University Park

Cruz joins Schreyer Institute for Teaching Excellence faculty

Credit: Penn StateCreative Commons

UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. — Laura Cruz has joined Penn State's Schreyer Institute of Teaching Excellence as an associate research professor of Teaching and Learning Scholarship.

Laura Cruz Credit: Penn StateCreative Commons

Her new role is to heighten awareness of a growing body of research in teaching and learning in higher education, with particular attention to supporting faculty and programs who are interested in turning the work they do in the classroom into published scholarship. Over the years, Cruz has worked with hundreds of faculty to develop research projects leading to presentations, publications, external grants, and advanced insight into both comprehensive and disciplinary-based pedagogical practice.

Prior to coming to Penn State, Cruz served as the director of the Centers for Teaching and Learning at both Tennessee Tech University and Western Carolina University. She has held multiple leadership positions in the field of educational development, including an elected term on the governing board of the professional society for faculty developers and service as editor of To Improve the Academy: A Journal of Educational Development. Cruz received her doctorate from the University of California at Berkeley in 2001.

Her extensive list of publications include work in history as well as the areas of course and program design, educational technology, educational development, and emerging forms of scholarship. She has been a frequent invited speaker in the areas of organizational development, teaching and learning by design, and the scholarship of teaching and learning. Her most recent book, "Taking Flight: Making Your Center for Teaching and Learning Soar," is currently under contract with Stylus press.

Last Updated September 27, 2018