Resnick Elected to the American Academy of Arts and Sciences

Lauren Resnick, Distinguished University Professor of Psychology and Cognitive Science at the University of Pittsburgh, has been elected a member of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences’ Class of 2013. Resnick also is Distinguished University Professor of Learning Sciences and Education Policy, codirector of Pitt’s Institute for Learning, senior scientist in Pitt’s Learning Research and Development Center, and an adjunct faculty member in Pitt’s School of Education.

Resnick is the 11th Pitt professor to be elected to the academy—one of the nation’s most prestigious honorary societies—whose membership includes scholars, scientists, writers, artists, musicians, philanthropists, and civic and corporate leaders from around the globe. The academy aims to elect as members the finest minds and most influential leaders from each generation beginning with George Washington and Benjamin Franklin in the 18th century. The new members will be inducted during an Oct. 12, 2013, ceremony at the academy’s headquarters in Cambridge, Mass.

Known as one of America’s most influential educational psychologists, Resnick has made notable contributions to the cognitive science of learning and instruction. Promoted to the rank of Distinguished University Professor of Psychology and Cognitive Science in 2006 and to the additional rank of Distinguished University Professor of Learning Sciences and Education Policy in 2008, Resnick served Pitt’s Learning Research and Development Center as director for 31 years. She is the founder and codirector of Pitt’s Institute for Learning, which provides professional training services and research on learning and teaching advances to urban school districts across the nation. She also was the cofounder and codirector of the New Standards Project, which developed educational standards and assessments for school districts and governments.

Among Resnick’s many awards and honors are the European Association for Research on Learning and Instruction Oeuvre Award for outstanding contributions to the science of learning and instruction, and two awards from the American Psychological Association: the Edward L. Thorndike Award for distinguished psychological contributions to education and the Distinguished Contributions of Applications of Psychology to Education and Training Award. She is a lifetime national associate of the National Academies of Science, Engineering, and Medicine; a member since 1981 of the National Academy of Education; a fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science; and a fellow of the American Psychological Association.
Resnick was founding editor of the academic journals Cognition and Instruction and Research Points. She is past president of the American Educational Research Association and has been awarded honorary doctorates by the University of Geneva in Switzerland and Gothenburg University in Sweden.

Resnick earned an associate’s degree in history from Radcliffe College in 1957, graduating magna cum laude with the Radcliffe History Prize; a Master of Arts in Teaching degree from the Harvard University Graduate School of Education in 1958; and a doctorate of education in research in instruction from the Harvard University Graduate School of Education in 1962.

Resnick joins the ranks of 198 new academy members, among them winners of the Nobel Prize; the National Medal of Science; the Lasker Award; the Pulitzer and Shaw prizes; the Fields Medal; MacArthur and Guggenheim fellowships; the Kennedy Center Honors; and Grammy, Emmy, Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, and Tony awards.

Pitt has 10 other faculty members among the academy’s approximately 4,000 American Fellows and 600 foreign honorary members. Their names, titles, and years of election to the academy follow: Thomas E. Starzl, transplant pioneer and Distinguished Service Professor of Surgery, 1971; Adolf Grünbaum, Andrew Mellon Professor of Philosophy, 1976; John Henry McDowell, Distinguished University Professor of Philosophy, 1992; John S. Earman, University Professor of the History and Philosophy of Science, 1993; Robert Brandom, Distinguished Service Professor of Philosophy, 2000; Peter L. Strick, Distinguished University Professor and chair of neurobiology and psychiatry and codirector of the Center for the Neural Basis of Cognition, 2004; Anil K. Gupta, Distinguished Professor of Philosophy, professor of history and philosophy of science, and a fellow in Pitt’s Center for Philosophy of Science, 2006; Mark L. Wilson, professor of philosophy and a fellow in Pitt’s Center for Philosophy of Science, 2007; Nuel D. Belnap Jr., University of Pittsburgh Alan Ross Anderson Distinguished Professor of Philosophy, 2008; and Nicholas Rescher, Distinguished University Professor of Philosophy, 2009.