As Director for the Center for Teaching Excellence (CTE) at Texas A&M University since August 2016, Dr.
Debra Fowler works closely with the Faculty Affairs Office as well as academic administrators and faculty to
assess the organizational program needs in teaching. Her role also consists of handling the day-to-day
operations of the CTE. Her expertise includes: program design and (re)design, interdisciplinary collaboration,
strategic alignment, organizational transformation, and visionary leadership.
She has served as Visiting Assistant Professor teaching a graduate course on college teaching in the
Department of Education Administration and Human Resource Development at the University and is currently a graduate faculty member in the Department of Educational Psychology. Dr. Fowler has served in leadership roles in the national and state faculty-development organizations and has presented workshops at numerous conferences, as well as authored or co-authored publications in various journals and a book chapter.
Dr. Fowler received her B.S. degree in Chemistry from South Dakota School of Mines and Technology and
Ph.D. in Interdisciplinary Engineering, with specific emphasis on engineering education, from Texas A&M
University. After receiving her undergraduate degree, she spent sixteen years with The Dow Chemical
Company in a variety of roles from technical service and development to overseeing the technical hiring for
North America before returning to graduate school. She has taught undergraduate and graduate students at
both Georgia Institute of Technology and Texas A&M University.
Debra’s keen interest in meeting the needs of society and a desire to influence those needs has led her to
academia where long-lasting influence is at our fingertips. In her personal time, she enjoys nurturing new
plants in the garden and experimenting with recipes.
