Michelle Castellanos

Michelle Castellanos, Ph.D., joined IRDS in 2015 and serves as the Director of Strategic Research and Evaluation. In this role, Michelle provides campus-wide leadership and support in the use data and the development of research studies to inform decision making and planning, leadership and oversight over the university course evaluation system, leadership in the development of policies related to the administration of surveys on campus, and oversight over the submission of official statistics to external agencies. Michelle also works to promote a culture of evidence based decision-making by providing leadership in the creation of educational resources and workshop related to survey design, measurement, and research for members of the campus community, as well as serving on LMU's Institutional Review Board. As part-time faculty within LMU's School of Education Department of Specialized Programs in Professional Psychology, Michelle has taught courses such as research methodology and statistics, and multicultural counseling, 

Prior to joining to Loyola Marymount University, Michelle served as a research associate and part-time faculty at the University of Southern California and Mount Saint Mary's University, where she taught courses such as introduction to research methods, advance student development theory, curriculum, teaching, and learning, and human development.  She received her B.A. in Psychology and Social Welfare from the University of California, Berkeley, and her Ph.D. Urban Education Policy with a concentration in Higher Education and Educational Psychology from the University of Southern California. Michelle has substantial experience developing surveys and using survey data to examine students' college experiences and subsequent learning, persistence, and career outcomes. Her scholarly work has been featured in the Journal of College Student Development, Journal of Hispanic Higher Education, and the Journal of Higher Education.

Michelle can be reached at (310) 388-3014 or Michelle.Castellanos@lmu.edu.