DEBORAH D. SHAMA-DAVIS, PH.D.
507 White Hall, Kent State University, Kent, Ohio 44242  (330) 672-7918  dshama@kent.edu
EDUCATION:
Ph.D., Kent State University, 1984, Double Major: Evaluation and Measurement; Special
Education
M.Ed., Kent State University, 1974, Special Education
B.A., University of Akron, 1972, Psychology
PROFESSIONAL WORK EXPERIENCE:
2004 to Present: Research and Evaluation Bureau, College of Education, Health, and Human Services
(EHHS), Kent State University
Title: Director, Internal Client Services
 Direct and oversee service provision to the College of Education, Health, and Human
Services (EHHS), including College-based projects and faculty and graduate student
research projects.
 Direct teams of professionals conducting comprehensive multi-method evaluations.
 Oversee, supervise, train, and evaluate professional staff and graduate assistants.
 Primary lead evaluator, mixed method data analyst, research instrument designer, and
report author for major evaluation projects, including, but not limited to, the following:
 Statewide Evaluation of Closing the Achievement Gap (CTAG) (funded by Ohio
Department of Education)
 Akron Public Schools Race to the Top (funded by U.S. Department of Education)
 Project ACHIEVE, professional development of teachers of English language learners
 Project ASTUTE, evaluation of special education and middle childhood education
dual licensure program at Kent State University
 Cleveland Clinic Communicate with H.E.A.R.T. program evaluation (funded by
Cleveland Clinic Foundation)
 Akron Public Schools School Improvement Grant (SIG) evaluation
 Akron Public Schools Wheels for Education Program
 Akron Public Schools Closing the Achievement Gap (CTAG) evaluation
 Akron After School Program
 Center for Layered Polymeric Systems (CLiPS) Envoy Education Program, Case
Western Reserve University, Cleveland, Ohio (funded by National Science
Foundation)
 Akron Public Schools Prefall Program and Third Grade Reading Academy
 Partners Investing in Nursing’s Future (PIN) evaluation, Kent State University
(funded by Cleveland Foundation and Robert Wood Johnson Foundation)
 Transformative Model of STEM Education for First-year Students at an UrbanCommuter Campus (funded by National Science Foundation)
 Math Science Partnership (MSP) for Stark County (funded by National Science
Foundation. Evaluation received “Outstanding” rating by NSF)
 Perkins Activities Central after school program (funded by Knight Foundation)
 Alliance MSP (funded by Ohio Department of Education)
 Reading First Akron, associated with Reading First Ohio
 Cleveland Heights/University Heights After School CHAMPS Program
 Camp and Club Invention, funded by the National Inventors’ Hall of Fame
Shama-Davis
2
1998 to 2003: Academic Computing and Technology, Information Services, Kent State University;
Title: Research Analyst
 Consulted with graduate students and faculty regarding research and statistics.
 Taught seminars on the use of SPSS for data management and statistical analysis (using
both the PC and UNIX platforms).
1986 to 1998: College of EHHS, Kent State University; Title: Temporary Assistant Professor
 Taught graduate and undergraduate level courses in child development, special
education, and evaluation and measurement.
1983 to 1990: Bureau of Research Training and Services, College and Graduate School of Education,
Kent State University; Title: Assistant Director
 Consulted with faculty and graduate students regarding research and statistics.
 Conducted statistical analysis and interpretation for clients.
1974 to 1979: Akron Public Schools; Title: Teacher of Special Education
 Taught self-contained classroom of children with cognitive impairments.
SELECTED PUBLICATIONS:
Goodman, J. M, Britton, P. J., Shama-Davis, D. D., & Jencius, M. J. An exploration of spirituality and
psychological well-being in a community of orthodox, conservative, and reform Jews. Research in the
Social Scientific Study of Religion, 2005, 16, 63-81.
Tout, L. R., & Shama, D. D. A burnout instrument for hospice. The Hospice Journal, 1990, 6(4), 31-38.
Blixt, S. & Shama, D. D. An empirical investigation of the standard error of measurement at different
ability levels. Educational and Psychological Measurement, 1986, 86, 545-550.
SELECTED PROFESSIONAL PRESENTATIONS:
Shama-Davis, D.D. Telling your CTAG story with data. Workshop conducted at the Statewide CTAG
convention, sponsored by the Ohio Department of Education, Columbus, OH, August, 2013.
Shama-Davis, D.D. Evaluation methodology with CTAG. Presented at the Statewide CTAG convention,
Columbus, OH, March, 2013.
Shama-Davis, D.D. & Freeman, P. Research designs for educational research. Presented at the 2013
Fellowship in Academic Medicine: Research Track, Northeast Ohio College of Medicine, Brimfield, OH,
February, 2013.
Shama-Davis, D.D. The use of evaluation data in unlocking change. Presented at the National Beyond
School Hours Convention, Jacksonville, FL, February, 2008.
PROFESSIONAL MEMBERSHIPS:

American Evaluation Association