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A photograph of Professor Alexander in a blue shirt with a grey background.
Faculty
Faculty

Nathan Alexander

Assistant Professor

nathan.alexander@howard.edu
http://linktr.ee/QuantHistories

Department/Office

  • Curriculum and Instruction

School/College

  • School of Education
  • Graduate School

Additional Positions

  • Assistant Graduate Director
    Center for Applied Data Science and Analytics

Biography

Nathan Alexander, PhD, is an assistant professor of curriculum and instruction in the Howard University School of Education and the Center for Applied Data Science and Analytics (CADSA). His research focuses on the history and development of quantitative and mathematical literacy, and he examines the role of context in probability theory, statistical data analysis, and mathematical education. He is the founder and faculty director of the Quantitative Histories Workshop, a computational curriculum collective and community-centered teaching and learning lab.

Education & Expertise

Education

PhD, Mathematics and Education
Columbia University

MAT, Mathematics
New York University

BA, Mathematics and Sociology
University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill

Expertise

Probability, statistics and data science education

Quantitative historical studies

Undergraduate and k-12 mathematics education

Academics

Academics

DATA 202: Statistically Measuring and Modeling Social Justice

EDUC 315: Principles of Teaching Mathematics & Science II

EDUC 480: International Internship and Special Topics Seminar

DATA 410: Independent Study

Research

Research

Funding

Alfred P. Sloan Foundation. Open Source Workshops and Lesson Development for Faculty and Students at Historically Black Colleges and Universities. Principal Investigator (PI) with Hye Ryeon Jang (Co-PI) and Kari Jordan (Co-PI). Open Source Software Development, 2023-2025. (Funded, $249,705)

New Ventures Fund. Development of Community-based Experiential Learning Programs in Data Science. Principal Investigator (PI), Data.org Capacity Accelerator Network. 2022-2023. (Funded, $115,000)

Accomplishments

Accomplishments

2024-2025 IES IMMERSE Fellow

2025-2028 MAA-NAM Section Lecturer

Publications and Presentations

Publications and Presentations

Fletcher, N., Alexander, N. N., Kang, B., Kebreab, L., Marshall, B., Martinez, J., Sundrani, A., & Velasco, R. (2025). Programs and Opportunities for Early Career Mathematics Education Scholars. Journal of Mathematics Education at Teachers College, 16(1), 46–57.

Alexander, N. N., Appling, T., Banuelos, M., Bello, G., Brown, A., Century, J., Connor, K., Ji, H., Levy, R., Mitchell, P., Mongeau, D., Mysliwiec, M., Niu, J., Paykin, S., Quarkume, A., Schiffman, J., Skinner, L., Uminsky, D. & Zhong, P. (2024). Data Science for Social Impact in Higher Education: First Steps. Data.org Playbook. Available online.

Jones, Q., Vindas Meléndez, A. R., Mendible, A., Aminian, M., Brooks, H. Z., Alexander, N. N., Diaz Eaton, C., Chodrow, P. (2023). Data science and social justice in the mathematics community. Notices of the American Mathematical Society, 70(9), 1479-1489.

Voigt, M., Hagman, J. E., Gehrtz, J., Ratliff, B., Alexander, N. N., & Levy, R. (Eds.) (2023). Justice through the lens of calculus: Framing new possibilities for diversity, equity, and inclusion. Mathematical Association of America (MAA) Press.

Alexander, N. N. (2022). A Legacy of Literacy: Mathematics Teachers and the Quests for Racial Justice. In D. C. Hucks, Y. S. Ruiz, V. Showunmi, S. C. Carothers, & C. W. Lewis (Eds.), Purposeful Teaching and Learning in Diverse Contexts: Implications for Access, Equity and Achievement (pp. 3-23). Charlotte: IAP.