Janet Bean

Janet Bean serves as a Professor and Director of the Institute for Teaching and Learning at the University of Akron. She teaches undergraduate and graduate courses in composition studies within the English Department. Her academic career spans over three decades, marked by leadership in educational policy and pedagogical innovation.

Education: She holds a Ph.D. from the University of North Carolina, Greensboro. Her research focuses on writing pedagogy, general education reform, student learning assessment, and faculty development. Recent work emphasizes multinational studies of undergraduate capstone programs, reflecting her commitment to enhancing educational outcomes through systemic change.

Publications: Her 2023 publications in Cultivating Capstones explore global approaches to capstone design, institutional implementation challenges, and preparing students for emerging workforce demands. Earlier works address critical literacy, cross-cultural teaching, and linguistic equity in education.

Grants: Bean has secured over $1.1M in grants, including leadership roles in the Howard Hughes Medical Institute's Inclusive Excellence 3 initiative ($529k) and Ohio Board of Regents' English Composition Assessment Program ($91k). These projects focus on student belonging, curriculum innovation, and institutional capacity-building.

Labs/Teams: She leads the Institute for Teaching and Learning, fostering collaborative efforts across disciplines to advance teaching excellence and student success.