Photo of Dr. Eileen Kowalski

Dr. Eileen M. Kowalski

Associate Professor

eileen.kowalski@westpoint.edu

Biography

Dr. Kowalski teaches Chemistry. In 2024 she received the Dean's Career Award for Distinguished Teaching Excellence. She currently serves as the Department Reviewer of Curriculum Proposals and as a member of the Faculty Development Committee. She is a former Head Department Academic Counselor (2009-2018, 2021-2022) and member of the USMA Steering Committee (2013-2022). She has previously served on the Continuing Intellectual Development Goal Team (2008-2009; Chair 2010-2013), Assessment Steering Committee (2010-2013), and the Corbin Forum mentoring circles (2012-2015).  She was an Officer Representative with the Army Cross Country and Track & Field Teams (2002-2021) and now serves as the Officer in Charge of the choir at Most Holy Trinity Catholic Chapel. Since 2016 she has supported The POGIL ProjectTM with strategic planning and resource development, to include curating submissions to the POGIL Activity Clearinghouse (https://pac.pogil.org/index.php/pac).  Dr. Kowalski is a faculty member of Gamma Sigma Epsilon Chemistry Honors Society.

Dr. Kowalski previously worked for The Upjohn Company and the Tennessee Department of Agriculture. She has been on the West Point faculty since 2001.

Ongoing Research Projects

Dr. Kowalski is interested in knowing more about how people learn chemistry. She has an on-going longitudinal study looking at patterns of activity in classrooms. In previous work she looked at whether guided inquiry changes the level or complexity of exam questions and how introducing a multi-step synthesis lab into Organic Chemistry II changed student and faculty perceptions of the course. She is also exploring how teaching equilibrium as a system of equations provides opportunities not available in typical textbook presentations.

Publications & Presentations

C. Koleci, E.M. Kowalski, and K.J. McDonald.* “The STEM Faculty Experience at West Point.” The Journal of College Science Teaching, 2022, 51(6),16-21.

K.J. McDonald,* C.K. Koleci, and E.M. Kowalski. “STEM Education within The West Point Experience.” The Journal of College Science Teaching, 2021, 50(6), 14-19.

N. Zander, E.M.  Kowalski, A.M. Rawlett and. J.A. Orlicki.* “Decontamination of Chemical Agent Simulant by Nanometal Oxides.”  Army Research Laboratory Technical Report 4133, June 2007.

S.K. Schwartz and E.M. Kowalski.* “Collaborative Teaching across Freshman Information Technology and Chemistry.”  The Journal of College Science Teaching, 2007, 36(5), 34-39.

M.S. Blackman, A. Gandolfo*, and E.M. Kowalski. “Linking Composition and Chemistry: An Experiment with Level-One Learners.” Journal of Student-Centered Learning, 2005, 2(2), 145-152.

*Corresponding author

N.C. Ulrich* and E.M. Kowalski. “Reframing failure: Reflecting on learning opportunities in research framework development.” 2024 Biennial Conference on Chemical Education. Lexington, KY, August 2024. (Oral)

M.P. Garoutte,* E.M. Kowalski, M.T. van Opstal, M.S. Reeves, C.L. Fish, B.M. Fetterly. “Collaboration, reviewer calibration, peer feedback, and professional development in one PAC!” 2024 Biennial Conference on Chemical Education. Lexington, KY, August 2024. (Oral)

G.M. Florio, E.M. Kowalski, J.E. Roque. “Impact of Teaching Evidence-Based Learning Strategies.” National Conference to Advance POGIL Practice. Salt Lake City, UT, June 2023. (Poster)

N.C. Ulrich,* E.M. Kowalski, T. Spudich. “Promoting conceptual understanding of chemical equilibrium through algorithmic problem-solving.” 2022 ACS Midwest Regional Meeting. Iowa City, IA, October 2022. (Poster)

B.M. Fetterly, M. Dubroff, C.L. Fish,* M.P. Garoutte, S. Garrett-Roe, E.M. Kowalski, M.S. Reeves, T.D. Shepherd, C.M. Teague, M.T. van Opstal.  “POGIL Activity Clearinghouse.” 2022 Biennial Conference on Chemical Education. Lafayette, IN, August 2022. (Oral)

M. van Opstal,* M.P. Garoutte, M.S. Reeves, E.M. Kowalski, B. Fetterly. “New Peer Review Model for Reviewing POGIL Activities Remotely with Reviewer Training and Peer Feedback.” Spring 2021 ACS National Meeting, April 2021. (Oral)

M.Z. Kalainoff* and E.M. Kowalski. “From Algorithmic Problem Solving to Problem-Based Education: An Ethnographic Study in Negotiating an Institutional Network.” American Educational Research Association Annual Meeting, April 2021. (Oral)

*Corresponding author