Holly DownsDirector, Insights & Impact

    Experience

    With over 20 years of experience in leadership development evaluation and research, Holly brings deep expertise in program evaluation, research methodologies, and team management. As the previous project director for Amplify within CCL’s Societal Impact group, she secured and led a transformative $17.2 million grant-funded program focused on strengthening high-potential nonprofits through enhanced leadership development, strategic program design, and data-driven learning. 

    Before joining CCL, she served as an Assistant Professor for the Department of Educational Research Methodology and as the Associate Director of the Office of Assessment, Evaluation, and Research Services in the School of Education at the University of North Carolina at Greensboro. She continues to serve as an adjunct professor at UNCG.

    Current Role

    As Director of Insights and Impact, Holly is responsible for leading CCL’s global evaluation and analytics initiatives and team that uses data to improve programs and show impact. She develops strategies and priorities for measuring impact, gaining insights, and promoting internal learning across CCL’s programs and services. Working with the VP of Leadership Research and Analytics (LRA) and the entire team, she helps set strategy for and collaboratively leads the overall group while ensuring systems and guidelines maintain professional standards in data collection, analysis, and reporting. 

    Educational Background

    Ph.D., Educational Psychology – University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign  
    M.Ed., Education – University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign  
    B.S., Education – Eastern Illinois University – Charleston, Illinois  

    Professional Affiliations and Certifications

    American Educational Research Association (AERA)
    American Evaluation Association (AEA)
    Society for Industrial and Organizational Psychology (SIOP 

    Honors, Awards, Grants

    Top 50 Women Leaders of North Carolina for 2024, Women We Admire Organization, 2024

    Center for Creative Leadership, Amplify/PropelNext Product – $17.2 million grant from the Edna McConnell Clark Foundation (April 2020- April 2026)

    University of North Carolina at Greensboro, Educational Research Methodology Department in the School of Education, Greensboro, North Carolina (August 2010 – September 2014) Research and evaluation of projects that generated $5,272,110 in grant funding for UNCG   

    Counseling Outcome Research and Evaluation (CORE) Outstanding Outcome Research Paper Award (2016), Counseling Outcome Research and Evaluation Journal, 2016

    Mentoring/Advising/Supervising (MAS) Award, School of Education at the University of North Carolina at Greensboro, 2014

    Midwest Representative for the National 2003 Station Advisory Council for PBS, WILL AM-FM-TV, 2003

    Contact Information

    LinkedIn

    Areas of Expertise

    Evaluation, Evaluating the Impact of Leadership Development Programs, Evaluation of Digital and Virtual Learning