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Paul Koehler

Paul	Koehler
Paul Koehler
Director, Policy Center

Paul Koehler is the Director of the Policy Center at WestEd. The Policy Center is a voice at the state, regional, and national levels, keeping education policy leaders informed of developments in research and practice. The Center provides analyses, research, and assistance to policymakers, policy-focused organizations, and the media on current education issues. Center staff provide objective, balanced views to create strategies for improvement, inform decisions, and highlight developments benefiting children and families.

Koehler also serves as Director of the West Comprehensive Center, a technical assistance center funded by the U.S. Department of Education. The Center provides assistance to chief state school officers and their staffs in Arizona, Nevada, Utah, Colorado and New Mexico as they implement provisions of the federal Every Student Succeeds Act in their states. He is also the liaison to Arizona for REL West.

Previously, Koehler served as Education Advisor to Arizona Governor Janet Napolitano. He also served as Associate Superintendent of the Arizona Department of Education. Prior to that, he was Superintendent of the Peoria Unified School District and Assistant Superintendent of the Madison School District, both in the Phoenix area. He was also a classroom teacher for 10 years.

Koehler is responsible for numerous WestEd publications on topics such as improving the graduation rate, effects of full-day kindergarten, reforming teacher pay, and school leadership.

He received a BS in business management from C.W. Post College, an MS in elementary education from Brooklyn College, and a PhD in elementary education from Arizona State University.