Profile of Dr. Diane Ebert-May
Department of Plant Biology
612 Wilson Road, Rm 270
Michigan State University
East Lansing, MI 48824
Phone: (517) 432-7171
ebertmay@msu.edu
Current position: University Distinguished Professor, Michigan State University
Ebert-May provides international leadership for discipline-based biology education research that integrates life sciences and cognitive science. She promotes professional development, assessment and improvement of faculty, postdoctoral scholars, and graduate students who actively participate in creative research about teaching and learning in the context of their scientific discipline. Ebert-May’s research group developed and tested a model for professional development workshops based on learner-centered teaching. Ebert-May leads FIRST IV, an NSF-funded professional development program to help postdoctoral scholars create and teach their first introductory biology course in preparation for their future academic positions. She teaches plant biology, introductory biology to majors in a large enrollment course, and a graduate /postdoctoral seminar on scientific teaching. Her plant ecology research continues on Niwot Ridge, Colorado, where she has conducted long-term ecological research on alpine tundra plant communities since 1971.