Kate Follette

Kate Follette is an Associate Professor in the Department of Astronomy at Amherst College, where she conducts cutting-edge research in exoplanet detection and STEM education. She serves on the NSF Astronomy and Astrophysics Advisory Committee (2024-2026) and the NASA Exoplanet Exploration Program Analysis Group Executive Committee (2023-2025), demonstrating her leadership in the astronomical community.

• Ph.D. in Astronomy, University of Arizona (2014)
• M.S. in Astronomy, University of Arizona (2010)
• B.A. in Physics and Japanese Studies, Middlebury College (2004)

Dr. Follette's research focuses on using adaptive optics technology to detect young exoplanets and circumstellar disks through direct imaging techniques. Her work pushes the boundaries of telescope and image processing technology to isolate light from planets that are millions of times fainter than their host stars. She also leads an education research lab that studies the role of mathematics across science curricula, with particular interest in improving students' quantitative reasoning skills and addressing math anxiety.

Her publication record shows a strong focus on direct imaging of protoplanets, with numerous papers on the AB Aurigae system and the Giant Accreting Protoplanet Survey (GAPlanetS). Her work spans observational techniques, data analysis methodologies, and the physical interpretation of circumstellar environments where planets form.

• Scialog: Signatures of Life in the Universe Fellow (2022-24)
• Cottrell Scholar (2022-25)
• Amherst College Center for Teaching and Learning Faculty Fellow (2022-24)
• NASA Sagan Postdoctoral Fellowship (2016)

Dr. Follette actively contributes to the professional development of early-career scientists through her role as Chair of the American Astronomical Society Task Force on Early Career Engagement (2022-2024) and as a member of the National Numeracy Network Board of Directors (2014-present). Her educational research has developed assessment tools like the Quantitative Reasoning for College Science (QuaRCS) to measure and improve students' numeracy skills in science contexts.