A Q&A with Deborah Loewenberg Ball was featured in the February 2023 issue of Michigan Research Newsletter. As part of their celebration of the International Day of Women and Girls in Science, Michigan Research interviewed Loewenberg Ball about her recent appointment to the National Science Board, what motivated her to study education, and how her leadership style has been influenced by her experiences as an elementary school teacher, research professor, and dean.
Loewenberg Ball, speaking about her appointment by President Biden to the National Science Board, said, “it’s a great honor, as somebody who does research in mathematics education and teacher education, to have an opportunity to link those fields with other areas of science.”
She also reflected on how her background as a public elementary school teacher continues to shape her research agenda and leadership style:
Although our society often doesn’t take teachers very seriously, their work is all about bringing together people who are different from each other, getting people to figure out what it actually means to respect other people, learning to see themselves as valuable, and learning to work collectively. Those are all skills that teachers have to use all the time. And they’re somewhat in short supply, sometimes in other contexts. And so I do feel like it was extremely helpful.
Read the Q&A here.