About
Catherine H. Crouch is Professor of Physics and Department Chair of the Physics and Astronomy Department at Swarthmore College, a position she has held since 2021 after joining the faculty in September 2003. She maintains an active research program while leading departmental initiatives and teaching undergraduate courses including Advanced Laboratory and Electricity & Magnetism.
Her research focuses on Physics education with specialization in Introductory Physics for Life Sciences (IPLS), where she developed Swarthmore's Physics 3L-4L curriculum specifically for life science students. Additional research areas include biophysics investigations of protein-cell membrane interactions and nanoparticle physics. She co-leads a National Science Foundation-funded longitudinal study examining long-term student outcomes in IPLS and contributes to the national Living Physics Portal initiative for community-sourced instructional materials development.
Professor Crouch previously served as faculty director of Swarthmore's Natural Sciences & Engineering Inclusive Excellence Initiatives until 2021. From 2019-2022, she held leadership roles in the American Physical Society including membership in the Forum on Education Chair line and co-chairing the Committee on Education in 2022. Her service extends to organizing national IPLS conferences and developing open-access educational resources.
