top of page

Principal Investigator:

M. Elizabeth Barnes

Liz is an Assistant Professor at Middle Tennessee State University in the Department of Biology. She was trained as a Discipline-Based Education Researcher with a focus in Biology Education. She is most interested in studying how to effectively teach and communicate about controversial science topics using principles from social sciences so that we can mitigate polarization about these topics in society. She earned her Ph.D. in Biology as a National Science Foundation Graduate Research Fellow at Arizona State University studying how to reduce tension between religion and evolution. She now runs the Social Perceptions of Science lab at Middle Tennessee State University where she studies how to teach evolution, vaccines, and climate change to undergraduate students. Liz's research has been highlighted in Scientific American, the Smithsonian, and BBC radio.

NSF_4-Color_bitmap_Logo.png

In 2023, Liz received the NSF CAREER award to investigate and support undergraduate science students' ability to communicate about culturally controversial science topics. 

 

MTSU office photo headshot.jpg
Contact Information
Elizabeth Barnes, Ph.D.
Assistant Professor
Department of Biology,
Middle Tennessee State University 

 

Email: liz.barnes@mtsu.edu

Twitter: @lizard_barnacle

Office Telephone: (615) 898 - 5449

Mailing Address: 1301 E. Main st. Box 60, Murfreesboro, TN 37132

Office Location: SCI 1163

Lab Location: SCI 1165

bottom of page