Frances Contreras

Dr. Frances Contreras is an Assistant Professor at the University of Washington in the College of Education in Leadership and Policy Studies. Dr. Contreras presently researches issues of equity and access for underrepresented students in the education pipeline. She addresses transitions between K-12 and higher education, community college transfer, faculty diversity, affirmative action in higher education, and the role of the public policy arena in higher education access for underserved students of color. Dr. Contreras received her Ph.D. from Stanford University in Educational Administration & Policy Analysis, Master of Education from Harvard University, and B.A. from University of California, Berkeley.

More from Dr. Contreras

Dr. Contreras is also featured in our Meet the Experts Podcast Series, as well as our From the Heart interview, Latino Student Success: Providing the Right Learning Opportunities.

Books by This Author

Achieving Equity for Latino Students: Expanding the Pathway to Higher Education Through Public Policy

By: Frances Contreras

This book provides a critical discussion of the role that select K-12 educational policies have and continue to play in failing Latino students. The author includes specific recommendations that aim to raise achievement, college transition rates, and success among Latino students across the pre-school through college continuum. Chapters cover high dropout rates, access to college-preparation resources, testing and accountability, financial aid, the Dream Act, and affirmative action.

The Latino Education Crisis: The Consequences of Failed Social Policies

By: Patricia Gándara Frances Contreras

Drawing on both extensive demographic data and compelling case studies, this powerful book reveals the depths of the educational crisis looming for Latino students, the nation's largest and most rapidly growing minority group. Richly informative and accessibly written, The Latino Education Crisis describes the cumulative disadvantages faced by too many children in the complex American school systems, where one in five students is Latino… and will be essential reading for everyone involved in planning the future of American schools.

Articles