Since joining the EF+Math program in 2022, Brunner has played a central role in facilitating the research and evaluation work conducted by the portfolio of research and development teams and the program’s independent evaluators. Dr. Brunner has conducted portfolio analyses of impact and scientific advancements in the field, in addition to contributing to the development of EF+Math’s inclusive research and evaluation processes.
Prior to joining the EF+Math team, Dr. Brunner was a research assistant and instructor in Oregon State University’s College of Education. She has designed and taught a variety of courses at the postsecondary level, focusing on both content and pedagogy in mathematics education. Her personal research agenda focuses on how justice is conceptualized by educators and education researchers, especially those in the mathematics education system. She explores how these concepts are enacted through instructional decisions and collective action, aiming to make systemic change.
Dr. Brunner began her journey in mathematics education as a middle grades teacher for Aim High, an educational nonprofit program focused on project-based learning grounded in community. She earned her Ph.D. in STEM education and her M.A. in interdisciplinary studies from Oregon State University and her B.A. in mathematics, with an emphasis and teaching credential in secondary mathematics, from the State University of New York at Geneseo.