Dr. Crystal Morton is an Associate Professor of Mathematics Education in the Department of Urban Teacher Education at IUPUI School of Education. Currently, she serves as the Associate Director of Research for the Great Lakes Equity Center, Equity Fellow for the Midwest and Plains Equity Assistance Center, Coordinator of the Urban Education Studies Ph.D. program, President of the Benjamin Banneker Association, and K-12 Outreach Director for Women & Hi Tech. She is also the founder and director of Girls STEM Institute. Girls STEM Institute aims to transform communities by empowering girls of color to become leaders, innovators, and educators who use STEM as a tool for personal and social change.
Dr. Morton’s scholarly work focuses on secondary mathematics education, emphasizing the role of informal STEM learning in fostering equitable and transformative mathematics teaching and learning experiences. She primarily examines the learning experiences and specifically mathematics learning experiences of Black girls in grades 3-12.
Dr. Morton also serves as a Co-PI on the NSF funded Carver Teaching Initiative: Inspiring the Next Generation of STEM Teaching Professionals through Internship, Recruitment, and Engagement (CTI-Inspire) project. As a former high school mathematics teacher, she is passionate about providing historically marginalized populations opportunities to become the next generation of STEM professionals, leaders, and decision makers.