Rate My Professor Kadian Callahan

Dr. Kadian Callahan serves as Associate Dean for Student Success and Community Engagement and Professor of Mathematics Education in the College of Science and Mathematics at Kennesaw State University. In this capacity, she manages student recruitment, support services, experiential learning, external relationships, college marketing, student celebrations, and scholarships, collaborating with administrators, faculty, staff, and students to implement inclusive policies and practices that foster welcoming and equitable learning environments. She holds a Bachelor of Science in Mathematical Sciences with a minor in Computer Information Systems from Florida A&M University, Tallahassee; a Master’s degree in Secondary Mathematics Education from Indiana University, Bloomington; and a Ph.D. in Mathematics Education, with concentrations in Higher Education and Curriculum and Instruction, from the University of Maryland, College Park.

Callahan’s research focuses on strategies to improve teaching and learning in undergraduate science and mathematics courses and programs, including active learning and inclusive practices, as well as analyzing STEM institutional change efforts and the role of student voice in driving programmatic, policy, and structural transformations. Her key publications include “Strand Committees and Course Coordination: Complementary Structures to Drive Evidence-Based Improvements” (PRIMUS, 2024, co-authored with Vandenbussche et al.), “Improving teaching and learning: Science and Mathematics Faculty Reflections on Teaching and Learning across Time” (International Journal for Academic Development, 2021), “Student Leaders as Agents of Change” (Transforming Institutions: Accelerating Systemic Change in Higher Education, 2020), and “Academic-centered peer interactions and retention in undergraduate mathematics programs” (Journal of College Student Retention: Research, Theory & Practice, 2008). She has secured significant funding as PI or co-PI, including NSF grants for ACT UP Math ($174,054, 2022-2025), SEMINAL ($93,249, 2018-2020), and conferences, as well as the HHMI KSU Inclusive Excellence Initiative ($1,000,000, 2018-2025). Nationally, she co-leads the Accelerating Systemic Change Network (ASCN), mentors in the AAC&U STEM Leadership Institute, and participates in Project EMBER. Selected as a 2016 Governor’s Teaching Fellow, she facilitates faculty learning communities and course transformation institutes.