UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. — Gwendolyn M. Lloyd, senior associate dean for faculty affairs in the Penn State College of Education, has been named interim dean of the college, effective Oct. 16, while a national search is launched later this fall to identify a permanent leader.
Lloyd will take over for Kim Lawless, who will step down as dean on Oct. 15 to return to the college’s faculty, where she will explore possibilities for new approaches for the use of artificial intelligence in education.
“I am delighted that Gwen has agreed to serve as interim dean of the College of Education,” said Fotis Sotiropoulos, executive vice president and provost. “As the college’s longest-serving associate dean, Gwen is deeply knowledgeable about the college’s operations and important faculty processes — including promotion and tenure. Gwen has been an outstanding advocate for our faculty, and her passion for supporting students as they grow into future educators is just as strong. I know her experience, collaborative nature, and energetic leadership will serve the college well.”
Before her promotion to senior associate dean in January, Lloyd was associate dean for faculty affairs from 2020 to 2025. She also holds the Henry J. Hermanowicz Professorship in Education. She joined the faculty at Penn State in 2009 as professor of mathematics education in the Department of Curriculum and Instruction.
As associate and senior associate dean, Lloyd has focused on improving the college’s faculty affairs processes, including faculty evaluations, promotion reviews, sabbatical leaves and faculty searches, while also providing opportunities for professional learning for faculty, staff and academic administrators. She serves as an active member of Penn State’s Faculty Affairs Advisory Committee and the Committee on Promotion, Tenure and Equity, and she contributes to University-wide faculty development workshops offered by the Office of Faculty Affairs.
“It is an honor to serve in the interim dean role and to continue building upon the many strengths of the College of Education,” Lloyd said. “Having served as a leader within the college for many years, I know that our greatest strength lies in our community — our faculty, staff, students, alumni and partners — and in our shared commitment to enhancing the lives of those across the education landscape. As interim dean, my goal will be to foster an inclusive culture of excellence that amplifies our capacity for positive public impact, both locally and globally.”
An accomplished scholar and academic leader, Lloyd has held several key leadership roles within the college, including director of graduate studies in curriculum and instruction and director of the elementary and early childhood education teacher preparation program. Her leadership has been recognized with both the Penn State Undergraduate Program Leadership Award and the College of Education’s Cotterill Leadership Award.
Lloyd’s research explores mathematics education, teacher education and professional development, and curricular and instructional change. Her work has appeared in numerous peer-reviewed journals, books and edited volumes, and it has been supported by the U.S. National Science Foundation, including an NSF Early Career grant. She has contributed extensively to the field through editorial leadership, serving as co-editor of the Journal of Teacher Education, associate editor for the Review of Educational Research and the Journal of Mathematics Teacher Education, and chair of the editorial panel for the Journal for Research in Mathematics Education. Most recently, she edited a volume of the second edition of the International Handbook of Mathematics Teacher Education.
Lloyd earned a bachelor’s degree with honors in mathematics from Bryn Mawr College in 1991, a master's degree in mathematics from the University of California, Santa Barbara, in 1993, and a doctorate in educational studies (emphasis in mathematics education) from the University of Michigan in 1996. Before coming to Penn State, Lloyd was a faculty member in the Department of Mathematics at Virginia Tech from 1996 to 2009, where she was honored with an Alumni Award for Teaching Excellence.