Eileen Murray, an Assistant Professor in the department of Mathematical Sciences, earned her Ph.D. in mathematics education at the University of Georgia. Eileen’s dissertation focused on the impact of a series of reflective teaching cycles on the selection and implementation of tasks that had the potential to promote higher-order thinking. Prior to returning for her Ph.D., Eileen taught secondary mathematics at Woodward Academy in College Park, GA. She holds a masters degree from The University of Arizona in mathematics and a masters degree from the Georgia Institute of Technology in statistics.

Eileen has taught high school and undergraduate mathematics and secondary mathematics methods. She have been trained as a mathematics teacher educator and has engaged in research in several areas directly related to the preparation and professional development of teachers, such as how teachers understand and use models and representations in their teaching, particularly in the context of integers and integer operations; the content preparation of teachers in the United States through specific content courses that aim to make connections between undergraduate and secondary content; and the secondary preparation of mathematics and science teachers internationally.

At the core of Eileen's research interests is the desire to understand how to best prepare and support secondary mathematics teachers along their professional continuum. This is important because research has shown that teachers who participate in ongoing professional development are better situated to improve student learning and performance. But as a field we need to more fully develop and understand the aspects of professional development and undergraduate education that help teachers make generative changes in their practice, and Eileen is uniquely positioned to tackle these issues.