Sarah Weilant is a policy researcher at RAND. She works to affect change in communities, systems, and organizations focusing on organizational and workforce development, equity, well-being, resilience, and education. She considers that collectively, these are all drivers of achieving national security, another focus of her work, with considerations in how to address U.S. Coast Guard needs, countering violent extremism, illicit networks, and military sexual assault and harassment. She uses qualitative research methods and leads mixed-methods teams to conduct analysis and provide recommendations applicable to policy and planning. Weilant engages with federal, local, and international strategic decisionmakers to design conceptual frameworks and logic models, develop metrics, and design and conduct primary data collection through focus groups, interviews, and U.S. nationally representative surveys. Her work is not only conducted across the U.S., but also includes work in Southeast Asia and Africa.
Her work prior to RAND included refugee resettlement at the International Rescue Committee, and agricultural development in the Peace Corps. Weilant holds a Masters degree in public policy from American University's School of Public Affairs, and a B.A. in French.
M.P.P. in public policy, American University
