About

About Emily

Emily writes about education policy and advises the institutions, agencies, and nonprofits that have to act on it. Her work sits at the intersection of policy change, organizational strategy, and the day-to-day decisions that determine whether students are well served.

Background

Emily began her career in the classroom. She was a founding teacher at Mastery Charter Schools' Clymer Campus, taught literacy at KIPP DC's WILL Academy, and worked as a reading specialist and literacy coach in DC Public Schools.

She earned a PhD in Education Policy and a Master of Public Policy and Leadership at the University of Virginia. Her doctoral research included program evaluations for DC Public Schools, teacher education simulator trials at UVA, survey analysis for the Rhode Island Department of Education, and a research consulting role with Reach Every Reader at the Harvard Graduate School of Education.

Emily recently joined Grant Thornton's Higher Education Advisory Practice in Washington, D.C., where she advises colleges, universities, and the agencies that oversee them on strategy, policy, and operations. Previously, she spent five years at EY-Parthenon, most recently as a Senior Director, leading engagements on growth and transformation for higher education institutions, state agencies, and national nonprofits. Recent work includes economic modeling for a state financial assistance program, advising a national nonprofit consortium on shifts in the federal regulatory landscape, and developing pricing and retention strategy for a public university system.

Experience

• Director, Higher Education Advisory Practice, Grant Thornton Advisors, LLP, Washington, D.C., 2026–present
• Senior Director, EY-Parthenon, 2021–2026 (Consultant, 2021–2023; Director, 2023–2025; Senior Director, 2025–2026)
• Contract Consulting, 2021
  • Deans for Impact
  • Jeremiah Program
• Graduate Teaching, University of Virginia, 2018–2019
  • Reading Development, co-instructor with Dr. Latisha Hayes, Fall 2019
  • Curriculum and Instruction for Elementary and Special Education, co-instructor with Dr. Julie Cohen, Fall 2018
  • Data Management for Social Science Research, co-instructor with Dr. Daphna Bassok, Fall 2018
• K–12 Teaching Experience, 2011–2016
  • Reading Specialist, District of Columbia Public Schools, 2015–2016
  • Literacy Teacher, KIPP DC: WILL Academy, 2013–2015
  • Founding Teacher, Mastery Charter Schools: Clymer Campus, 2011–2013

Education

• PhD in Education Policy and Master of Public Policy and Leadership, University of Virginia, 2021
• M.S. in Urban Education and Leadership, University of Pennsylvania Graduate School of Education, 2013
• BA in Political Science, magna cum laude, Bryn Mawr College, 2011

Selected publications

• Cohen, J., Boguslav, A., Wyckoff, J., Katz, V., Sadowski, K., & Wiseman, E. A. (2025). Core requirements, structured flexibility, and local judgment: Balancing adherence and adaptation in district-wide professional development. Educational Evaluation and Policy Analysis, 47(1), 263–291.
• Cohen, J., Anglin, K., & Wiseman, E. (2024). Tailoring teacher supports: A mixed-methods analysis of responses to coaching and self-reflection. AERA Open, 10.
• Cohen, J., Miller, L. C., Chung, R., Wiseman, E., & Ruzek, E. (2024). Measuring text-focused reading instruction. Journal of Education, 204(4), 719–738.
• Bondie, R., Zusho, A., Wiseman, E., Dede, C., & Rich, D. (2023). Can differentiated and personalized mixed-reality simulations transform teacher learning? Technology, Mind, and Behavior, 4(1).
• Cohen, J., Hutt, E., Berlin, R., & Wiseman, E. (2022). The change we cannot see: Instructional quality and classroom observation in the era of common core. Educational Policy, 36(6), 1261–1287.
• Cohen, J., & Wiseman, E. (2022). Supporting professional learning at scale: Evidence from the District of Columbia Public Schools. Teachers College Record, 124(12), 62–94.
• Phipps, A. R., & Wiseman, E. A. (2021). Enacting the rubric: Teacher improvements in windows of high-stakes observation. Education Finance and Policy, 16(2), 283–312.

View full publication list on Google Scholar →

Get in touch

The best way to reach me is by email at emilywiseman10@gmail.com. You can also find me on LinkedIn.