Frieda Molina is director of MDRC’s Economic Mobility, Housing, and Communities (EMHC) policy area. She leads a multidisciplinary team of researchers, technical assistance providers, and data and operations staff working to develop, evaluate, and strengthen programs that promote economic mobility for people with low incomes. In this role, she also represents MDRC to external partners and funders and helps shape the organization’s strategic priorities in workforce development and related policy areas.
Molina has more than 25 years of experience in workforce development and social policy research and has spent nearly three decades at MDRC. She has led numerous large-scale, multisite evaluations and technical assistance initiatives focused on improving employment, earnings, and advancement opportunities for individuals facing barriers to economic mobility.
She currently leads the Economic Mobility Lab, which provides customized technical assistance to sector-based workforce training providers to help them connect participants to high-quality jobs and career pathways. She also contributes to major initiatives to build evidence and strengthen practice in the sectoral training field, including the Accelerating Sector Program Innovation project and the Sector Evidence Building Initiative.
Over her career, Molina has directed several landmark studies and demonstrations, including WorkAdvance, a multisite, sector-focused advancement initiative, and the Work Advancement and Support Center (WASC) demonstration, which tested strategies to increase earnings among low-wage workers by improving access to benefits and advancement supports. She has also held leadership roles on national evaluations of workforce programs funded by the U.S. Department of Labor and other federal agencies.
In addition to her evaluation work, Molina has led technical assistance efforts that apply behavioral science and human-centered design to improve program participation and outcomes, including projects supporting SNAP Employment and Training programs and TANF service delivery. She has also contributed to research in early childhood and education, including the Head Start CARES evaluation, and co-directed MDRC’s Center for Effective Career and Technical Education.
Molina holds a master’s degree in city and regional planning from the University of California, Berkeley, and a bachelor’s degree in anthropology from Pomona College.
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