Two Professors Named to Prestigious Science Fellowship

Drs. Joanne Olson and Jeffrey Liew were elected as Fellows of the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS) for their contributions to advancing their respective fields of research.

Olson was recognized for her efforts to advance science education in elementary schools. She explains the time to teach elementary science is very limited, adding “the nationwide average length of a science lesson is just 19 minutes… and the subject is skipped entirely in a third of U.S. elementary classrooms.” Olson’s work focuses on how teachers in elementary science classrooms manage different amounts of time for their lessons. She has found that for lessons to be most effective, teachers need around 40-45 minutes to ensure students can deeply understand the material.

Liew’s contributions to the field of psychology focused on social and emotional development and self-regulation from early childhood to adulthood. Influenced early in his education and training by two other AAAS fellows, Liew was drawn to exploring how, “dysregulated emotion, attention, or behavior can impact youth’s academic and social lives.”

Liew described being selected as an AAAS Fellow as “Beyond surreal to be considered among so many extraordinary scientists and trailblazers.”

Olson and Liew join a fellowship that includes inventor Thomas Edison, sociologist W.E.B. DuBois and former NASA astronauts Ellen Ochoa and Mae Jemison.

For media inquiries, contact Ruben Hidalgo.