K.C. Busch

Dr. K.C. Busch is an Associate Professor of STEM Education at North Carolina State University (NC State), specializing in climate change education and affiliated with the Leadership in Public Science cluster. She holds a Ph.D. from Stanford University and has over 12 years of secondary science teaching experience. Her research focuses on community-level scientific literacy, climate change communication, and informal science education. Key projects include an NSF CAREER grant examining how coastal communities use scientific information for climate adaptation decisions, and collaborations with 35+ museums/aquaria to build evaluation capacity through an online program.

Education: B.S. in Ecology (Iowa State, 1994), M.A. in Science Education (UT Austin, 2012), Ph.D. in Science Education (Stanford, 2016). Awards include the 2024 NARST Early Career Research Award, 2025 NC State Faculty Scholar, and multiple teaching honors (Outstanding Teaching Award 2019–2020). She coordinates the Science Education Graduate Program and teaches courses like 'Learning in Informal Contexts.'

Her research integrates social network analysis to study scientific literacy and climate resilience. Notable contributions include frameworks for informal science educators (ISE-PCK) and conceptualizing community-level environmental literacy through expert Delphi studies. Current work explores how framing climate change affects youth agency and supports marginalized communities in adaptation planning.

Teaching innovations include partnerships with NC museums and the Farmers Market for community-engaged learning. She advises PhD students like Mwenda Kudumu and leads grants totaling over $1.1M. Her leadership in public science emphasizes bridging formal/informal education to empower communities through science.