Paula Magee

Paula Magee is a Clinical Professor of Science Education in the School of Education at IUPUI. A Brooklyn, NY native and resident, until coming to Indianapolis in 1992, she earned her PhD in Physical Chemistry from The Graduate School at the City University of New York (1992). Following a postdoctoral appointment at Eli Lilly & Company, where she used nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy and X-ray crystallography to research the structure and function of drug molecules, she turned to teaching and earned her teaching certification in secondary science (chemistry, earth space science and technology) from IUPUI.

While on the faculty at the School of Education her work has focused on using inquiry and culturally relevant pedagogies to prepare preservice teachers to teach in K-12 classrooms. She recently co-authored a book chapter in the Handbook for Research in STEM education exploring the history of culturally relevant pedagogy in STEM classrooms (2020). Her work with in-service teachers has centered around the role of mentoring in the supervision process and exploring culturally relevant pedagogies in practice.

Currently, she is the coordinator of the Alternative Certification Programs in the School of Education. She works closely with school districts in Marion County and develops partnerships to recruit employees to initial licensure programs. Alternative certification programs have been shown to be an excellent way to diversify the teaching staff by breaking down systemic barriers in teacher education pathways to licensure. Dr. Magee is committed to equitable and anti-racist education in classrooms and in teacher preparation pathways.