Robert F. Boruch

Robert F. Boruch
  • University Trustee Chair Professor of Education
  • Professor of Statistics and Data Science

Contact Information

Research Interests: design of controlled field experiments, ethics and data access in surveys, federal evaluation policy, program evaluation, statistical research and policy, survey research methods

Overview

Education

PhD, Iowa State University, 1968; BE, Stevens Institute of Technology, 1964

Recent Consulting

U.S. General Accounting Office, 1992-present; U.S. Department of Education, 1990-present; U.S. Department of Justice, 1988-present; Pelavin Associates, 1992-present; Smith-richardson Foundtion, 1998; Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, 1998

Career and Recent Professional Awards; Teaching Awards

Fellow, American Statistical Association, 1989; Gunnar and Alva Myrdal Award for Evaluation, Evaluation Research Society, 1983; Fellow, Center for Advanced Study, 1985; Donald T. Campbell Award, Policy Studies Organization, 1989; Visiting Scholar, Max Planch Institute, Berlin, 1998.

Academic Positions Held

Wharton: 1990-present. University of Pennsylvania: 1989-present. Previous appointment: Northwestern University. Visiting appointment: University of Chicago

Other Positions

Staff Associate, Social Science Research Council, 1969-71; Research Associate, American Council on Education, 1968; Project Director, National Academy of Sciences, 1969.

Professional Leadership 2005-2009

Editorial Board, Evaluation Review, 1979-present; New Directions for Program Evaluation, 1985-present; Member, Board of Trustees, William T. Grant Foundation, 1995-present

Corporate and Public Sector Leadership 2005-2009

Member, Advisory Council on Education Statistics, National Center on Education Statistics, 1995-present; Member, Research and Education Advisory Panel, U.S. General Accounting Office, 1990-present; Member, Evaluation Review Panel, Office of the Undersecretary, U.S. Department of Education, 1989-present

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Teaching

Past Courses

  • EDUC6667 - Intro Stats for Eductnl Rsrch

    Scales of measurement; indices of central tendency and variability; product-movement correlation; introduction to the chi-squared; Z, T, and F distributions.

  • EDUC6680 - Eval of Pol, Progs & Projs

    Basic evaluation policy and methods for determining nature and severity of problems, implementation of programs relative effects and cost-effectiveness of interventions to reduce problems, design and conduct of evaluation studies in education, social services, crime and delinquency, in the U.S. and other countries.

  • EDUC6683 - Survey Methods & Design

    This course covers the methods and design of field surveys in the U.S. and other countries in education, the social sciences, criminal justice research, and other areas. It covers methods of eliciting information through household, mail, telephone surveys, methods of assuring privacy, enhancing cooperation rates and related matters. Finally, the fundamentals of statistical sampling and sample design are handled. Much of the course is based on contemporary surveys sponsored by the National Center for Education Statistics and other federal, state and local agencies.

  • EDUC8671 - Randomized Trials & Expermnts

    This course will cover three alternatives to conventional modeling in the social sciences: (1) design and execution of field trials in education and other social sectors including criminology, (2) quasi-experiments especially contemporary research comparing results of randomized and non-randomized trials, and (3) analysis for descriptive and exploratory purposes. The course themes include causal inference, vulnerability of models applied to observational data, recent developments computer-intensive inductive approaches to data, and related matters. Although some methodological background papers will be discussed, the seminar is case study oriented with readings from contemporary research on the topics from peer reviewed journals and well-vetted reports issued by governmental and nongovernment agencies. Cases will include work supported by IES on effects of Odyssey Math, for example, and work in the crime and justice arena. We will study the work of scholars affiliated with Penn who are actively involved in randomized and non-randomized trials, for instance, and the work of colleagues at other universities (Berkeley, Northwestern, Wisconsin, Princeton, others) and colleagues in non-profit and for profit research organizations such as Analytica, AIR, Mathematica and others that contribute to learning in this arena.

  • NURS9000 - Directed Study

    Must be arranged with the written permission of the sponsoring faculty member prior to registration.

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