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Aroutis Foster | |
|---|---|
| Born | Aroutis N. Foster Jamaica |
| Occupations | Academic, learning scientist, university administrator |
| Known for | Game-based learning; Projective Reflection model; Play Curricular activity Reflection Discussion (PCaRD) model |
| Title | Dean of the Baker School of Education, American University |
| Awards | NSF CAREER Award |
| Academic background | |
| Alma mater |
|
| Academic work | |
| Discipline | Learning sciences, educational technology, educational psychology |
Sub-discipline | Game-based learning, identity exploration |
| Institutions |
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Aroutis N. Foster is a Jamaican-born American learning scientist, educational technologist, and university administrator. He is the Linda A. and H. Kent Baker Chair and Dean of the Baker School of Education at American University in Washington, D.C., a position he assumed in 2026. Previously he spent more than fifteen years at Drexel University in Philadelphia, where he was a professor of learning sciences and technologies, interim dean of the School of Education, and founder of the Games and Learning in Interactive Digital Environments (GLIDE) Lab. His research examines how digital games, virtual worlds, and other immersive learning environments support knowledge construction, motivation, and identity exploration.[1][2][3]
Early life and education
editFoster was born and raised in Jamaica before studying and living in New York City.[2] He earned a Bachelor of Arts with a double major in art and broadcast communications from Brooklyn College of the City University of New York (CUNY), graduating cum laude.[1] He completed a PhD in educational psychology and educational technology at Michigan State University, where he worked as a research and teaching assistant at the Center for Curriculum Materials in Science from 2003 to 2009.[1][2]
Foster is a member of Phi Beta Kappa, a Mellon Mays Fellow, a recipient of a Spencer Research Training Grant, and an alumnus of the Institute for Recruitment of Teachers.[1][2]
Career
editBefore entering academia, Foster worked in architectural design at ACB Architects & Planners, P.C., in New York City from 1999 to 2003.[2]
Drexel University
editFoster joined the School of Education at Drexel University in 2009, where he rose to the rank of professor of learning sciences and technologies. He also held a courtesy appointment in the Digital Media Department of the Antoinette Westphal College of Media Arts & Design, affiliated with its Interactive Digital Media and Game Art & Production programs.[2][1] In 2013 he founded the Games and Learning in Interactive Digital Environments (GLIDE) Lab, which he directed while mentoring dozens of undergraduate, graduate, and postdoctoral researchers, and he founded the Drexel Learning Games Network.[1][2]
Foster took on a series of university leadership roles at Drexel, serving as a Provost Fellow (2016–2017), a Lenfest Cultural Heritage Fellow (2018–2020) with the Lenfest Center for Cultural Partnerships, and a Provost Solutions Fellow (2020–present) with the Drexel Solutions Institute and the Provost's Office.[3] In 2018 he became associate dean for academic affairs and graduate studies in the School of Education.[3] He was co-principal investigator of the Greater Philadelphia Region Louis Stokes Alliance for Minority Participation, which supports the diversification of the STEM workforce and educational pathways for underrepresented students.[3] In 2020 he was named co-chair of the Drexel University Anti-Racism Task Force, co-leading 130 volunteers across 11 subcommittees.[3][1]
Foster was appointed interim dean of the School of Education effective July 1, 2023, succeeding interim dean Erin McNamara Horvat.[3] As interim dean he led the school through a period of structural transition, including its integration into the College of Arts and Sciences and its conversion from a quarter to a semester academic calendar, overseeing roughly 35 full-time faculty, 27 professional staff, and 700 to 800 students and managing an $18–21 million budget.[1] He raised $1.4 million to launch the ALLIED Hub (Advocacy, Leadership, Learning, Implementation, Ed Policy, and Data), an initiative to translate education research into tools and professional learning for educators and policymakers.[1]
American University
editIn June 2026, American University announced that Foster had been named the Linda A. and H. Kent Baker Chair and Dean of the Baker School of Education, effective August 1, 2026.[1] The appointment made him the leader of the first named school established at American University in 45 years, endowed through the largest individual gift in the university's history—a contribution from the late finance professor H. Kent Baker in honor of his late wife, Linda.[1]
Research
