Historian - Civic Educator

Science Education
as Civic Education

My work addresses the intersection of science learning, US history, and the democratic promise of liberal education. Executive Director of the National Center for Science and Civic Engagement — Fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science (Div. Q).

Current Focus Areas
Curriculum
STEM learning that empowers responsible, lifelong learners who can apply the knowledge, values, and methods of science to civic challenges.
Professional Development
Workshops, webinars, institutes, and research to support formal and informal science educators.
Collaboration
Building alliances and partnerships among STEM reform initiatives, science advocacy organizations, and civic education initiatives.
From the Blog

Recent Writing

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STEM Reform

Beyond the STEM Pipeline: Why Science Education Must Focus on Democracy, Not Just Workforce

April 3, 2026 · 10 min read

A recent opinion piece in the Washington Post declared “U.S. universities have lost sight of their core task….It’s time for higher education to get back to educating the…

Liberal Art of Science

The Politics of Neutrality, Part I: How Stripping Context from STEM Learning Serves Power

March 23, 2026 · 14 min read

In April 2022, Florida Governor Ron DeSantis defended rejecting 41 percent of the state’s submitted math textbooks—the highest rate in state history—citing “indoctrination” by referencing Social-Emotional Learning and…

Learning from the Past

Who Calls the Tune? Robert Lynd, the Truman Commission, and the Enduring Barriers to Higher Education Reform

March 11, 2026 · 5 min read

In April 1948, the sociologist Robert S. Lynd published a review essay in The Journal of Higher Education as a response to the 1946 Truman Commission’s landmark report,…