RICHARDSON, Texas (Oct. 16, 2006) — Dr. Grover Whitehurst, director of the U.S. Institute of Education Sciences, will be featured in The University of Texas at Dallas’ 2006-2007 Colloquium Series Exploring Behavior and the Brain.  In 2002, Whitehurst was named by President Bush as the first director of the institute, which conducts, supports and distributes research on education practices.

“Dr. Whitehurst has transformed how educational research is planned and funded in the U.S. Department of Education and is an articulate visionary and a realistic pragmatist for the future of education in the United States,” said Dr. Bert S. Moore, dean of UT Dallas’ School of Behavioral and Brain Sciences, which is hosting the event.


Dr. Grover Whitehurst was appointed
by President Bush in 2002 to become
the first director of the U.S. Institute
of Education Sciences.

Whitehurst’s talk, titled “How Education Research Affects Policy and Vice Versa,” will take place from 9:30 to 10:30 a.m. Thursday, Oct. 26, in room CN1.112 of the UT Dallas Conference Center.

Other speakers in the series, which continues through spring, include Dr. Larry L. Jacoby of Washington University in St. Louis, Dr. Mary Dozier of the University of Delaware, Dr. Seth D. Pollak of the University of Wisconsin-Madison and Dr. Ranulfo Romo of the National Autonomous University of Mexico.  Subjects will range from memory to the affects of abuse and neglect.

The sessions are free and open to the public. For a complete schedule go to http://bbs.utdallas.edu/ and click on News & Events.

As director of the Institute of Education Sciences, Whitehurst administers the activities of the National Centers for Education Statistics, Education Evaluation and Regional Assistance, and Education Research. He also coordinates the institute’s work with that of other education agencies and the federal government and advises the education secretary on research, evaluation and statistics relevant to the work of the department.

Whitehurst previously served as assistant secretary for the Office of Educational Research and Improvement where he, among other accomplishments, spearheaded a historically unprecedented increase in the presidential budget request for education research. He also was a professor of psychology and pediatrics and chairman of the Department of Psychology at Stony Brook University.

About UT Dallas

The University of Texas at Dallas, located at the convergence of Richardson, Plano and Dallas in the heart of the complex of major multinational technology corporations known as the Telecom Corridor®, enrolls more than 14,500 students.  The school’s freshman class traditionally stands at the forefront of Texas state universities in terms of average SAT scores.  The university offers a broad assortment of bachelor’s, master’s and doctoral degree programs.  For additional information about UTD, please visit the university’s website at www.utdallas.edu.