The Newark Schools Research Collaborative (NSRC) is a collaborative project of the Newark Public Schools (NPS) and Rutgers University-Newark (RU-N). NSRC draws upon the interdisciplinary expertise of social scientists, educators and education lawyers to provide a comprehensive approach to urban school reform and improvement. Rather than viewing itself as the scientifically detached expert, NSRC functions in the traditions of “action” and applied research to work collaboratively with stakeholders to use research-based knowledge to improve school and student success, and to work with stakeholders to enhance the capacity for educational reform in the city of Newark.