Rajika Bhandari, Ph.D.
Director of Research and Evaluation

Rajika Bhandari directs IIE’s research and evaluation activities and has been with IIE since January 2006. She has extensive experience in conducting and leading educational research and evaluations in the U.S. and in India. Before joining IIE, Dr. Bhandari was a Senior Researcher at MPR Associates, an educational research firm in Berkeley, California, that provides research and evaluation services to the U.S. Department of Education, U.S. state departments of education, and foundations. She also served as the Assistant Director for Evaluation at the Mathematics and Science Education Network at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. She holds a doctoral degree in Psychology from North Carolina State University and a B.A. (Honors) in Psychology from the University of Delhi, India.

Patricia Chow
Research Manager

Patricia Chow serves as the Research Manager for Open Doors and has been with IIE since May 2005.  She manages all aspects of the Open Doors data collection and publication process and is also responsible for responding to data-related inquiries and preparing custom data reports.  Ms. Chow has extensive overseas experience as a researcher and teacher and holds an M.A. from the University of Pennsylvania and a B.A. from the University of California, Berkeley.

Robert Gutierrez
Program Manager

Robert Gutierrez manages Project Atlas and the study abroad capacity research series.  He also manages the division’s evaluation projects.  His professional and academic background is in policy analysis and communications in both domestic and international settings.  He has worked in research and communications capacities for non-governmental, non-profit and academic institutions, and has written for print and bilingual media communications for fundraising, development, and marketing outreach activities. He holds a B.A. in English from the University of Notre Dame, and an M.S. in Public Policy and Management from Carnegie Mellon University.

Rachel Marcus
Research Officer

Rachel Marcus joined IIE in September 2007 and works primarily on the Open Doors project. She brings to IIE a strong background in designing and conducting applied social science research both in the U.S. and overseas, in Indonesia. Prior to joining IIE, Ms. Marcus served as a research intern at the United National Development Program, and has also worked with the International Executive Service Corps in Washington, D.C. She holds an MPA with a specialization in Non-Profit Management and International Public Policy from the Wagner School of Public Policy at New York University and a BA in International and Environmental Studies from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.

For general questions about IIE and for press-related enquiries about Open Doors, please contact:

Sharon Witherell, Director of Public Affairs
(212) 984-5380, switherell@iie.org

Shannon Bishop, Program Manager, Public Affairs
(212) 984-5370, sbishop@iie.org

For specific queries regarding IIE research and data-related issues, please contact iieresearch@iie.org.

For questions relating to IIENetwork membership, please contact membership@iie.org.