Professional Development: Leading Experts

Ann Benbow is a researcher, curriculum developer, teacher, and trainer. After teaching science (biology, chemistry and earth science) in high school, elementary school, and two-year college, she taught elementary and secondary science methods at the university level. She worked in research and development for the Education Division of the American Chemical Society for 12.5 years. During that time, she directed a number of national educational grants from the National Science Foundation (NSF). These included the FACETS middle school curriculum project, the Operation Chemistry teacher enhancement project (Parts I and II), the Science in a Technical World high school curriculum project, and the ScienceGate curriculum conference. Her work in the informal science arena included a stint as managing editor of WonderScience magazine for children and adults, and administrator for the Parents and Children for Terrific Science mini-grant program. Her intergenerational program with the Smithsonian Resident Association Program, Science with a Scientist, won the National University Continuing Education Association Creative Programming Award in 1992.

Dr. Benbow is Principal Investigator of an NSF-funded project with the OASIS Institute: Science Across the Generations. She has co-authored a college textbook on elementary science methods for Wadsworth Publishing, and recently published a book on improving communication techniques with adult learners. In addition to NSF, she has also received grant funding from private foundations, the National Institutes of Health, the National Library of Medicine, and other federal agencies. In her current position as Director of Development and Outreach at the American Geological Institute, she will be responsible for expanding the efforts of AGI in the informal science areas, as well as developing partnerships with foundations that support Earth science programs and careers.

Dr. Benbow has a B.S. in Biology from St. Mary's College of Maryland, and a M.Ed. in Science Education and a Ph.D. in Curriculum and Instruction from the University of Maryland College Park.