Associate Professor Soonhye Park Named University Faculty Scholar

RALEIGH, N.C. — Soonhye Park, an associate professor of STEM education at the NC State College of Education, has been selected as University Faculty Scholar. This program recognizes and rewards emerging academic leaders at NC State University who conduct research that address pressing issues.

Colleges nominate faculty members for the program, and a committee of senior faculty across NC State select the scholars. Nominees are evaluated on their research and scholarship productivity, excellence in teaching and mentoring, and leadership in extension, professional societies and public service initiatives.

Park’s research focuses on teacher Pedagogical Content Knowledge (PCK), teacher professional identity, teacher change and professional development. She has led various grant-funded projects on teacher professional development in order to find effective ways to advance teachers’ knowledge, skills and practices that promote students’ engagement in scientific practices, critical thinking skills and science achievement.

Park currently serves as co-principal investigator on a $1.4 NSF-funded project that aims to improve science teachers’ decision-making based on their analyses of students’ real-time, multi-channel, self-regulated learning data with MetaDash.

She has a bachelor’s in biology education and master’s in science education from Seoul National University and a Ph.D. in science education from the University of Georgia. She was on the faculty at the University of Iowa for nine years before joining the NC State College of Education in 2016.

Since NC State Chancellor Randy Woodson began the University Faculty Scholar program in 2012, there have been nine faculty within the College of Education selected as scholars, including Park. Our other University Faculty Scholars are Margaret Blanchard and Audrey Jaeger (2016-17); Karen Hollebrands (2015-16); Eric Wiebe (2014-15); Hollylynne Lee and Alyssa Rockenbach (2013-14); and Jessica DeCuir-Gunby and Bonnie Fusarelli (2012-13).

Nominations to the University Faculty Scholars Program are limited to assistant professors who have been re-appointed for a second term, all associate professors and professors within the first three years of appointment at that rank.