Scott brings a unique combination of practical experiences and solid preparation to his leadership endeavors. Dr. Scott received a B.A. in International Government with an emphasis in Spanish language and culture from Harvard College. He is proficient in Spanish, and has made improving services to English Language Learners an important emphasis in his career. In college, he focused on the educational and political systems of Germany, Brazil and the Middle East. His next area of study was in theology and pastoral counseling at Gordon Theological Seminary and Harvard Divinity School. Transferring many of these courses into the doctoral degree in psychology from Harvard’s Graduate School of Education, he focused on community psychology and adolescent development.
Meet Our Advisory Council
Jessica Keegan
Office of Economic Empowerment
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Jessica is the BabySteps Program Manager for the Office of Economic Empowerment. Jessica started out by gaining professional experience with the Senate Committee on Policy & Steering, and later Governor Baker’s Office of Boards & Commissions before transitioning full-time to supporting the Massachusetts's COVID-19 response with Partners-In-Health.
Jessica received a Bachelor’s Degree in Politics, Philosophy, and Economics from Suffolk University in Boston. She is committed to closing the racial & gender wealth gaps, promoting economic mobility, and anti-poverty initiatives, which she does in her current role managing the Massachusetts Children's Savings Account (CSA) BabySteps for the Massachusetts Office of the Treasurer and Receiver General.
Adam Seidel
OneGoal
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Adam is committed to systemic change to remove barriers to education for young people across Massachusetts. He currently serves as the Regional Vice President at OneGoal Massachusetts where he leads OneGoal’s state-level strategy, including increasing public awareness of issues that impact young people through their educational journey. Prior to this role, Adam served as Managing Director of Program at OneGoal since 2017, helping to establish OneGoal in the region and ensuring program impact. Before joining OneGoal, Adam held various school leadership positions including Director of Operations and Head of School. Adam holds a Bachelor of Arts and Sciences in Politics from Oberlin College and a Master’s in Public Administration from Baruch College.
Lawrence Chan
The Klarman Family Foundation
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Lawrence is the Grants Analyst at the Klarman Family Foundation, an organization that works to identify and address areas of unmet need. Prior to that role, Lawrence first interned at the Hildreth Institute as a Forest Foundation Fellow and then joined the team full-time as a Research and Operations Assistant. He holds a Bachelor's Degree in Sociology from Emmanuel College. In the summer, Lawrence will be leaving the Klarman Family Foundation to enroll in law school.
Vishakha Agarwal
Massachusetts Teachers Association
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Vishakha is an Education Research & Policy Specialist at the Massachusetts Teachers Association (MTA) where her research focuses on PreK-12 and higher education policy and finance. Through her work, she continues to learn about how financial resources are allocated in education and the impact of these allocations on student outcomes. Her work is deeply rooted in addressing social justice issues and breaking down social, economic, and systemic barriers that hinder educational opportunities for students from marginalized and socially disadvantaged communities.
Vishakha holds a Bachelor of Science in Economics from Shiv Nadar University in India and a Ph.D. in Public Policy from the University of Massachusetts Boston. Prior to her role at the MTA, she worked at the Center for Social Policy where she gained research experience into the systemic nature of social, economic, racial, and gender disparities in public education.
Vishakha is committed to producing research that is engaged and collaborative with students, educators and community partners. She is passionate about using data to promote education equity and create a positive and equitable learning and teaching environment for students and educators.
Meet Our Supporters
Our Organizational Commitment
Diversity, Equity, Inclusion & Justice
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Organizational Strategies in Support of Diversity:
Cultivating curiosity by asking questions and listening to learn something new
Acknowledging the subconscious assumptions we make
Being aware of how our beliefs affect the decisions we make and how we interpret and report data
Continually reviewing our policies and practices for bias
Intentionally prioritizing team diversity through hiring strategies
Participating in professional learning opportunities that build our knowledge and skills to implement research and evaluation strategies that address diversity
Research and Evaluation Strategies in Support of Diversity:
Using culturally responsive study designs that bring multiple voices, experiences, and outcomes to the forefront
Taking a participatory or empowerment approach to evaluations involving underrepresented, marginalized, and disempowered populations to ensure all aspects of studies are culturally representative and appropriate
Partnering with individuals and organizations who not only express a commitment to antiracism and antidiscrimination practices, but whose actions back up that commitment
Advocating to clients and funders the importance of addressing diversity in our research and evaluation strategies
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Organizational Strategies in Support of Equity:
Giving team members access to support and opportunities to address barriers and challenges that could affect their overall health and wellbeing
Providing equitable pay to team members
Establishing recruiting and hiring practices that include working with organizations and platforms that reach diverse populations
Research and Evaluation Strategies in Support of Equity
Asking questions of our clients and in our studies about the systems and conditions that have maintained inequities among underrepresented, marginalized, and disempowered groups
Ensuring we communicate findings in an accessible and understandable way for all stakeholders and advocating to clients the importance of supporting information accessibility
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Organizational Strategies in Support of Inclusion:
Cultivating an environment where everyone can thrive and feel valued as well as where they can value themselves and feel inspired
Creating space for connection, celebration, input, ownership, leadership, mindfulness, and collaboration
Seek out others who might offer different perspectives from our own
Research and Evaluation Strategies in Support of Inclusion:
Making our study findings accessible to those who would use them to catalyze action for positive change
Communicating to study participants that their voices matter, and everyone’s voice is respected and honored
Represent study participants’ voice in reporting study findings through direct quotes, vignettes that capture participant experiences, and recommendations that focus on acknowledging and elevating participant and stakeholder voice
Interacting with others with kindness, openness, and respect so they feel welcome and justly treated
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Organizational Strategies in Support of Justice:
Intentionally asking team members and partners how we can do better to respond to the needs of underrepresented, marginalized, and disempowered groups
Developing an understanding of the intersection between research and evaluation practices and discrimination, marginalization, and inequities
Recognizing and supporting partners who are actively engaged in efforts to promote justice
Research and Evaluation Strategies in Support of Justice:
Integrating research and evaluation questions aimed at advancing social justice into study designs
Seeking partnerships with organizations that advocate for social justice and welfare for underrepresented, marginalized, and disempowered populations
Seeking funding for studies that give a voice to populations who have been oppressed, devalued, or marginalized and elevating understanding of their experiences and rights
Putting study results in the hands of those positioned to take action for catalyzing positive change
Our Values
We advocate on behalf of students and families on higher education-related issues.
Our recommendations are grounded in data, research, and analysis.
We provide an unbiased and actionable set of policy solutions by which we empower students.