The official biography below was current at the time of the award. See the organization's website for its latest information.

Since its founding in 1988, the Center, in Hoboken, New Jersey, has developed curricula, conducted teacher professional development and mentoring programs, and implemented capacity-building efforts that have directly impacted more than 19,000 K-12 teachers, 280 community college faculty, and 6 million students from disadvantaged school districts. Collaborations with community colleges, through which the Center for Innovation in Engineering and Science Education (CIESE) has mentored faculty to implement science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) programs, have resulted in successful replications of CIESE programs in New Jersey and in 21 other states.