Martina Nieswandt joined Chapman University as vice president for research in 2022. In this role, Nieswandt develops and leads research strategic planning, working in close partnership with the vice provost for graduate education and the deans of Chapman’s 11 schools and colleges, while also collaborating with federal and state offices, granting agencies, foundations, business and industry to identify research collaborations and funding opportunities. She oversees the university’s research support areas and participates in campus research-related space and facilities planning on the Orange and Rinker campuses.
Nieswandt has published more than 40 articles and two books on a range of topics related to STEM education, with particular focus on chemistry and mathematics. Her research has been sustained by continuous funding, totaling more than $7.5 million, by the National Science Foundation, the American Educational Research Association, the U.S. Department of Education and the German Science Foundation. She has delivered numerous keynote addresses, presentations and workshops both nationally and internationally.
In her work as an educator, Nieswandt has offered a range of courses at both the undergraduate and graduate levels on topics ranging from science and mathematics curriculum and qualitative research design and practice to gender issues and theories of learning and teaching in STEM education.
Nieswandt received her Ph.D. from Christian-Albrechts-University in Kiel, Germany, and is also a graduate of Ruhr University, Bochum, Germany. She was a researcher at the Leibnitz Institute for Science and Mathematics Education at the University of Kiel and has held posts at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas, Ontario Institute for Studies in Education of the University of Toronto, and Illinois Institute of Technology, Chicago. Prior to joining Chapman, Nieswandt served as associate vice chancellor for research and engagement at the University of Massachusetts Amherst.
