Stern was one of four people at UC Berkeley who planned the Center in 1987, and he has been active in its research and development program since then. For the past two years, he has worked in Paris at the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development, conducting international comparative studies.
He is the principal author of "School to Work: Research on Programs in the United States" (1995), "School-Based Enterprise: Productive Learning in American High Schools" (1994) and "Career Academies: Partnerships for Reconstructing American High Schools "(1992).
Stern will lead the center in new efforts“working side-by-side with schools and colleges implementing school-to-work efforts, and teaming up experienced practitioners with researchers to gain a better understanding of reform possibilities.
Stern graduated from Harvard University in 1966 with a B.A. in social relations. He received his master's degree in city planning in 1968 and his Ph.D. in economics and urban studies in 1972 from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Before joining the UC Berkeley faculty in 1976, he taught economics at Yale from 1972 to 1976.