Matthew Eide
Matthew Eide, Managing Senior Education Improvement Specialist, brings a decades-long teaching and school leadership background to Marzano Research. From his roots as a classroom teacher to school administrator, Eide has consistently worked to create opportunities for students who need them most. His practical experience is backed by rigorous academics, including a doctorate in educational leadership and a master’s degree in secondary education.
Now focusing primarily on school improvement and college/career readiness, he has a particular passion for alternative education and dropout prevention.
What gets you excited about working at Marzano Research?
What gets me excited about working at Marzano Research are opportunities to make a difference. I have been an educator for more than 25 years, and I have seen how our educational systems can fail our students, families, and communities. I have also observed the transformative power of education and I know how hard our educators work to improve the lives of our young people. Although I do not have my own classroom anymore, I embrace the chance to help improve our systems, elevate the teaching profession, and create the conditions for educators and students to thrive.
Can you tell us about your current work on a Marzano Research project?
I have spent much of my career in alternative education as a teacher, school leader, and district administrator, which is why I am excited about a REL Northwest project with Alaska’s alternative schools. In the project, we are helping the alternative schools field test trauma-engaged strategies from Alaska’s Transforming Schools Framework, which provides resources and guidance to help schools support students who have been impacted by trauma.
I love alternative schools, in large part because they have some of our most innovative educators and most interesting and resilient youth. Alternative school staff are experts in meeting the needs of youth impacted by trauma and I am proud to be able to help them refine trauma-engaged strategies. Lesson learned from the project will help us create educational systems that work better for all students, including young people who have experienced trauma.
What do you think sets Marzano Research apart in the realm of education research?
I believe a couple of things set Marzano Research apart. First, we intentionally integrate research, coaching, and technical assistance. We not only help our partners and clients answer their inquiry questions; we help them use the results to make decisions and take action. Conversely, we help ensure that those decisions and actions are informed by data and evidence. Second, we tailor and customize our services to meet the needs of our partners, and we are firmly grounded in a set of principles based on decades of experience and expertise. This allows us to be intentionally flexible without losing sight of what we know works.
What’s the best piece of professional advice you’ve received?
Trust the emerging process. It can be easy to get caught up in your own plans and lose sight of what is happening around you. Consultants and coaches need to pay attention to everything all of the time, and be willing to make adjustments. Sometimes you need to stop working against the flow because something is not playing out the way that you planned or imagined. Instead, sometimes we need to go with the flow and look for opportunities to nudge and shape the process to increase the likelihood that we achieve our goals.
Go-to weekend activity?
Hanging out with my kids, even if that just means baking cookies and playing board games.
Latest hobby?
Hobby? What’s that? I don’t have hobbies, I have kids.
A quote or motto that guides your career?
Find out who you are, then do it on purpose.
Read more about Matt and his role at Marzano Research.
This interview has been edited for length and clarity.
