JORDAN GERTON

I received my Bachelor's degree (1994) in Engineering Physics from the University of Arizona and Master's (1998) and Doctorate (2001) degrees in Physics from Rice University under the direction of Prof. Randall Hulet, where I researched Bose-Einstein condensation in low-temperature lithium gases. I spent my postdoctoral years at the California Institute of Technology with Prof. Steve Quake (now at Stanford), where I developed a research program in nanophotonics.  I maintained a vibrant research program in nanophotonics until recent years and in 2014, I organized and hosted the 13th International Conference on Near-Field Optics and Related Techniques (NFO-13) at Snowbird, Utah which drew over 300 participants from over 30 countries, and included a plenary talk by Eric Betzig who won the Nobel Prize in Chemistry a few months later.

Also in 2014, I was appointed the Chair of the Crocker Science Center design committee, where I led the University's planning, design and construction efforts for a new integrated science education and research facility that opened for research and courses - including 7 new interdisciplinary teaching labs, in January 2018.  Also in 2014 I became Director of the Center for Science and Mathematics Education and served in that position (while maintaining my faculty responsibilities in the Physics and Astronomy Department) until 2022.  While in the CSME, I had the privilege to work with an amazing group of faculty and staff on a variety of projects and programs for undergraduate and K-12 students, as well as faculty and teachers.  The CSME developed and had responsibility for several high-impact programs, including:  a Learning Assistant program that now includes 250+ LAs per semester; a cohort-based undergraduate research program (SRI) that now engages the majority of first-year students in the College of Science; several teacher education and support programs, including a cohort-based Masters of Science program (MSSST) for in-service teachers; a science-internship program; a STEM-focused after-school program for refugees and other new arrivals; a regional science fair that feeds directly into the international science fair; and many projects funded by external grants.  Many of these programs have been sustained beyond my time in the CSME, and some have grown into core stand alone programs in the College of Science.

Since 2022, I have focused my efforts on science education research and curriculum reform, and have mentored several students in this area together with collaborators Prof. Lauren Barth-Cohen (Dept. of Educational Psychology) and Prof. Kelby Hahn (Dept. of Physics and Astronomy). 

Becoming a member of the Cottrell Scholar community in 2007 had a major impact on my career and has continued to provide amazing opportunities to collaborate with colleagues from across the US on numerous efforts and projects.