S. Kiersten Ferguson is a faculty research associate at NCWIT and the College of Engineering & Applied Science at the University of Colorado Boulder. Her scholarly and teaching interests include strategic planning and implementation with a focus on systemic organizational change; recruitment and retention of faculty and students; mixed reality simulations; and pedagogical and curricular choices in higher education.

Prior to joining NCWIT in 2023, Kiersten was a clinical associate professor in the Annette Caldwell Simmons School of Education and Human Development at Southern Methodist University (SMU) teaching graduate level courses and leading the M.Ed. in Higher Education program. Throughout her time at SMU, she received numerous teaching awards including the Provost’s Teaching Recognition Award in 2021, which honors full-time non-tenure-track faculty who demonstrate a commitment to excellence and a consummate dedication to teaching and learning. In addition, she served as a Provost Faculty Fellow with the Associate Provost for Faculty Success. Before her time at SMU, Kiersten held a variety of roles at The University of Texas at Austin, including faculty fellow, postdoctoral fellow, and senior graduate research assistant. She focused on translating research and best practices into viable organizational change models, as well as coordinating university-wide projects.

Education: Ph.D. Higher Education Administration, The University of Texas at Austin; M.Ed. Curriculum & Instruction, The University of Texas at Austin; B.A. Cultural Anthropology and Government & International Relations, University of Notre Dame