Faculty Profiles

Sandra Vernon-Jackson, PhD

Assistant Professor of Instruction, Director of STEM Inquiry Innovation Lab

Sandra Vernon-Jackson

Phone: 727-873-4435
Office: St. Petersburg campus, HBR 205
Email: sajackson@usf.edu  

Sandra Vernon-Jackson, PhD, is an advocate for STEM. Her research involves ethnic and gender identity within the STEM (science, technology, engineering, and math) education community.

As director of the STEM Innovation Lab at USF’s St. Petersburg campus, Vernon-Jackson oversees a state-of-the-art space that allows aspiring educators and current faculty to infuse the latest in STEM into their teaching methods. Vernon-Jackson leads faculty workshops, facilitates field trips with local grade school students and oversees the use of equipment such as 3D printers and virtual reality headsets. She also provides professional development workshops for in-service teachers in STEM education. Through partnerships with community groups such as Pinellas County Schools and Code.org, Vernon-Jackson helps introduce hundreds of grade school children to STEM each year, including directing a STEM robotics summer camp every summer on campus. 

Vernon-Jackson teaches courses in math education. Her studies show how ethnic and gender identity can influence a student’s experience and engagement with STEM. Vernon-Jackson was named the 2019 STEM Women of the Year in Mathematics by Girls Inc. 

Education

  • MA, Clark Atlanta University
  • PhD, Georgia State University