Debra Richardson Smith, Senior Research Partner and Advisor at PERG Learning, is a researcher, educator and artist. Her professional experience includes teaching in a variety of contexts from pre-school to graduate school; program, curriculum and assessment design; and research and evaluation. Now semi-retired, she was director of the Program Evaluation and Research Group at Lesley University and Endicott College, leading research and evaluation studies in formal and informal education settings. Debra was also on the faculty of Endicott’s doctoral program in Higher Education Leadership, in which she taught research design and issues courses. Her work over the past several years has focused on arts integration and literacy programs in cities across the US. Debra lives in New Gloucester, Maine where she co-edits a community news site, spends time in her studio, and does projects and outdoor explorations with her grandchildren.