Karen DeMeester became the Director of PEG in 2011. Dr. DeMeester came to the University of Georgia from the Learning Systems Institute at Florida State University where she was research faculty and a principal investigator on a U. S. Department of Education grant to integrate technology into rural schools and communities in Alabama, Georgia, and Florida. While at FSU, she also conducted studies of the alignment between Florida’s standards and state assessments (FCAT) for mathematics, reading, and science and served as a team leader in the development of Florida’s K-3 Mathematics Formative Assessment System. Dr. DeMeester has extensive and diverse evaluation experience. As a CPA and financial analyst, she directed financial and compliance audits and operational and cost reviews, and as a senior policy analyst in Florida’s Office of Program Policy Analysis and Government Accountability, she led teams evaluating the effectiveness and efficiency of state programs (e.g., Children’s Medical Services). 

Phone:  706-542-3870
Email:  karend@uga.edu
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Jana Thompson is a senior evaluator with PEG (since 1998). Prior to serving as an evaluator with PEG, she was a training specialist with the Performance Assessment Laboratory at UGA and a consultant with the Georgia Center for Assessment. Ms. Thompson specializes in qualitative evaluation design, data collection, and management. Her evaluation experience includes work for the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, the Ford Foundation, 21^st Century Community Learning projects, the Georgia Department of Education, and the Chancellor’s Office of California Community Colleges.

Phone:760-542-6334
Email: jthomps@uga.edu
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Scott Pollack is a senior evaluator with PEG (since 2006). Prior to coming to PEG, he was a research coordinator for the Carl Vinson Institute of Government at the University of Georgia. Mr. Pollack specializes in qualitative and quantitative data analysis and research design. He has worked on a number of high-impact, federally funded evaluation projects including the U. S. Department of Education’s Reading First, Comprehensive School Reform, and Investing in Innovation grant programs.
 
 

Phone: 706-542-7262
Email: scottp@uga.edu
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Stacie Isbell is an administrative associate with PEG. Ms. Isbell is PEG’s office manager and liaison with the College of Education accounting and business departments. Her administrative responsibilities include maintaining daily accounting functions, communication, scheduling, and preparing status reports. She also supports evaluation projects and staff by coordinating data entry.
 
 
 

Phone: 706-542-4631
Email: sisbell@uga.edu