Candice Dias is an applied researcher and evaluator who has been focused on designing research and evaluation processes that are relevant to and useful for communities. Her work has focused on the intersections of economic mobility, health equity, and community-responsive evaluation methodologies. In her current work at School of Social & Practice at the University of Pennsylvania, she led the development and implementation of a longitudinal study examining barriers to economic stability. She also teaches qualitative methods in the Social Policy and Social Work programs. She is a member of the Pennsylvania Workforce Development Board's Barrier Remediation Committee and has served on national steering committees focused on data governance and evaluation practice in place-based initiatives.

Previously, at Camden Promise Neighborhood, Candice established evaluation systems that enabled staff to use findings for program improvement. She worked closely with community engagement teams and partnered with multiple agencies to make space for community voices in interpreting data, creating feedback loops for research to be returned to the communities it represents.

Candice earned a PhD in Urban and Regional Studies from the University of Groningen, the Netherlands, and a Master’s in Regional Planning from Cornell University.