Janet Carlson, an educator and researcher with deep experience leading one of the nation’s foremost science-education nonprofits, will become executive director of the Center to Support Excellence in Teaching at the Stanford Graduate School of Education. The appointment takes effect Sept. 1.

Carlson has worked at BSCS for 23 years, the last six as executive director. Established in 1958, BSCS is renowned for its development of science curricula, its research on the efficacy of curriculum and professional development, and its transformative professional development work with K-12 science teachers. (The group was initially named the Biological Sciences Curriculum Study, but changed to using the abbreviation when it expanded its services to other subjects.)

“She is an ideal fit for CSET and with several other programs at the Graduate School of Education,” said GSE dean Claude Steele. “I’m confident that she’ll make a big contribution to our science education and teacher education programs. We’re fortunate to have her joining us.”

CSET and BSCS do have some strong similarities in their missions. While CSET focuses on subjects in addition to STEM, it too is dedicated to improving the quality of instruction in the nation’s schools through research and professional development. Its faculty director, Pam Grossman, the Nomellini-Olivier Professor of Education, has been pioneering new research identifying key traits of successful English teachers, as well as overseeing the Stanford Summer Teaching Institute for experienced teachers and working with teachers-in-training.

“We couldn’t have found someone more ideal,” said Grossman about Carlson. “She is a very successful executive director of a very successful grant-funded nonprofit that’s a leader in professional development and research on teaching.”

Carlson will be moving for the first time to the Bay Area from Colorado Springs, Colo., where BSCS is based. “I look forward to working with faculty at Stanford whose research I have admired and drawn from for many years,” she said. “CSET offers the opportunity to use my experience leading an organization that is focused on transforming the teaching and learning of STEM education and applying it to the broader realm of the whole school environment.”

Under Carlson’s leadership, the BSCS experienced significant growth: It produced substantial research findings on how well a large variety of instructional materials help students to learn; it moved its curriculum materials and professional development resources to digital platforms; and it strengthened its professional development programs with a new focus on leadership development at the classroom level.

“She has grown the organization to now house a powerful research capacity to go along with BSCS’s curricular and teacher-education capacity,” said Rich Shavelson, former dean of the GSE who is a member of the BSCS board of directors.  “She brings to Stanford a wealth of leadership experience, science-education experience and grant-funding experience.”