Let's get to know who's behind the project.
Dr. John Lamb is an Associate Professor of Mathematics Education in the School of Education. He began his career in higher education at The University of Texas at Tyler in 2005 as an ABD Senior Lecturer. Dr. Lamb earned his Ph.D. in Secondary Education with a minor in Mathematics from Mississippi State University in 2006. Dr. Lamb has a B.S. degree in mathematics (2000) and a M.Ed. in mathematics (2002) from Mississippi College. Dr. Lamb has taught mathematics in both middle and high schools and has worked intensively with preservice and inservice teachers of mathematics in K-12 since coming to UT Tyler. He has been involved in procuring over 2 million dollars in professional development grants since beginning his profession as a higher education faculty member. Dr. Lamb has been heavily involved in Faculty Leadership since earning Tenure at UT Tyler. He has served as the Faculty Senate President, chaired several university committees, and has chaired several ad-hoc committees focused on improving and understanding the climate at UT Tyler. Dr. Lamb has been awarded teaching and research awards (Provost’s Excellence in Teaching, College of Education and Psychology Research, and Kappa Delta Pi Teacher of the Year) during his time at UT Tyler and values teaching above all faculty responsibilities. Dr. Lamb has published eleven peer-reviewed manuscripts, has been awarded 20 externally funded grants, has been awarded two internally funded grants through UT Tyler, and has presented at 35 professional conferences.
Dr. Debra Lynn Plowman is Assistant Professor at Texas A & M University at Corpus Christi. Her background in the areas of student thinking, and teachers’ decision making on teaching and learning of fractions, proportional reasoning, and design of embedded class days contributes to her role as instructor and coordinator for these activities in the grant. From 2015 to the present she co-lead for the Central Texas Pilot in 2015, and was PI and Co-Pi for the projects held in the Tyler rural area and continued project in Central Texas. Over Debra’s career in professional development and pre-service education she has coordinated and led over 100 workshops and courses, as well as providing training to other teachers on best practices in teacher education. In her work with the Texas Regional Collaboratives she led an evaluation research project that examined the effects of professional development practices at scale on teacher knowledge, how teachers’ self-reports of learning align with their teacher knowledge, and changes in beliefs about teaching and learning mathematics. Finally, these research and education experiences when combined with national and state level connections to researchers and mathematics educators integrate to support Dr.Plowman’s understanding of effects of PD within the system of public education policy and practice.
Dr. Dustin L. “Dusty” Jones is an Associate Professor of Mathematics Education in the Department of Mathematics and Statistics at Sam Houston State University. His background in mathematics curriculum, mathematics teacher professional development, and statistics education contributes to his role as instructor and content developer for these activities in the grant. From 2016 to 2018, he was the director of the Math Academy at Sam Houston, a $250,000 professional development project for mathematics teachers in grades 4-6 in ESC Region 6, funded by the Teacher Quality Grants Program of the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board. Over Dusty’s career in higher education, he has led more than 60 presentations and workshops at professional meetings, and has published 50 articles, books, and chapters related to mathematics and teacher education. He has served as the president of the Association of Mathematics Teacher Educators in Texas, and coordinated several conferences and meetings of teachers and teacher educators. His diverse experiences and expertise in mathematics education position him to effectively communicate with teachers in professional development, and effectively communicate with policymakers, teacher educators, and other leaders about what works in professional development.
Dr. Mark S. Montgomery, Assistant Professor of Elementary Education, has numerous years of experience in teaching and working with students and teachers in the middle grades. As a middle school mathematics teacher in Waco ISD, and Robinson ISD, he has worked with students from 6th through 8th grades. In addition to teaching, he also served as department chair. Following his time as a classroom teacher, Dr. Montgomery served as an instructional mathematics specialist on a 5th/6th grade Intermediate campus and a 7th/8th middle school campus. During this time, he worked to professionally develop teachers in areas of mathematics as well as technology integration. Next, Dr. Montgomery spent 3 years working for the Harts Bluff ISD schools and serving as their district instructional technologist, where he oversaw a campus-wide shift toward project-based learning, including providing support and training for teachers. Along with the PBL focus, the district also moved toward one-to-one technology, specifically with iPads, for grades 5-8. Dr. Montgomery provided training and support for teachers and students in the implementation of technology, while also teaching middle school robotics. With a vast experience in middle level education, project-based learning, peer feedback, technology integration, teacher coaching, professional development, and meeting student and teacher needs, Dr. Montgomery is well equipped to help participants focus on building their own understanding of mathematical concepts for the benefits of increasing their teaching capabilities for the benefit of their students.
Dr. Jim Ewing, is an elementary education professor at Stephen F. Austin State University with a specialization in mathematics and English language learners (ELLs). As a result of living in Spain for 24 years, Dr. Ewing is bilingual. During his elementary mathematics education course, Dr. Ewing's students tutor ELLs and students from poverty homes. Dr. Ewing has published three articles and is writing a book for teachers about meeting the needs of all students in mathematics. Being a teacher for 25 years and an administrator for eight, Ewing connects well with teachers and teacher candidates. Eric Jensen, voted the number one guru in education (globalgurus.org/education-gurus-30/), trains Ewing. Jensen helps Ewing give motivating workshops for teachers. Ewing has offered workshops at Stephen F. Austin State University, Houston ISD, Nacogdoches ISD, and will work with teachers in the New York City Schools. Ewing has given presentations all over the country--in March 2018 Ewing gave a presentation at ASCD in Boston for 100 administrators and teachers. Ewing’s workshops are informative and engaging.
Dr. Amy Roberson Hayes, is an associate professor of psychology at the University of Texas at Tyler. Dr. Hayes received a Ph.D. in Developmental Psychology, with a focus on fostering individual success in educational and occupational settings. Her research expertise is in examining the factors at multiple levels in an individual’s environment that affect their academic performance, educational attainment, and career and occupational aspirations, and has published research across the fields of psychology and education. Additionally, Dr. Hayes has expertise in quantitative research design and analysis with multi-site studies such as the one proposed in our grant. She has experience designing, coordinating, and implementing research conducted across multiple classroom and school settings simultaneously. Dr. Hayes has expertise in using developmentally appropriate measures and methods tailored to the age and cognitive functioning of children in our target age range. Finally, she has experience coordinating and analyzing large multi-site data sets using appropriate quantitative statistical analyses that will be necessary for the current project.