Alison Mercier

Alison Mercier, PhD, is an educator and researcher in the field of science education. She is an assistant professor of elementary science education who teaches education courses in the School of Teacher Education at the University of Wyoming. Alison’s teaching and research interests lie at the praxis of agency, identity, and responsive STEM learning environments. She received her PhD in Teaching and Learning with an emphasis in science education at the University of North Carolina Greensboro in 2020.

Since coming to the University of Wyoming, Alison has taught courses in elementary education and science education at the graduate and undergraduate level. In 2024, she received the College of Education’s Outstanding Teaching Award, and has been awarded the Mary Garland Early Career Fellowship and the Presidential Scholarly Achievement Award for Early-Career Faculty highlighting her work on elementary teacher agency for teaching science. Alison is also the co-director of the Wyoming Rural Teacher Corps which provides preservice teachers with mentorship on how to thrive in Wyoming's rural schools, prepares them to teach in rural settings, and engages them in place-based education and identifying assets of rural communities.