AMTE STaR Program

Service, Teaching, & Research (STaR) in Mathematics Education: Supporting Early Career Professionals

The STaR Program is an early career induction program for faculty in mathematics education in institutions of higher education. It is designed to address common challenges related to developing leadership and service skills, teaching mathematics content and methods courses designed for prospective and practicing K-12 teachers as well as graduate courses in mathematics education, and establishing a research agenda. One important way the program addresses these challenges is by providing opportunities to network with other new mathematics education faculty beyond the participant's home institution.

Program Components

The goal of the STaR Fellows program is to support the development of early career mathematics educators, including their induction into the professional community of university-based teacher educators and researchers in mathematics education.

Senior and mid-career mathematics education faculty organize and facilitate STaR events, serving as mentors to fellows as they participate in:

a summer institute, generally in Park City, Utah (see Program Logistics below for additional information)
academic year online networking
a follow-up session in conjunction with the annual AMTE conference

The 2025 institute will be held June 21-26 [Saturday-Thursday].

To date, over 440 early career mathematics educators working at over 200 institutions of higher education have completed the program as STaR Fellows. The 2023 cohort of STaR Fellows included 19 faculty members from institutions across the U.S..

If you have any questions, please contact Jennifer A. Wolfe (jwolfe628@arizona.edu).

Funding

The STaR Program was originally funded by the National Science Foundation (#0922410) and is now operated under the supervision of the Association of Mathematics Teacher Educators (AMTE). The STaR Program is dependent on contributions from individuals, foundations, and professional organizations for its continued operation.

Donate today! In order to continue the STaR program, AMTE must secure funds, which are estimated at $2500 per STaR Fellow.

AMTE members (and others) can support the future of this successful early career induction program by making a financial contribution. To do so, click on the link below. Note that AMTE is a not-for-profit organization, so your gift may be tax deductible.

Thanks to CPM for sponsoring the STaR program!

Make a Contribution

Joining the STaR Program

The STaR Program is open to faculty members at U.S. institutions who are in their first or second year of an appointment at the time of application. Applicants must be in a tenure-track position or in an instructional, teaching, or other continuing track position. Instructional/teaching/continuing/clinical track applicants must be in a continuing or long-term position that includes opportunities for promotion or advancement. We especially encourage faculty from Hispanic Serving Institutions, Historically Black Colleges and Universities, and/or Tribal Colleges to apply. Admission to the STaR Program is a competitive process that requires the completion and submission of an application along with all the necessary support materials.

Admission to the STaR Program is a competitive process that requires the completion and submission of an application along with all the necessary support materials. Each cohort of STaR Fellows includes about 25 individuals, based on available resources. Fellows are accepted according to the following criteria and priorities:

Criteria

Applicant is in the 1st or 2nd year of a tenure-track, instructional, teaching, or other continuing faculty position in mathematics education in a U.S. institution.
Applicant submits a complete application.

Priorities

Applicant's teaching and scholarship are closely connected to mathematics teacher education and/or AMTE’s goals.
Applicant graduated from a relatively small doctoral program or is currently employed in a relatively small mathematics teacher education program (e.g., they might be the only mathematics teacher educator at their institution).
We work to balance the makeup of the cohort to include fellows from mathematics departments and colleges of education.
We particularly encourage faculty working at HSIs, HBCUs, and Tribal Colleges to apply.

If selected, STaR Fellows participants must obtain active membership in AMTE.

How to Apply

Contribution of Home Institution

The home institution of each Fellow must commit to financially supporting their Fellow, if accepted into the program, as follows:

Cover the travel costs (transportation and meals not covered by the program) for the Fellow to attend the STaR Summer Institute (generally held in Park City, Utah). The STaR Program, sponsored by AMTE, covers lodging, some meals, and program costs.
Cover the costs of the Fellow to participate in the follow up meeting held in conjunction with the AMTE Annual Conference (February following the summer institute).

The total estimate of the home institution’s contribution is $2,500-$3,000. This year, contingent on funding and overall applicant pool, we may offer a limited number of travel scholarships to fellows who would not be otherwise able to attend, including but not limited to fellows from Hispanic Serving Institutions, Historically Black Colleges and Universities, and from Tribal Colleges. These scholarships may only cover part of the costs. You should approach your administrator with the intent of having your travel covered, but if they cannot cover it you should still apply and contact Jennifer A. Wolfe (jwolfe628@arizona.edu) to discuss your situation.

Program Logistics

The summer institute is designed as an immersive retreat experience for the fellows. The schedule generally includes three full days and two half days of work. Fellows are expected to engage with the program staff and collaborate with other fellows during all working hours. The 2025 institute will be held June 21-26 [Saturday-Thursday]. The program provides rooming in 2- to 4-bedroom condos with shared living space and private bedrooms. Many past fellows have found the informal time and immersive aspect of the program to be greatly beneficial for networking and forming supportive relationships.

Given the extended hours of engagement on all days, we strongly encourage faculty to attend the STaR institute alone. However, STaR strives to be inclusive for parents, so if fellows need to bring their families due to, for instance, childcare issues then they will be offered separate rooming and will need to cover the additional rooming cost themselves. In part due to liability and insurance constraints, minors cannot attend STaR events or meals (except for nursing infants), so another adult or pre-arranged childcare will be needed. In addition to the three full days and two half days of work time, the schedule generally includes two dinners and three lunches. Please contact us if you have questions about your situation so we can discuss how to support you in participating.

If the goal is a family vacation, please consider the possibility of having family join you in the days before or after the institute.

If you need to have your infant with you to nurse during STaR activities, you will need to sign a release of liability form for insurance purposes.

Frequently Asked Questions

Don't universities have their own mentoring programs?

Yes, many do. However, there is great variety in the types of and quality of existing mentorship programs at universities. Many of these programs are short-term, only serving the faculty member for the first semester or first year of service. These programs are generally not specific to the problems faced by an early career mathematics education professor. The AMTE STaR Program is a sustained and targeted mentoring program that will provide career enhancing opportunities.

Will a one-year fellowship program be sufficient to accomplish the goals of AMTE STaR Program?

Although the fellowship program will last only one year, the networks that are created are expected to continue long after the fellowship year ends. In addition, graduating fellows will be integrated into the networks of new fellows, through invitations to participate in face-to-face meetings and electronic connections. Networks established by previous STaR Fellows have thrived and expanded over the years.

Don't mathematics education doctoral graduates learn to teach within their doctoral studies?

Yes, but mathematics education doctoral graduates serve in many different capacities. Within a mathematics department, they may teach mathematics methods courses to elementary, middle, and secondary teaching candidates and also be expected to teach a range of undergraduate mathematics courses. Within an education department, they may be expected to teach a wide range of mathematics methods courses, teach graduate level mathematics education courses, and provide in-service professional development experiences. Thus, these graduates must be prepared to teach a wide range of mathematics content and pedagogy to a broad audience - and it is difficult for doctoral programs to provide this full range of teaching experiences.

How is AMTE STaR Program different from MAA's Program NExT?

While we draw upon the success of MAA's Project NExT, the AMTE STaR Program is unique in its specific focus on mathematics teacher education, rather than the broader field of mathematics. Note that Program NExT Fellows hold rank in mathematics departments, and a main focus of Program NExT has been on teaching with subsequent mentorship in research and service. In contrast, about half the Fellows in the STaR Program are housed in mathematics departments while the rest are in education departments/colleges. Taking into account the differences in research and teaching responsibilities that come with academic positions in mathematics education, the AMTE STaR Program prioritizes all three areas of effort: teaching, research, and service.