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Frances Contreras Associate Professor Director, Higher Education Program M205 Miller, Box 353600 College of Education, University of Washington Seattle, WA 98195-3600 francesc@u.washington.edu

Education Publications

Dr. Contreras presently researches issues of equity and access for underrepresented students in the education pipeline. She addresses transitions between K-12 and higher education, community college transfer, faculty diversity, affirmative action in higher education, and the role of the public policy arena in higher education access for underserved students of color. In addition to her research and teaching, Dr. Contreras serves on the Boards of the Harvard Journal of Hispanic Policy, LEAP, and the ACLU of Washington.

Education

Ph.D., Stanford University, 2003

M. Ed., Harvard University, 1995

B.A., University of California, Berkeley, 1994

Select Publications      

Books
Contreras, F. ( June 2011). Achieving Equity for Latino Students: Expanding the Pathway to Higher Education Through Public Policy. New York: Teachers College Press.
Book Information»

Gandara, P. & Contreras, F. (2009).  The Latino Education Crisis: The Consequences of Failed Social Policies.  Harvard University Press. Cambridge, MA.  

Articles & Chapters
Contreras, F. (2009).  Sin Papeles y Rompiendo Barreras: Latino Students and the Challenges of Persisting in College. [Translation: “Without Papers and Breaking Barriers”] Harvard Educational Review. (29 pgs).

Contreras, F. (2010). Accountability and High Stakes Testing. In Murillo, et. al. Handook of Latinos and Education: Research, Theory & Practice.  Routledge:  Taylor & Francis Group (pp. 194-209). 

Contreras, F. & Salvador, J. (in press).  Assessing Chicano/Latino Student Success in Higher education:  Why Access to the Gates of Higher Education is Not Enough. In A. Gloria (ED), Handbook for Latina/os in higher education: A Camino Largo, Paso Corto. Stylus Publishing. (19 pgs).

Contreras, F., Bensimon, E., Malcom, L. (2008). An Equity-Based Accountability Framework for Hispanic Serving Institutions. In Gasman, M. Baez, B., Turner, C., Interdisciplinary Approaches to Understanding Minority Serving Institutions. Suny Press (pp. 71-90).

Contreras, et. al., (2008). Understanding Opportunities to Learn for Latino Students in Washington State. Report Submitted to the Washington State Legislature and Commission on Hispanic Affairs. (Executive Summary)

Contreras, F. & Gandara, P.  (2007).  Latinas/os in the Ph.D. Pipeline:  A Case of Historical and Contemporary Exclusion. In Journey to a Ph.D.: The Latina/o Experience in Higher Educationedited by Jeanett Castellanos and Alberta Gloria. Virginia: Stylus Publishing.

Contreras, F. (2005).  “The Reconstruction of Merit Post Proposition 209.”  Educational Policy.  Thousand Oaks, CA:  SAGE Publications.

Contreras, F. (2005).  Access, Achievement & Social Capital:  Standardized Exams & The Latino College Bound Population.  Journal of Hispanics in Higher Education. Thousand Oakes, CA:  Sage Publications.