I am pleased to inform the 91ÑÇÉ« community that Beth Herbel-Eisenmann has been appointed dean of the Faculty of Education effective Jan. 1, 2027, following a national and international search process.
Herbel-Eisenmann joins 91ÑÇÉ« from Michigan State University, a globally top-ranked Faculty of Education, where she is a Red Cedar Distinguished Professor in Teacher Education and director of the Program in Mathematics Education. She also holds a part-time appointment as a professor at the University of South-Eastern Norway.
Herbel-Eisenmann earned a PhD from Michigan State University in curriculum, teaching and educational policy, specializing in mathematics education and teacher education. She held prior faculty appointments at the University of Wyoming, the Ontario Institute for Studies in Education at the University of Toronto and Iowa State University before returning to Michigan State University in 2008.
Equity, power and voice sit at the centre of Herbel-Eisenmann's scholarship. Her research examines how language and discourse in mathematics classrooms and informal education spaces can reproduce or disrupt systems of privilege and oppression.
A distinctive feature of Herbel-Eisenmann's administrative leadership record is her service as a program officer at the U.S. National Science Foundation (NSF) from 2019 to 2022, where she managed large portfolios of grants, facilitated U.S. national workshops and contributed to internal policy and process improvements. Among her most notable achievements in this role was collaborating on a small team to co-design and launch the U.S. National Science Foundation's Racial Equity in STEM program, for which the team received the NSF Director's Award for Superior Accomplishment in 2022.
Herbel-Eisenmann is an internationally recognized and active scholar, with more than 100 peer-reviewed publications, including in many leading journals in mathematics education and education research. She has edited multiple books and journal special issues and contributed extensively to international research handbooks and professional resources for educators.
Her research has attracted more than US$12.5 million in funded research, including a prestigious NSF CAREER award, and focuses on equity, strengths-based pedagogies and community-engaged research.
Through sustained partnerships with school boards and communities across Canada, the United States and Norway, she has led collaborative projects centred on Indigenous and newcomer education and advanced the integration of human rights principles into mathematics teacher education.
Her contributions have been recognized through numerous honours, including the 2023 Distinguished Scholar Award from the American Educational Research Association, the 2016 Journal of Research on Leadership Education Best Article Award and the 2010 Early Career Award from the Association of Mathematics Teacher Educators.
Her record of service reflects deep experience in mentoring and building inclusive cultures and extends to community engagement, including volunteering to facilitate a Youth Voice and Action Council at a local high school and serving on the board of directors and education committee for South Haven LGBTQ+ Advocacy. She has received awards from Michigan State University for her work as a mentor and community-engaged scholar.
I extend my thanks to the members of the search committee for their commitment and guidance throughout this process. I also thank Sarah Barrett for her leadership and service as interim dean of the Faculty of Education during this transition period.
Sincerely,
Lisa Philipps
Interim President and Vice-Chancellor