Julie Bianchini is Professor of Science Education in the Department of Education. She is also UCSB Faculty Director of CalTeach, part of a UC-wide initiative to recruit diverse STEM undergraduates into K-12 science and mathematics teaching. Professor Bianchini investigates ways to transform science education so that it is accessible, engaging, and relevant to all students.
In her research, Professor Bianchini examines professional learning opportunities for prospective, preservice, and practicing science and mathematics teachers; the teaching and learning of science and mathematics for multilingual learner students; climate change education in teacher education and K-12 classrooms; and more broadly, reform-based science instruction for students of diverse races, cultures, gender identities, and languages. She also has expertise in curriculum development and groupwork instruction. Professor Bianchini has garnered grants for research and scholarships totaling over 9 million dollars. An article based on her dissertation was awarded the 1998 Outstanding Paper in the Journal of Research in Science Teaching. In 2000, she received the Early Career Research Award from NARST, a global organization for improving science education through research. In 2023, she was selected as a NARST Fellow.
Professor Bianchini received both her BS in Biological Sciences and her PhD in Curriculum and Teacher Education from Stanford University. Between degree programs, she taught biology and physics at an all-girls high school in San Francisco. Professor Bianchini served as Chair of the Department of Education (2015–2021), Chair of UCSB’s Committee on Admissions, Enrollment, and Relations with Schools (2008–2010), and Chair of UCSB’s Undergraduate Council (2023–2024). Additionally, for the professional organization NARST, she served as a board member and as a co-chair of the Equity and Ethics Committee (2009–2012).