Kamau Bobb

Dr. Kamau Bobb is a Program Officer at the National Science Foundation in the Directorate for Computer & Information Science & Engineering. He is helping to shape the national research agenda for effective means of delivering quality computational education to all students. He is responsible for $30 million of investments targeted at improving computing and STEM education. He is on loan from Georgia Tech where he is a research scientist in science and technology policy and one of the chief STEM education strategists for the state. Prior to his current assignment, Dr. Bobb was the director of the STEM Initiative for the University System of Georgia, a collaborative effort with the governor’s office to improve STEM education across the 30 public institutions serving approximately 325,000 students in the state. His national leadership has resulted in a research agenda that is more reflective of social and cultural realities. At the state level, his work has helped identify and improve key system features that inhibit student success. Dr. Bobb brings to his work a passion to ensure that all students, particularly students of color, have access to seats of power in the technology sector that is shaping contemporary American life.

Prior to his work in Georgia, Dr. Bobb was a technology policy analyst at SRI International where he conducted research on university strategic planning and STEM workforce analysis for clients in the United States and the Middle East. His writing on STEM education and culture issues has been featured in The Atlantic, Black Enterprise, The Root, Edutopia and on the Obama White House Blog. Dr. Bobb holds a Ph.D. in Science and Technology Policy from Georgia Tech and M.S. and B.S. degrees in Mechanical Engineering from the University of California, Berkeley.