Education Research Associate, SRI Education
Monica Figueroa is an education research associate with expertise in early childhood education, literacy, family engagement, teacher-student relationships, mental health, and social-emotional development. She supports a variety of research studies through project management and coordination, video coding, classroom observations, and data collection. She has extensive experience conducting interviews and classroom observations, administering online surveys, and case studies.
At SRI, Figueroa’s current projects include a project to develop and evaluate an AI instructional coaching model, a large-scale evaluation of the Pyramid Model social-emotional training, and a research partnership with Schusterman Family Philanthropies to examine a literacy coaching professional development program. She also contributes to other initiatives focused on prototyping new learning methods using augmented reality, and on AI technologies.
Prior to joining SRI, Figueroa was a K–5 special education and a kindergarten teacher with Teach For America in Colorado. Her commitment to educational excellence extends beyond the classroom, as she has collaborated with Denver Public Schools and the Iowa Department of Education on data-driven improvement initiatives and resource development aimed at increasing family engagement and supporting culturally and linguistically diverse learners. She has also worked as a program coordinator for Making Caring Common at the Harvard Graduate School of Education, where she co-designed and evaluated a mental health curriculum and relationship-building program.
Additionally, Figueroa received an award from the Lemann Program on Creativity and Entrepreneurship at Harvard to launch her own venture, Learning Momentos. This initiative aims to support children’s learning through the power of relationships and literacy by creating resources that foster connection and engagement between families and their children.
Figueroa received her Masters of Education, Entrepreneurship & Organizational Leadership from Harvard University in 2022.
Projects
- AI Instructional Coaching
- Scaling Up Pyramid Model Implementation in Preschool and Kindergarten Classrooms (EIR)
- Early Childhood Classroom Observation (ECCO) Study – CLASS 2.0
- LEXT
- LOVE Science
- Regional Educational Laboratory (REL) Appalachia
Publications and Products
- Digital Wellness Lab. (2024). Designing a roadmap for a healthier digital ecosystem. Boston Children’s Hospital. https://digitalwellnesslab.org/reports/designing-a-roadmap-for-a-healthier-digital-ecosystem/
- Making Caring Common. (2023). On edge: Understanding and preventing young adults’ mental health challenges. Harvard Graduate School of Education. https://mcc.gse.harvard.edu/reports/on-edge
