About MDRC
Diane is a resource management analyst in MDRC’s Postsecondary Education policy area. Prior to joining MDRC in fall of 2021, Wren has worked within various facets of higher education, including admissions services, information technology, library services, administration, and compliance. She has also managed grants administration for the Washington Center for Equitable Growth in Washington, DC, and has volunteered as a tutor, academic coach, and patient advocate for disabled veterans. Wren graduated summa cum laude with a master’s degree in psychology, concentrating in industrial/organizational psychology, from California Southern University; earned a B.F.A. in photography from Maine College of Art with Dean’s List honors and a PILLARS award for community engagement; and earned a B.A. in psychology from the University of California Santa Cruz with college honors and Phi Beta Kappa.
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MDRC Publications
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Other Publications
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Projects
Montana’s Office of the Commissioner of Higher Education ( OCHE ) is expanding its evidence-based scholarship and student supports program called Montana 10. The Montana 10 model was designed to provide students with a combined set of targeted strategies that help them overcome barriers that may otherwise cause them to drop out of college. In particular, the...
While more than three-fourths of community college students plan to transfer to a four-year institution to obtain a bachelor’s degree, only about one-third of them actually do transfer. And students from low-income backgrounds were only half as likely as their peers from higher-income backgrounds to have transferred to a four-year institution after six years.
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The College Completion Fund demonstrates renewed federal interest in increasing postsecondary students’ success and could provide significant funding for states and colleges to adopt evidence-based policies and practices.
Michelle Ware, Alexander Mayer, Colleen Sommo, Leigh Parise, Elena Serna-Wallender, Jálynn Castleman-Smith, Shawna Anderson, Rae Walker, Melissa Wavelet, Katie Beal, Melissa Boynton, Diane WrenThe COVID -19 pandemic has dramatically affected colleges’ operations and students’ educational experiences, severely strained budgets, and created unprecedented financial and emotional stress for students, faculty, and staff. As colleges adapt to an evolving landscape, they need immediate solutions to support and retain students, as well as to continue to focus on...