Westat Buys Education Research Specialist Edvance

In the US, employee-owned research agency Westat has acquired education research and technical assistance specialist Edvance Research. Terms of the deal were not disclosed.

Co-founded in 2005 by Dean Nafziger and Donald Barfield, Edvance aims to improve outcomes for students through the understanding and use of educational data and research. Following the acquisition, Edvance staff and current projects will continue to operate from their existing Texas locations, while Nafziger and Barfield have been appointed to the Westat Management Group.

In a statement, Westat said the firms' offerings will be merged to provide research, evaluation and technical assistance services to federal, state and local government agencies; non-profit organizations; and private industry.

Web sites: www.westat.com and www.edvanceresearch.com .