NSF Noyce Program Directors

Sandra Richardson, Program Lead
Sandra Richardson is the Program Lead for the Noyce Program.  Prior to her permanent assignment at the National Science Foundation, she served as an Associate Professor of Mathematics and Mathematics Education at Virginia State University.  Her research is in developing pedagogical content knowledge for pre-service teachers and effective means of diversifying the STEM teacher pipeline.  She brings her expertise in teacher professional development and broadening participation efforts to the Noyce Program.  Contact her at srichard@nsf.gov.

Kathleen B. Bergin, Program Director

Kathleen B. Bergin came to her permanent assignment at the National Science Foundation after she retired from the Georgia Institute of Technology in Atlanta, GA.  In addition to passions for equity and diversity in STEM education, Bergin has focused on the importance of changing how teachers/instructors and learners engage in the process of questioning.  She brings her expertise as a biologist by training and educator by passion to the Noyce team and is a strong advocate for STEM majors becoming teachers.  Contact her at kbergin@nsf.gov.

Susan Carson, Program Director

Sue Carson is a Professor of Plant & Microbial Biology at North Carolina State University where she led course and curriculum development for the Biotechnology Program for over a decade and more recently, directed the university-wide Quality Enhancement Plan, focused on faculty development and enhancing students’ critical and creative thinking skills across disciplines. Sue began her rotation as a Program Director at NSF in July and is excited to begin work with the Noyce Program.  Contact her at scarson@nsf.gov.

Michael Ferrara, Program Director

Michael Ferrara joined NSF as a permanent program officer after serving as a professor in the Department of Mathematical and Statistical Sciences at the University of Colorado Denver.  His education research interests include understanding how outreach and peer teaching experiences impact undergraduate STEM majors and the mathematical and pedagogical preparation of K-12 teachers and graduate teaching assistants.  He brings experiences as an informal and classroom educator, a research mathematician, and a mentor to teachers and learners in a breadth of settings to his work at NSF.  Contact him at mferrara@nsf.gov.

Bonnie Green, Program Director

Bonnie A Green comes to NSF from East Stroudsburg University (PA). Bon is an experimental psychologist specializing in research on success particularly as it relates to academic achievement. Through the application of cognitive development, psychometrics, and data science, she is seeking ways to improve educational access, achievement, and success particularly for individuals coming from vulnerable or oppressed backgrounds. Prior to attending graduate school, Green taught 5th/6th grade science, math, and technology, and is thrilled to be a part of the Noyce Program. Contact her at bongreen@nsf.gov.

John Haddock, Program Director

John Haddock recently joined NSF as a Program Director after serving 50 years as a professor of mathematics, classroom instructor, and sometimes administrator at the University of Memphis. His research interests focus on delay differential equations and dynamical systems as well as mathematics and STEM education. The education research interests include preparation of graduate teaching assistants for the teaching-research STEM workforce and networking and development of STEM identity for undergraduate students. Contact him at jhaddock@nsf.gov.

Thomas Kim, Program Director

Thomas D. Kim is from St. John Fisher College where he is a Professor of Chemistry and served as Associate Dean of Arts and Sciences.  His research focuses on Chemistry Education Research, specifically the examination of the expert-novice divide as it pertains to the use and perception of external representations.  He served as a program director for the Noyce program during a previous term as a rotator in the Division of Undergraduate Education at NSF.  Contact him at tkim@nsf.gov.

Jennifer Lewis, Program Director

Jennifer Lewis is a Program Director from the University of South Florida, Tampa, where she is a Professor and Graduate Director.  She also serves as the Director of the Center for the Improvement of Teaching and Research in Undergraduate STEM Education (CITRUS).  Lewis’s research includes discipline-based educational research in the field of chemistry.  She brings her expertise as an experienced project evaluator to the Noyce Program.  Contact her at jenlewis@nsf.gov.

Robert Mayes, Program Director

Robert Mayes joins NSF from Georgia Southern University where he is a research professor of mathematics education. His research areas include interdisciplinary STEM, quantitative reasoning in STEM teaching and learning, quantitative biology at the undergraduate level, and mathematical modeling and problem solving in grades 6-12 and undergraduate level.  Contact him at rmayes@nsf.gov.