Erica Echols is an Evaluation Specialist for the National Institute for STEM Evaluation and Research (NISER) in the Office of Research and Engagement at the University of Tennessee, Knoxville (UT). NISER, founded in 2016 under the leadership of Dr. Pamela Bishop, provides quality evaluation services to the science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) research and education sectors, including academic communities, not-for-profit organizations, and government entities. Erica is also a doctoral candidate in the evaluation, statistics, and measurement program in the department of educational psychology and counseling at UT.  Her research interests include evaluation and assessment in higher education, with a particular interest in evaluating and understanding diverse workforces that lead to student success in STEM. Echols graduated with her BS in chemistry from North Carolina A&T State University and an MS in environmental science and policy from the University of South Florida St. Petersburg.