Barry J. Fishman

Barry J. Fishman is a Professor at the University of Michigan's Marsal Family School of Education and School of Information, and inaugural Chair of the LEAPS program (Learning, Equity, and Problem Solving for the Public Good). He specializes in transformative learning environments, educational technology, and design-based implementation research. Co-creator of GradeCraft, a game-inspired learning management system, his work emphasizes scalable educational innovations.

Education:

• A.B. in English and American Literature, Brown University (1989)
• M.S. in Instructional Systems Technology, Indiana University (1992)
• Ph.D. in Learning Sciences, Northwestern University (1996)

Research focuses on leveraging technology for equitable learning, competency-based education, and sustainable curriculum design. His projects include collaboration with Detroit’s Marygrove Conservancy to address educational equity through LEAPS.

Key Awards:

• 2017 Distinguished Professor of the Year (Michigan Association of State Universities)
• 2016 Campus Technology Innovator of the Year
• 2010 Provost’s Teaching Innovation Prize

Grants include the NSF-funded 'Mastery in Out-of-School-Time (MOST)' project (2021–2024), focusing on STEM pathways through out-of-school learning. He advises the LEAPS program and is not currently admitting PhD students.

Active in academic leadership roles, Fishman has served as Associate Editor of the Journal of the Learning Sciences and contributed to the 2010 U.S. National Educational Technology Plan under the Obama administration.