An educator or an avid educational researcher since 1981, Dr. Daniel Lewis is a Senior Research Scientist at CTB/McGraw-Hill in Monterey, California. After earning a B.S. in Elementary Education and teaching in the public schools, Dr. Lewis studied and began teaching mathematics at Kent State University and went on to receive his M.A. in Pure Mathematics. His keen interests in education and mathematics led him to pursue and earn a Ph.D. in Educational Measurement.

Prior to joining CTB/McGraw-Hill, Dr. Lewis enjoyed teaching educational research methods as an Associate Faculty member of the Graduate School of Education at Kent State University. He joined CTB/McGraw-Hill in 1995 where he serves as a leading researcher for the company, contributing to its reputation as a premier provider of research-based assessment products that promote student achievement.

Dr. Lewis' primary research interests include formative and benchmark assessment, growth and value-added modeling, standard setting, and educational assessment policy; he is an author of the Bookmark Standard Setting Procedure, which has become the predominant method for setting performance standards in the United States. As an Acuity team member since its inception, Dr. Lewis currently works in a central role on Acuity product and research design and works closely with a team of research scientists, associates, and statistical programmers to provide a sound psychometric foundation for Acuity.

Dr. Keith A. Boughton is a Senior Research Scientist at CTB/McGraw-Hill. After earning a B.Sc. in Psychology, Dr. Boughton continued his education at the University of Alberta and went on to receive a M.A. and Ph.D. in Educational Psychology.

Prior to joining CTB, Dr. Boughton worked for several years as an established Measurement Statistician in the assessment industry. Since coming to CTB in 2004, he has worked on several state-specific and other core CTB assessment solutions and is now dedicated to Acuity. He is a published researcher with work appearing in a book on Multivariate and Mixture Distribution Rasch Models.

Dr. Boughton's primary research interests include multi-dimensional Item Response Theory (IRT), mixture IRT models, Markov Chain Monte Carlo (MCMC) estimation, formative and benchmark assessment, growth modeling, and computer-adaptive testing. Dr. Boughton currently works as a lead scientist on the Acuity solution, working closely with a team of research scientists, associates, and statistical programmers to provide a sound psychometric foundation for Acuity.

Dr. Dong-In Kim is a Research Scientist for CTB/McGraw-Hill. Dr. Kim earned a Ph.D. in psychometrics and possesses extensive knowledge and skills in the fields of psychology, statistics, and measurement.

He currently works for CTB to apply advanced mathematical models and modern statistical theory to analyze and develop valid and reliable CTB assessments, including selected-response and performance assessments. Dr. Kim is one of several lead researchers working on Acuity Predictive Assessments.

Dr. Kim has served as a primary research scientist on numerous state-level assessments, applying psychometric models and analyzing and interpreting test results as required.

Dr. Furong Gao is a research manager for CTB/McGraw-Hill where she currently manages a group of research scientists and associates and oversees the psychometric quality of numerous assessment programs. Dr. Furong applies her extensive background and expertise in research science to solve complex psychometric issues, provide leadership and vision for assessment development, and manage operational improvements and future directions in measurement science. Dr. Furong’s expert psychometric and statistical consultation results in high-quality assessment solutions that extend the original mission of CTB: to help the teacher help the child.

Dr. Furong’s research specialties include writing research analysis specifications, selecting calibration and equating samples, conducting and/or reviewing Item Response Theory (IRT) item calibration, equating results, guiding research studies, and communicating with CTB clients regarding psychometric questions. Dr. Furong works closely with content editors on item selection to ensure psychometric quality of developed tests, writes research analyses and sample specifications, designs and conducts linking studies. Dr. Furong continually provides technical advice and supervision to the junior staff in the CTB Research department.

Dr. Furong holds a Ph.D. in Statistics with and emphasis on Educational and Psychological Measurement from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, Urbana, Illinois. She also holds a B.S. in Mathematics from Beijing Normal University in Beijing, China.

Dr. Furong is a published author with several articles related to measurement science.