Meet Leadership in Science
We are experts in translating standards and research into practice, building on teacher and administrator expertise to drive district-wide improvement.
Stacey van der Veen, Founder and Lead Consultant
stacey@leadinsci.com Stacey (Gruber) van der Veen has extensive experience designing and delivering professional development programs to support New Jersey school districts as they implement the Next Generation Science Standards. She partners with administrators, school boards, and parent and community groups to educate the public about the NGSS. Before founding Leadership In Science, Stacey was the Manager of Education Programs for the Merck Institute for Science Education (MISE), a nationally recognized nonprofit organization dedicated to improving science teaching and learning in public schools. She started her career teaching science and math at high schools in Newark, New Jersey, and New York City and has over 20 years of K-12 teaching and administrative experience in both public and private schools. She co-founded the Hoboken Charter School, one of the first cohort of schools chartered in New Jersey, where she served as Co-Coordinator, and Child Study Team Coordinator. Stacey earned her Ed.M. in secondary science education from the Harvard Graduate School of Education and her B.A. in biology from the University of Pennsylvania. |
Our Partner School Districts
Leadership in Science has provided professional development and support to the following districts:
** Some of the PD was provided when Leadership in Science was known as NGSSPD Consultants |
Teacher Leaders
Leadership in Science partners with a Higher-Ed consortium consisting of the Science Education Institute at Raritan Valley Community College (RVCC), the Rider University Science Education and Literacy Center (SELECT) and the Princeton University Teacher Preparation Program to support the NGSS Teacher Leader Program. The program prepares educators to take a leadership role in New Jersey’s implementation of the Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS). Teacher Leaders co-facilitate a series of workshops focused on supporting their colleagues as they begin to bring the new national standards into their classrooms. The program provides opportunities for K-12 classroom teachers to deepen their understanding of all aspects of the NGSS while developing collaborative and leadership skills, with the ultimate goal of sharing their expertise with their district colleagues. The program was developed in response to the adoption of the NGSS as New Jersey’s state science standards and the need to support school districts in preparing for and implementing these new standards. |