Colleen

Mathematics Content Expert, Writer, Researcher

Colleen is an accomplished mathematics writer, content expert, and researcher. She has been in the field of education since she graduated with Bachelor of Arts degrees in English and Sociology from Wesleyan University in 1995. She began her career in the classroom, teaching middle school special education and fifth grade. After leaving the classroom, Colleen embarked on a career in educational publishing, where she specialized in mathematics. She gained expertise while working as a curriculum developer and mathematics project manager at Kaplan K12 Learning Services and as a developmental editor at Triumph Learning. She has also worked on a freelance basis for a variety of publishers, writing student editions, teacher's manuals, and assessments for grades K-12 mathematics as well as textbook components for college-level teacher education programs. Colleen has also contributed to educational research, developing lessons for the Boston College Diagnostic Algebra Assessment and creating pre- and post-tests for the Concord Consortium's NSF-funded SmartGraphs study. In 2016, she earned a Master of Arts degree in Cognitive Studies in Education from Teachers College, Columbia University. Her research project focused on developing instruments to measure pre-service teachers' confidence and knowledge of formative assessment in mathematics. Colleen's pet peeve is hearing people say dismissively, "I'm just not good at math." She hopes to use her knowledge of cognition and learning, educational research, and best practices in mathematics instruction to assist learners of all ages in developing mathematical competence.