Trena L. Wilkerson, Ph.D.

Dr. Trena L. Wilkerson is a professor of mathematics education in the Department of Curriculum & Instruction and chair. She received her Ph.D. in 1994 from the University of Southern Mississippi in Curriculum & Instruction with a focus in mathematics.

Dr. Wilkerson served as president of the National Council of Teachers of Mathematics (NCTM) and on its Board of Directors. After election by the full membership of more than 30,000 members, she took office as president in April of 2020 for a two-year term completing in 2022. She served as a member of the NCTM Board of Directors from 2014 – 2017, then as president-elect and now as past-president. She has received both state and national awards for leadership and teaching with the most recent as the 2024 recipient of the Louise Hay Award for Contributions to Mathematics Education from the Association for Women in Mathematics.

She has served on the Association of Mathematics Teachers Educators Board and in leadership roles in state and local mathematics education professional organizations. She is currently co-editor of the online journal, Statistics Teacher, a joint publication of the American Statistical Association and NCTM.  She was also the editor for the Texas Math Teacher, journal of the Texas Council of Teachers of Mathematics from 2017-2020. 

Dr. Wilkerson was director of the GEAR UP Math Initiative and co-principal investigator of the GEAR UP Waco grant funded by the U.S. Department of Education. Baylor and the School of Education were involved in the GEAR UP project from 1999 to 2013. The second phase of that project (2006 – 2013) provided $11.3 million in grant funds. GEAR UP stands for “Gaining Early Awareness and Readiness for Undergraduate Programs” and prepared students for higher education beginning in middle school.

Dr. Wilkerson’s research interests include mathematics education, teacher education, algebra teacher efficacy, teaching and learning of mathematics, and professional development. She is interested in effective teaching of mathematics and its impact on student learning. She has conducted research in early childhood understanding of rational number concepts, worked with a cross-university collaborative to develop an instrument to measure algebra teacher efficacy, and studied the effect of professional development on mathematics teachers and their students through lesson study. She has published in prestigious journals such as the Journal of Research in Childhood Education, Journal of Research in Mathematics Education, Investigations in Mathematics Learning, Journal of Advanced Academics, Mathematics Teacher: Learning & Teaching in PK-12, The Mathematics Teacher, School Science and Mathematics Journal, Mathematics Teaching in the Middle School, and Teaching Children Mathematics.

Research Interests

• Mathematics Education: Teaching & Learning Mathematics
• Teacher Education
• Teacher Efficacy
• Lesson Study
• Professional Development for Mathematics Teachers

Select Presentations 

• Association of Mathematics Teacher Educators Annual Conference – 2020 | Phoenix
  “Opportunities, Advocacy, and Communication in Support of MTE: Standards, HEA, Infographics, and Case Studies”
  with Dr. Robert Q. Berry, University of Virginia, and Dave Barnes, National Council of Teachers of Mathematics
• Texas Instruments Teachers Teaching with Technology (T3) Webinar - 2020
  “National Council of Teachers of Mathematics is Turning 100!”
• National Council of Teachers of Mathematics Annual Meeting – 2019 | San Diego
  “Working Together to Develop an Understanding of Equity-based Mathematics Teaching Practices”
  with Ryann Shelton, Baylor University, and Jamie Wong, Baylor University
• International Consortium for Research in Science and Mathematics Education – 2019 | San Jose, Costa Rica
  “Examining and Exploring Effective Mathematics Teaching Practices through a Global Perspective”
• Association of Mathematics Teacher Educators Annual Conference – 2019 | Orlando
  “Supporting Mathematics Teachers to Take Action"
  with Molly Bowen, Baylor University

Awards & Honors

• Prakken Professional Cooperation Award -2021 | International Technology and Engineering Educators Association (ITEEA)
  for promoting the field of technology and engineering education in collaboration with other disciplines
• NCTM Publication Award for Outstanding Journal – 2020 | NCTM
  as editor of Texas Mathematics Teacher
• Distinguished Alumna of the Year Award – 2019 | Mississippi College Department of Mathematics
• Outstanding Service Award – 2018 | Association of Mathematics Teacher Education-Texas (AMTE-TX)
  for significant contributions to the field of mathematics teacher education
• E. Glenadine Gibb Achievement Award – 2016 | Texas Council of Teachers of Mathematics
  for contributions to the improvement of mathematics education at the state and national level
• Award for Excellence in Integrating Science and Mathematics – 2013 | School Science Mathematics Association (SSMA)
  for role as director of the GEAR UP Math Initiative and co-principal investigator of the GEAR UP Waco grant funded by the U.S. Department of Education
• Outstanding Leadership Award – 2002 | Baylor University School of Education
• Outstanding Teacher Award – 2000 | Baylor University School of Education

Professional Leadership

• President, National Council of Teachers of Mathematics (NCTM) | 2020-2022
• Associate Vice-President for Conferences, Association of Mathematics Teacher Educators | 2020-2021
• President-Elect, National Council of Teachers of Mathematics (NCTM) | 2019-2020
• Chair, Association of Teacher Educators Commission on Language and Mathematics | 2016-2019
• Graduate Program Director, Department of Curriculum & Instruction, Baylor University | 2013-2019