Allison Gilmour

Allison Gilmour leads research and evaluation focused on strengthening the special education workforce and improving educational opportunities for students with disabilities. Her research examines special educator labor markets, workforce shortages, teacher preparation and licensure, educator effectiveness, and policies designed to recruit, retain, and support special education personnel. Dr. Gilmour is co-director of the Special Education Workforce: A Research Collaborative (SPARC Center), a federally funded research center that studies the composition, distribution, stability, and effectiveness of the special education teacher workforce across multiple states. She also leads and supports projects that help state education agencies use data and evidence to address workforce challenges, such as special educator workload, and improve service delivery for students with disabilities.

Dr. Gilmour's work has been published in leading journals, including Educational Researcher, Exceptional Children, American Educational Research Journal, and the Journal of Educational Psychology. Her research has been supported by state departments of education, the Spencer Foundation, and the Institute of Education Sciences. She received the Society for Research on Educational Effectiveness Early Career Award in 2024 and was named a Thomas B. Fordham Institute Emerging Education Policy Scholar in 2020.

Before joining AIR, Dr. Gilmour was an assistant professor of special education and a high school special education teacher.