Phyllis Balcerzak

Phyllis Balcerzak is an Associate Teaching Professor in the College of Education, in the Department of Educator Preparation & Leadership at the University of Missouri, St. Louis (UMSL). She joined the UMSL-COE in 2015 after retiring from her career at Washington University where she was a clinical associate professor of teacher preparation (1996-2006) and director of professional development in science education (2006-2014). During 2015-2020 she served as Co-PI for a National Science Foundation Noyce Teacher Scholarship grant where she designed, implemented, and researched mentoring programs for STEM teachers during their induction years in high-need schools. Balcerzak's teaching interests include advancing the practice of preservice and in-service teachers, introduction to research methods, and project-based STEM instruction. Her research interests are focused on how K-20 educators transfer professional learning to classrooms and the use of action research to document the impact of changes in teaching and learning.