Amy Ellis

Amy Ellis, professor in the Mary Frances Early College of Education, is an internationally recognized leader in mathematics education whose research has reshaped understanding of algebraic reasoning and learning. Across a distinguished career spanning more than two decades, Ellis has developed foundational accounts of how students generalize, reason, and construct mathematical meaning, producing theoretical frameworks that are now central to research and practice in the field. Her scholarship bridges cognitive theory and classroom application, influencing how algebra is taught in K–12 and undergraduate settings worldwide. Ellis’s work has appeared in the most selective journals in mathematics education and the learning sciences, including Journal for Research in Mathematics Education, Cognition and Instruction, and Science. She has sustained continuous external funding for over 20 years, securing nearly $10 million from federal agencies, and her research has informed national policy, curriculum design, and teacher preparation by shaping how educators understand the development of algebraic thinking.