Nikki Edgecombe is a Senior Research Associate at the Community College Research Center at Teachers College, Columbia University. She joined CCRC from the financial services industry where she assessed the financial and organizational performance of publicly-traded companies and evaluated the effects of federal and state policy mandates on strategy and execution. Prior to Wall Street, Nikki studied teacher learning and school-based professional development at the Urban Education Institute and Consortium on Chicago School Research at the University of Chicago. As a graduate student, she examined parental participation, social support networks, and the experiences of Black and Latino doctoral students, among other topics. Currently, Nikki is researching strategies designed to enhance educational outcomes, including non-academic preparation and acceleration. She is also investigating the role of gatekeeper courses at community colleges.

Nikki holds a Ph.D. in Education from the University of Pennsylvania and a B.A. in Urban Studies – Economics from Columbia University.