Meet a researcher improving CWRU’s programs with assessment
Hannah Regan
Associate Director for Research and Evaluation, Interim Executive Director
Flora Stone Mather Center for Women
Area of Focus: Evaluative research, gender, sexuality, media and technology
As students’ needs and experiences rapidly evolve, Hannah Regan is working to ensure that programs at Case Western Reserve University keep up—using research to guide every step forward.
As associate director for research and evaluation, and interim executive director for the Flora Stone Mather Center for Women, Regan leads both internal program assessment and external research initiatives. She evaluates program effectiveness; produces annual impact reports; and supports assessment across the Division of Student Affairs.
“We might think we know what’s working really well, but things are changing faster than ever,” explained Regan. “It’s so important to take the time to ask, ‘is this really resonating?'”
Regan also oversees the center’s external research agenda, managing grant programs, serving as acting editor-in-chief of the Journal for Women and Gender Centers in Higher Education, and supervising student-led research projects.
For Regan, the ability to measure the success of programs, and quickly implement changes, is what sets her evaluative research apart from traditional academic research.
“We can do a bystander intervention program today, look at the feedback tomorrow and have a small tweak to the program next week,” said Regan. “It’s great to be able to respond to what our students need in almost real time.”
Through her work, Regan has seen firsthand how programs can impact the CWRU community. Survey results from participants in the Mather Staff Leadership Development Institute, for example, showed career growth and increased leadership responsibilities for those who completed the program—both at work and in professional or community organizations they belong to.
Separate from her work at the center, Regan conducts research focused on gender, sexuality, media and technology—interests sparked by her experiences attending an all-girls high school followed by a co-ed college, and an examination of sexual education in schools.
“I really wanted to think about how the media—especially social media—was impacting how young people came to understand sexuality,” said Regan. “How are these messages getting communicated, and how do we as educators manage that technology when we’re trying to make sure students are getting good information.”
Now, her forthcoming book, Dating Apps, Modern Romance and Social Inequality, explores how the introduction of new technology has changed romantic partnerships.
Regan also brings these research topics to the classroom, teaching courses on the sociology of sexuality, women and gender studies, human development and sexual education. Her goal is to equip students to critically analyze the world around them, especially as technology rapidly changes how people learn about and express gender and sexuality.
