Sarah Lubienski, professor of Curriculum and Instruction, has been named Director of the STEM Education Research Collaborative (SERC), formerly known as The STEM Collaborative. As part of the College of Education, the Collaborative advances teaching, learning, and policy in the areas of science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) education.

Building professional relationships and increasing funding are both important to Lubienski: "I see SERC’s role as building connections among STEM education researchers and increasing our capacity for obtaining funding to support our research," she said.

To further these goals, SERC will host a seminar series this semester to share expertise about funding and funders. A seminar was held in January about IES (Institute of Education Sciences) funding for math and science education research; future topics include grant proposal writing, as well as funders beyond IES and NSF. Lubienski noted that all STEM education researchers, both within and outside the College of Education, are welcome to attend the seminars.

Lubienski has been a faculty member at the College since 2004 and holds a Ph.D. in Curriculum, Teaching and Educational Policy from Michigan State University. Her scholarship centers around intersections of education and equity, focusing on mathematics achievement, instruction, and reform.

She joins five other strategic initiative leaders at the College of Education: Lisa Monda-Amaya, the Center for Education in Small Urban Communities; Nick Burbules, Ubiquitous Learning Institute; Debra Bragg, the Forum on the Future of Public Education; Stafford Hood, the Center for Culturally Responsive Evaluation and Assessment (CREA); and George Reese, Office for Mathematics, Science, and Technology Education (MSTE), which partners with the STEM Education Research Collaborative.