Tafaya Ransom

Tafaya Ransom, Ph.D., leads the foundation’s measurement, learning, and evaluation efforts to advance the Postsecondary Success strategy. Previously, Tafaya served as Senior Program Officer for the Postsecondary Success strategy, also focused on measurement, learning, and evaluation. Prior to joining the foundation in 2019, Tafaya led research and evaluation projects to drive equitable higher education outcomes for traditionally marginalized groups, particularly in science and engineering, through roles with NORC at the University of Chicago, Consortium for Policy Research in Education at the University of Pennsylvania, the White House Initiative on HBCUs, the College Board, and as a U.S. Department of Education Institute for Education Sciences pre-doctoral fellow. Tafaya was also an administrator at Morehouse College, serving as Special Assistant to the Provost and Associate Vice President for Institutional Research and Effectiveness.

Tafaya began her career as a chemical engineer in the food and pharmaceutical industries. She holds a bachelor’s degree in chemical engineering from Hampton University, master’s degrees in chemical engineering and education from the University of Michigan, and a Ph.D. in higher education from the University of Pennsylvania.