Tom Swiderski

Tom Swiderski is a Research Associate at EPIC with expertise in quantitative research methods. His research primarily examines the impact of education systems, policies, and programs on student transitions to college and career.

Dr. Swiderski is currently the co-Principal Investigator on EPIC’s multi-year evaluation of North Carolina’s Gaining Early Awareness and Readiness for Undergraduate Programs (GEAR UP) intervention as well as a study of the relationship between North Carolina students’ ACT WorkKeys scores and their college and early career outcomes. Dr. Swiderski has additionally played a leading role in EPIC’s research into the impacts of the pandemic on educational outcomes in North Carolina. His prior work also includes studies of Early College High Schools, Dual-Credit programs, and mandatory ACT/SAT testing policies.

Based on his research, Dr. Swiderski has written op-eds for education news outlets, prepared policy briefs for state officials, presented at major professional conferences in education and public policy, and published in academic journals including Educational Evaluation and Policy Analysis, Educational Researcher, Education Finance and Policy, and Social Science Research.

Dr. Swiderski earned a Ph.D. in Public Policy and a Master’s in Social Work from UNC Chapel Hill and a BA in Psychology from Boston College.