2100 M STREET, NW WASHINGTON, DC 20037
LINDSEY CRAMER
Research Associate II
The Urban Institute
lcramer@urban.org
Telephone: 201.261.5385
Twitter: @LindsMCramer
EDUCATION
2008
The College of Wooster
B.A., Economics
(Cum Laude)
CAREER BRIEF
Lindsey Cramer is a Research Associate II with the Urban Institute’s Justice Policy Center, where she
works on the Justice Reinvestment Initiative (JRI), the Study of Community-Centered Responsible
Fatherhood Ex-Prisoner Reentry Pilot Strategies, and Mitigating the Impact of Parental Incarceration on
Children: Promising Practices from Arrest through Pre-Adjudication. As it relates to the JRI project, Ms.
Cramer leads the coordination and reporting of technical assistance providers working with state and
local jurisdictions implementing a justice reinvestment model to reduce the costs of corrections services
and reinvest the savings in initiatives to improve public safety. Ms. Cramer is also supporting the Study of
Responsible Fatherhood Pilot Strategies, which are working with incarcerated parents to ensure they
have a stable transition into the community. Additionally, Ms. Cramer is assisting with identifying and
highlighting promising practices for providing services and programming to children whose parents are
incarcerated.
Previously, Ms. Cramer was a researcher with the District of Columbia Crime Policy Institute (DCPI)
where she assisted with the evaluation of the pilot truancy interventions implemented by DC Public
Schools at two local high schools and two local middle schools to provide case management services to
middle school and 9th grade students who were chronically truant. Ms. Cramer also assisted with the
administration of the Law Enforcement Management and Administrative Statistics (LEMAS) survey to
3,300 law enforcement entities and provided technical assistance to agency staff completing the survey.
Ms. Cramer also managed a team of researchers who fielded inquiries from survey respondents.
Prior to joining the Urban Institute, Ms. Cramer worked as a Research and Technical Analyst III at
Optimal Solutions Group, LLC. While there, Ms. Cramer managed social policy and workforce
development projects pertaining to responsible fatherhood and healthy marriage research. She led the
evaluations of two responsible fatherhood programs implemented by the Maryland Department of
Human Resources, customized the data collection tool used by a nonprofit organization to capture staff’s
total time accountability, and developed attendance, benchmark, and compliance reports for use by the
nine Supporting Healthy Marriage implementation sites. She graduated from the College of Wooster
with a B.A. in economics.
LINDSEY CRAMER
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2100 M STREET, NW WASHINGTON, DC 20037
PROFESSIONAL EXPERIENCE
2011–Present
Research Associate II, The Urban Institute, Washington, DC
Projects relate to justice reinvestment, responsible fatherhood programming,
children of incarcerated parents, survey administration, and crime policy in the
Washington, DC area. Activities include managing the technical assistance providers
and local sites participating in the Justice Reinvestment Initiative, supporting the
evaluation of responsible fatherhood grantees targeting incarcerated parents, and
identifying promising programs working with children of incarcerated parents.
2011
Research and Technical Analyst III, Optimal Solutions Group, LLC, College Park, MD
Conducted the local evaluations of two responsible fatherhood programs
implemented by the Maryland Department of Human Resources (MD-DHR) while
utilizing tools such as logic models, data collection checklists, and pre/post surveys
to implement the evaluation framework. Customized the management information
system (MIS) to capture staff time accountability for Brighter Beginnings, a
nonprofit family strengthening organization. Also managed the Medi-Medi National
Coordinator project that facilitated information sharing among stakeholders
participating in the Medicare Medicaid Data Matching Program sponsored by the
Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS).
2009-2011
Research Analyst II, Optimal Solutions Group, LLC, College Park, MD
Customized and monitored the MIS used by the nine participating sites in the 12year SHM study and trained site staff on functions of the MIS, generating reports,
and querying the database. Also assisted with operationalizing the programmatic
goals of an after school collaborative, Excel Beyond the Bell and developed,
administered, and analyzed a Web-based exit survey for the Excel Beyond the Bell
Symposium using Select Survey software. Supported the National Center on Service
Obligations (NCSO) helpdesk by answering inquiries received from universities and
scholars accessing the Service Obligation Tracking System (SOTS).
