Delivering Student-Ready STEM Education

Sepehr Vakil is an assistant professor of Learning Sciences in the School of Education and Social Policy at Northwestern University. Previously he was Assistant Professor of STEM Education and the Associate Director of Equity & Inclusion in the Center for STEM Education at the University of Texas at Austin. Broadly his research examines the intersections of learning, identity, race, power, and ethics in secondary and post-secondary engineering and computer science contexts. Dr. Vakil’s teaching and research are informed by sociocultural theories of learning, practice, and pedagogy. He recently received the National Science Foundation’s early CAREER award, as well as the National Academy of Education/Spencer Foundation Postdoctoral fellowship. He received his PhD in the Education in Mathematics, Science, and Technology program at UC Berkeley, and his B.S and M.S in Electrical Engineering from UCLA.

Mathematics Education Professor, Inspirational Speaker and STEM education scholar and mentor, Dr. Roni Ellington has spent the last 18 years cultivating herself as a teacher, speaker, scholar and personal development expert. Trained as a mathematics educator, Dr. Roni Ellington has authored several scholarly articles on STEM education, parental involvement, and successfully navigating the STEM pipeline, particularly for minority students. Dr. Ellington is a leading expert on how to cultivate student’s success in mathematics and STEM related disciplines. She is currently an Associate Professor of Mathematics Education and the former Coordinator of the Graduate Programs in Mathematics Education at Morgan State University. She has also worked as a high school mathematics teacher, mathematics lecturer and mathematics education consultant. She is the owner of the Transforming STEM Network, a company committed to providing transformative education models to schools and school districts that promote diversity and inclusion in STEM-related disciplines and she is also the owner and president of the Transformation of STEM Network (Trans-STEM.net), an organization committed to promoting and advocating for diversity in STEM education and developing, implementing and evaluating STEM practices and programs that empower ALL students to excel and persist in STEM disciplines and careers. partner in Evoklife, a well-being company that creates programs and products that promote wellness, transformation and individual and organizational success.