Emily Rodriguez

Research analyst

Emily is a social worker and qualitative researcher interested in leveraging data-driven solutions to strengthen the biopsychosocial wellbeing of children, youth, and families involved in child welfare systems.

At Action Research, she has worked on projects evaluating multidisciplinary parent representation programs in Ohio and Los Angeles, as well as multiple projects with the Administration for Children’s Services in New York City. Emily designs and conducts interviews, case reviews, surveys, and focus groups; codes and analyzes qualitative data; and synthesizes key insights for project stakeholders. She produces actionable findings and data visualizations by analyzing state and county-level child welfare data, and she observes and maps operational decision-making to help teams identify intervention points to strengthen programs and processes.

Before joining Action Research, Emily supported research and evaluation initiatives at Case Western Reserve University. At the Begun Center for Violence Prevention Research and Education, she contributed to studies evaluating services for children, transitional-aged youth,and families across Ohio, including the Ohio Healthy Transitions Project. At the Mary Ann Swetland Center for Environmental Health, she supported the National Institutes of Health’s HEALing Communities Study by designing and distributing data collection instruments, conducting social network analyses of county-level data, and coordinating stakeholder engagement.

Emily holds a Master of Social Work with a specialization in Community Practice for Social Change from Case Western Reserve University and a Bachelor of Social Work with a specialization in Child Welfare from Appalachian State University.