2008-2009
Research Analyst I, Optimal Solutions Group, LLC, College Park, MD
Provided assistance on health policy research projects. Interviewed seven State
Medicaid agencies and assisted with writing profiles on the best practices found in
administering the States’ Children’s Health Insurance Programs (SCHIP). Wrote
meeting summaries for various technical advisory groups comprised of State
Medicaid representatives.
LINDSEY CRAMER
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2100 M STREET, NW WASHINGTON, DC 20037
2004–2008
Library Assistant, Andrews Library, The College of Wooster, Wooster, OH
Prepared books, periodicals, discs, and materials for circulation. Cataloged
purchased books in the electronic library database and led the periodical binding
process.
2007
Intern, Northwestern Mutual, Zanesville, OH
Met with potential clients to educate them on the benefits of insurance products,
while focusing on long-term care insurance.
PUBLICATIONS
La Vigne, N., S. Bieler, L. Cramer, H. Ho, C. Kotonias, D. Mayer, D. McClure, L. Pacifici, E. Parks, B. Peterson,
and J. Samuels. (2014). Justice Reinvestment Initiative State Assessment Report. Report produced for the
Bureau of Justice Assistance. Washington, D.C.: The Urban Institute.
La Vigne, N., J. Samuels, S. Bieler, D. Mayer, L. Pacifici, L. Cramer, B. Peterson, C. Kotonias, D. McClure, and H.
Ho. (2013). The Justice Reinvestment Initiative: Experiences from the States. Brief produced for the Bureau of
Justice Assistance. Washington, D.C.: The Urban Institute.
Cahill, M., A. Liberman, and L. Cramer. (2012). Interim Report on the Truancy Court Diversion Program in the
District of Columbia, 2011-2012. Report produced for the Justice Grants Administration, District of Columbia.
Washington, D.C.: The District of Columbia Crime Policy Institute at The Urban Institute.
Liberman, A., M. Cahill, and L. Cramer. (2012). Interim Evaluation of the Pilot Program of the Truancy Case
Management Partnership Intervention in the District of Columbia. Report produced for the Justice Grants
Administration, District of Columbia. Washington, D.C.: The District of Columbia Crime Policy Institute at The
Urban Institute.
PRESENTATIONS
The American Society of Criminology (ASC) 69th Annual Meeting, November 2013, Atlanta, GA,
presenter, Highlights of Responsible Fatherhood Reentry Programs
The American Society of Criminology (ASC) 68th Annual Meeting, November 2012, Chicago, IL, presenter,
Reentering Fathers: Initial Implementation Findings from Responsible Fatherhood Initiatives
Office of Family Assistance (OFA) Annual Healthy Marriage & Responsible Fatherhood Grantee Meeting, May
2011, Baltimore, MD, poster presenter, Utilizing a Holistic Services Delivery Model to Enhance the Lives of
Fathers and Families
National Association for Welfare Research & Statistics (NAWRS) Annual Conference, September 2010, Los
Angeles, CA, presenter, Utilizing Business Intelligence Practices to Improve Outcomes: Case Study of
Responsible Fatherhood Programs
LINDSEY CRAMER
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2100 M STREET, NW WASHINGTON, DC 20037
OFA Annual Healthy Marriage & Responsible Fatherhood Grantee Meeting, August 2010, Washington, D.C.,
presenter, Bringing Business Intelligence to the Maryland Fatherhood Initiatives: Strong Fathers/Strong
Families and the Winning Fathers Demonstration Project
Eastern Economics Association Annual Conference, March 2008, Boston, MA, presenter, What motivates a
terrorist?
HONORS AND AWARDS
Omicron Delta Epsilon
Employee of the Year Award, Optimal Solutions Group, LLC, 2009
Project Excellence Award, Optimal Solutions Group, LLC, 2010
LINDSEY CRAMER
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