Angel is a research scientist at NORC where she uses participatory qualitative and mixed-methods approaches to center educator and community wisdom throughout the research process. She uses organizational theories to study the design and implementation of education policy and initiatives across multiple topics, including research-practice partnerships, educational leadership, and instructional improvement. Angel’s approach is informed by her prior experience as a research fellow in Chicago Public Schools (CPS), where she worked with parent leaders and other groups to make research more relevant and responsive to their needs. 

At NORC, Angel serves as principal investigator for a William T. Grant Foundation research study on democratizing research use in partnership with CPS. This three-year, mixed-methods study uses a community-engaged research approach to examine if and how CPS’ strategic plan reduces disparities in research use across the district. In partnership with Northwestern University, she also serves as a co-principal investigator on a Heising Simons Foundation mixed-methods research project that examines how school districts build their capacity to support early math instruction.  

Prior to joining NORC, Angel participated in and studied continuous improvement and research-practice partnerships at Carnegie Foundation and Northwestern University. Her research has been published in multiple peer-reviewed academic journals, such as the American Education Research Journal, Education Researcher, and Review of Education Research.