Profile

Rachel

Niemer

Bio

Education Ph.D. California Institute of Technology (Pasadena, CA) Chemistry Advisor: Dr. William A. Goddard III February 2007 B.A. Bowdoin College (Brunswick, ME), magna cum laude Chemistry (with honors) and Women’s Studies Advisor: Dr. Jonathan M. Smith May 1999 Work University of Michigan (Ann Arbor, MI), Women in Science and Engineering Managing Director September 2021-Present • Oversee day-to-day operations of the Women in Science and Engineering Program • Create and implement initiatives to enhance student development and engagement in both face-to-face and online environments • Lead research and evaluation initiatives to assess impact of WISE programming • Provide leadership, day-to-day supervision, support, and advocacy for program staff • Provide oversight of the WISE budget and contribute to preparation of budget materials • Collaborate with other STEM-related initiatives at U-M • Create, develop, and maintain efforts to increase WISE engagement with WISE-RP, campus partners and external constituencies • Actively support the U-M Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) Initiatives • Engage in campus-wide professional development activities University of Michigan (Ann Arbor, MI), Center for Academic Innovation Director, Outreach and Access October 2015-September 2021 • Serve on the senior leadership team for the Center for Academic Innovation • Serve as the Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Implementation Lead for Academic Innovation • Oversee the Center for Academic Innovation branch of a campus-wide strategic initiative to enable faculty innovation in public engagement • Oversee the design and assessment of the faculty experience at Academic Innovation, including developing cross-campus faculty communities and creating resources to support faculty innovation in their teaching and learning • Consult with faculty across campus to identify new opportunities to innovate in teaching, learning and public engagement • Collaboratively develop the Academic Innovation at Michigan (AIM) Event Series • Oversee budget earmarked for education innovation projects aligned with diversity, equity and inclusion efforts • Oversee budget for two teams (Public Engagement and Outreach & Access) within the Center for Academic Innovation • Design and conduct participatory workshops exploring new opportunities for innovation within higher education • Design and conduct participatory workshops for faculty to improve their digital teaching and learning skills • Oversee calls for proposals for diversity, equity and inclusion aligned innovations University of Michigan (Ann Arbor, MI), Center for Research on Learning and Teaching Assistant Director January 2011-October 2015 • Co-created and directed the Learning Analytics Fellows Program • Provided individual consultations to faculty and graduate student instructors regarding evidence-based best practices for teaching and student learning • Created and delivered professional development workshops about teaching and learning for individual units on campus and university-wide programs (Comprehensive list of workshops available upon request) • Actively participated on the center’s instructional technology team • Co-created and directed the Health Sciences Teaching Academy for recently hired faculty in seven health science schools/colleges • Co-facilitated the Large Course Initiative for the College of Literature, Science and Arts • Coordinated social media efforts for center • Co-coordinated and co-taught the Postdoctoral Short Course on College Teaching in Science and Engineering • Co-created “Flipped Classroom Faculty Learning Community” to help prepare an interdisciplinary group of faculty to flip their classes • Coordinated university-wide graduate student instructor teaching orientations that served 500+ graduate students/year University of Rochester (Rochester, NY), Learning Assistance Services Assistant Director, Study Group Program July 2008-December 2010 University of Rochester (Rochester, NY), Department of Pharmacology and Physiology Postdoctoral Fellow (Advisor: Dr. Alan Smrcka) January 2007-July 2008 Gustavus Adolphus College (St. Peter, MN), Department of Chemistry Visiting Instructor September 2005-May 2006 Student Affairs California Institute of Technology (Pasadena, CA), Residential Life Department Resident Associate August 2002-July 2004 Programming Coordinator August 2001-July 2002 Bowdoin College (Brunswick, ME), Residential Life Department Residential Life Intern August 1998-May 1999 Head Residential Associate August 1997-May 1998 Residential Associate January 1997-May 1997 TEACHING EXPERIENCE University of Rochester Issues in Group Leadership - Computer Science Issues in Group Leadership - Math