About our authors
LAURA FROST is a Professor of Chemistry at Florida Gulf Coast University and Director of the Whitaker Center for Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) Education. She received a bachelor's degree in chemistry from Kutztown University and her Ph.D. in chemistry with a biophysical focus from the University of Pennsylvania. She has been teaching chemistry in higher education for over 20 years and continues to teach chemistry to students in the health professions.
Professor Frost is actively engaged in the teaching and learning in all STEM subjects, particularly chemistry, and uses a guided inquiry approach in her classes. She is very involved in the scholarship of teaching and learning and has demonstrated that the use of inquiry-based activities increases student learning in her one-semester chemistry course for health professionals.
Dr. Frost is a member of the American Chemical Society and its Chemical Education division. A member of the University System of Georgia faculty Hall of Fame, Dr. Frost has been honored on more than one occasion for her teaching excellence. Her writing has also been recognized, and in 2014, she was elected to the governing council of the Textbook and Academic Authors Association.
Dr. Frost is engaged in STEM education reform through evidence-based teaching and learning at all levels (K--16), as well as through community outreach. She was principal investigator of a successful NSF grant that provides professional development for faculty in evidence-based practices in STEM. She has spoken and attended numerous conferences and workshops on this topic.
TODD DEAL received his B.S. degree in chemistry in 1986 from Georgia Southern College (now University) in Statesboro, Georgia, and his Ph.D. in chemistry in 1990 from The Ohio State University. students in the health professions.
An award-winning educator, Dr. Deal has received numerous awards for excellence in teaching and in service, and was named Professor of the Year by the students of Georgia Southern. Prof. Deal has also been recognized by Project Kaleidoscope for his innovative teaching in the sciences.
Professor Deal is a member of American Chemical Society and its Chemical Education division. He is also a member of the Omicron Delta Kappa National Leadership Honor Society, the International Leadership Association, and the Association of Leadership Educators. Dr. Deal's teaching interests span from chemistry and the hard sciences to the soft, human sciences of leadership and leadership development.
