Michelle Wooten

Michelle Wooten serves as an Assistant Professor in the Distance-Accessible Astronomy Education Project at the University of Alabama at Birmingham (UAB), where she joined in 2021. She teaches astronomy to hundreds of non-science majors through multiple lectures and laboratory courses each semester, while overseeing curriculum development for the astronomy program.

Her educational background includes a B.A. in Pure Mathematics from University of California Santa Cruz, an M.S. in Physics from San Francisco State University, and a Ph.D. in Educational Research Methodologies from the University of Alabama. Prior to UAB, she taught astronomy for over ten years across diverse locations including New Zealand, California, Washington D.C., Alaska, Pennsylvania, and Colorado.

Dr. Wooten's research focuses on astronomy education with particular emphasis on sustainability education, critical qualitative research methodologies, and supporting experiences of Persons Excluded Because of their Ethnicity or Race (PEERs) in science education. She is particularly known for her scholarship on night sky protection, having initiated and currently leading the Southeastern United States regional chapter of DarkSky International called Starry Skies South, and serving on Dark Sky International's Technical Committee. Her recent publications reveal a strong focus on dark sky conservation, sustainable lighting, and critical approaches to astronomy education in the Anthropocene era.

She actively contributes to campus life as faculty adviser for the UAB Astronomy Club, planetarium presenter and student-show coordinator with the Samford University Christenberry Planetarium, and faculty affiliate of the UAB Institute for Human Rights. Additionally, she volunteers with Alabama Audubon's Project Safe Flight, demonstrating her commitment to environmental conservation beyond academia.