Durham-Based MetaMetrics Welcomes Sara S. Hennings as a Senior Research Associate

DURHAM, N.C. - July 28, 2009 - MetaMetrics®, Inc. today announced that Sara Strouss Hennings, Ph.D., has joined its renowned team of psychometricians as senior research associate, measurement. Hennings will support MetaMetrics' research and development initiatives by devising research studies and providing data analysis to link the company's reading, writing and mathematics scales with additional educational assessments and classroom programs. Durham-based MetaMetrics is the developer of the widely adopted

Lexile Framework® for Reading, The Lexile Framework for Writing and The Quantile Framework® for Mathematics. Prior to MetaMetrics, Hennings was a senior research scientist at Pearson, where she led psychometric activities and services related to the company's Algebra I and Algebra II Endof- Course Exams. Hennings also was a principal research scientist at Riverside Publishing, a division of Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, where she provided psychometric services for the company's authored products and large-scale programs, including measurement support for norm-referenced and criterion-referenced assessments used in large-scale testing programs. "Sara's impressive psychometric background and experience in assessment design and development is an important addition to MetaMetrics, particularly as we continue to refine our reading, writing and mathematics frameworks as well as pioneer new educational measurement tools," said Malbert Smith III, Ph.D., president. "We look forward to the many contributions she will make to the work of our team of leading psychometricians." Psychometrics is a branch of psychology dealing with the design, administration and interpretation of quantitative tests for the measurement of psychological variables such as intelligence, aptitude and personality traits. It is particularly important in today's educational environment because of the emphasis on tying student assessment to improved achievement.

Hennings has been published widely in peer-reviewed journals and is a member of the American Psychological Association, American Educational Research Association and National Council on Measurement in Education. She earned a doctorate and master's in educational research, measurement and statistics, as well as a bachelor's degree in psychology, from the University of Pittsburgh. Hennings joins Smith and other experienced MetaMetrics psychometricians who work to further enhance the Lexile Frameworks and the Quantile Framework, and to develop other research-based tools for measuring student achievement in reading, writing and mathematics.

The MetaMetrics psychometric team also includes:

    • Robert F. Baker, Ph.D., senior research associate
    • Donald S. Burdick, Ph.D., research and development consultant
    • Hal Burdick, senior product manager
    • Samantha S. Burg, Ph.D., research associate
    • Allen B. Johnson, research analyst
    • Heather H. Koons, Ph.D., research associate
    • Andrew Kyngdon, Ph.D., director of Pacific Rim Operations
    • Eleanor E. Sanford-Moore, Ph.D., senior vice president, research and development
    • Mary Ann Simpson, Ph.D., research associate
    • Jackson Stenner, Ph.D., chairman and chief executive officer
    • Carl W. Swartz, Ph.D., senior research associate

MetaMetrics' frameworks differ from other measurement systems in that they use common, developmental scales to match students with instructional resources and activities that will meet and challenge their abilities. The Lexile Framework for Reading connects students with reading materials using a common measure called a Lexile®. Recognized as the most widely used reading measure, Lexile measures enable educators and families to find books, articles and other materials that will challenge a student's ability, while maintaining interest and learning. Each year, more than 28 million Lexile measures are reported from reading assessments and programs, representing about half of U.S. students. The Lexile Framework for Writing expresses student writing ability on the same Lexile scale as reading ability, providing educators with a consistent approach to monitor student writing growth and reinforce the importance of reading in the development of writing skills. The Quantile Framework measures student mathematics achievement, the difficulty of mathematical skills and concepts, and the materials for teaching mathematics. Quantile® measures describe which skills and concepts a student is ready to learn and those that will require additional instruction, enabling educators to connect students with resources that meet their learning needs. For more information on MetaMetrics' reading, writing and mathematics frameworks, visit www.Lexile.com and www.Quantiles.com.

About MetaMetrics, Inc.
MetaMetrics, Inc., a privately held educational measurement company, develops scientifically based measures of student achievement that link assessment with instruction, foster better educational practices and improve learning by matching students with materials that meet and challenge their abilities. The company's team of psychometricians developed the widely adopted Lexile Framework for Reading (www.Lexile.com); El Sistema Lexile para Leer, the Spanish-language version of the Lexile Framework; The Quantile Framework for Mathematics (www.Quantiles.com); and The Lexile Framework for Writing. In addition to licensing Lexile and Quantile measures to state departments of education, testing and instructional companies and publishers, MetaMetrics delivers professional development, resource measurement and customized consulting services. For more information, visit www.MetaMetricsInc.com.

For more information, press only:
MetaMetrics: Eric Zurowski, 919-547-3453, ezurowski@Lexile.com