From a dedicated science teacher to an influential global STEM leader, Jan Morrison has spent over three decades breaking barriers in education through innovation and unwavering commitment. As the founder and CEO of TIES Teaching Institute for Excellence in STEM, she has transformed how STEM education is designed and delivered, creating opportunities for students from all backgrounds to discover their potential. Her innovative approach combines academics with real-world application, establishing a framework that has been embraced by institutions both in the U.S., and abroad.
Jan’s journey began in the classroom, where she excelled as a science teacher for years before serving as a middle and high school principal. This foundation gave her insight into the challenges and opportunities within the educational system, sparking her entrepreneurial spirit and propelling her to create TIES as a vehicle for change. Her expertise gained recognition, leading to senior consulting roles with the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation and Carnegie Corporation of New York and numerous statewide STEM networks and organizations. Her passion and deep-seated knowledge of STEM has been sought by four presidential administrations, establishing her as a trusted voice in national education policy.
The impact of Morrison’s work extends far beyond advisory roles. Jan and TIES are co-designers and now serve as the backbone of the STEM Learning Ecosystems Community of Practice (SLECoP), a global network of more than 120 Ecosystems working to advance STEM and workforce learning opportunities for all students. Her school design work has produced remarkable successes, including Cleveland’s MC² STEM High School and 22 Egyptian STEM Model Schools, both serving as international models for excellence. Working alongside prestigious institutions like MIT’s Center of Bits and Atoms and the Fab Foundation, she pioneered the implementation of digital fabrication labs in schools worldwide, bringing cutting-edge technology to students regardless of geography or means.
As adviser to the National Academy of Engineering during the development of the Engineering for K-12 Education report and reviewer of the Next Generation Science Standards, Morrison has helped shape the foundational frameworks guiding STEM education nationwide.
Jan’s vision extends across the educational and workforce journey, and having co-authored the country’s “Learn and Earn” framework that enables students to work in STEM fields while earning credits with real labor market value. Through partnerships with the RTI, Harvard, Amgen, Office of Naval Research, DARPA, and major corporations like Broadcom, Rockwell Automation, Chevron and Siemens America, she has created pathways that connect directly to career connected learning. Additionally, her role in co-designing the STEM Funders Network has aligned the efforts of more than 28 major funders, maximizing investment impact and expanding access to quality STEM education to workforce across the nation.
“STEM has been my life’s path and TIES the vehicle to dream, innovate, cultivate, execute and scale what is often challenging but needed for children to realize their STEM and life’s potential,” Morrison said in reflecting on her life’s work. This sentiment captures the essence of her career – a relentless pursuit of excellence in education that prepares all children to make sense of an increasingly complex world while
discovering their own unique capabilities. Through her leadership, countless students have found themselves not only STEM literate and capable but excited to make STEM their life’s work.
Her work consistently demonstrates that equipping students with STEM skills creates trajectories not only to individual success, but to community revitalization and national competitiveness. Through current initiatives like the Computational Science for All project and or her current work with TIES designing STEM learning frameworks that align with emerging industries, Morrison is building educational Ecosystems that respond dynamically to workforce needs. By fostering STEM literacy and capability in young students everywhere, she is helping to create a highly-skilled talent pipeline that will drive innovation and economic growth for decades to come – ensuring that today’s students become tomorrow’s problem-solvers, innovators, and leaders in a rapidly evolving global economy.