editFoster's scholarship focuses on the theoretical, design, cognitive, assessment, and motivational aspects of immersive digital technologies—including games, virtual worlds, and simulations—for learning. A central theme of his work is "identity exploration," the idea that well-designed learning environments can help learners try on new identities and roles as part of the learning process. His research also addresses technology integration, teacher professional development, automated and personalized learning, and STEM learning in and out of school.[2][1]
He is known for developing the Projective Reflection framework, which conceptualizes learning as identity exploration within games, and the Play Curricular activity Reflection Discussion (PCaRD) model for integrating games into classroom instruction. He has also contributed the Inquiry, Communication, Construction, and Expression (ICCE) framework for understanding the learning experiences afforded by games.[2]
Since 2013 Foster has directed the GLIDE Lab. He has secured external research funding variously reported at more than $5.6 million and, by 2026, more than $7 million, including seven National Science Foundation (NSF) grants.[3][1] In 2014 he received the NSF Faculty Early Career Development (CAREER) Award for the project "Projective Reflection: Learning as Identity Exploration within Games for Science."[1][2] His other NSF-funded projects have included work on cloud-enabled virtual reality for environmental engineering education, automating experience management in interactive learning environments, and a digital play-based platform for 21st-century learning; he also directed the Barnes Foundation "Playing to See" digital game-based learning project.[2]
Books
edit- Foster, A., & Shah, M. (Eds.). (2024). Virtual Learning Environments: Unveiling Learning and Identity. Routledge. ISBN 9781032726533. Originally published as a special issue of The Journal of Experimental Education.[4]
Selected publications
edit- Foster, A. N. (2008). "Games and motivation to learn science: Personal identity, applicability, relevance and meaningfulness." Journal of Interactive Learning Research, 19(4), 597–614.
- Foster, A. N. (2011). "The process of learning in a simulation strategy game: Disciplinary knowledge construction." Journal of Educational Computing Research, 45(1), 1–27.
- Shah, M., & Foster, A. (2015). "Developing and assessing teachers' knowledge of game-based learning." Journal of Technology and Teacher Education, 23(2), 241–267.
- Foster, A., & Shah, M. (2015). "The ICCE framework: Framing learning experiences afforded by games." Journal of Educational Computing Research, 51(4).
- Foster, A., & Shah, M. (2015). "The Play Curricular activity Reflection Discussion model for game-based learning." Journal of Research on Technology in Education, 47(2).
- Akkus-Cakir, N., Gass, A., Foster, A., & Lee, F. J. (2017). "Development of a game-design workshop to promote young girls' interest towards computing through identity exploration." Computers & Education, 108, 115–130.
- Woodard, M., & Foster, A. N. (2025). "Using Epistemic Analysis to Explore Black Girls' Creativity as They Learn to Code." Journal of Science Education and Technology.
Professional service
editFoster serves as a member of the advisory board of the Digital Trust Council, a nonprofit organization that develops benchmarks and standards for trustworthy and responsible artificial intelligence.[5] He has also served on editorial review and advisory boards for journals and organizations related to technology and learning.[2][4]
In May 2024, Foster co-authored an op-ed in The Philadelphia Inquirer with the education deans of four other Pennsylvania universities—Katharine O. Strunk of the University of Pennsylvania, Kimberly A. Lawless of Pennsylvania State University, Monika W. Shealey of Temple University, and Eboni Zamani-Gallaher of the University of Pittsburgh—calling on state leaders to fully fund the Pennsylvania Student Teacher Support Program amid the state's teacher shortage.[6]
Awards and honors
editPersonal life
editFoster was born in Jamaica and has lived in New York City; East Lansing, Michigan; and Philadelphia.[2]
References
edit- 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 Frank, Adrienne (June 25, 2026). "Aroutis Foster Named Dean of Baker School of Education". American University. Retrieved July 7, 2026.
- 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 "Aroutis N. Foster, PhD". Drexel University School of Education. Retrieved July 7, 2026.
- 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 Jensen, Paul E. (June 1, 2023). "Aroutis Foster Appointed Interim Dean of the School of Education". Drexel University Office of the Provost. Retrieved July 7, 2026.
- 1 2 Foster, Aroutis; Shah, Mamta, eds. (2024). Virtual Learning Environments: Unveiling Learning and Identity. Routledge. ISBN 9781032726533. Retrieved July 7, 2026.
- ↑ "About the Digital Trust Council". Digital Trust Council. Retrieved July 7, 2026.
- ↑ Strunk, Katharine O.; Foster, Aroutis; Lawless, Kimberly A.; Shealey, Monika W.; Zamani-Gallaher, Eboni (May 22, 2024). "A new program aims to help stanch the exodus of Pa. teachers". The Philadelphia Inquirer. Retrieved July 7, 2026.