Lynne K Campbell

Lynne Campbell is a STEM professional development specialist for Iowa State University Extension and Outreach, working on projects that support the development and implementation of STEM-focused learning experiences for both youth and adults. She supports outreach efforts related to research happening at Iowa State University (ISU) and works closely with ISU researchers, extension staff on campus and across Iowa, and K-12 educators to implement STEM teaching and learning experiences. 

Recent projects include outreach efforts for the Iowa Monarch Conservation Consortium including a grant from the Iowa Department of Natural Resources called the REAP Monarch Eggs Project where students rear monarch eggs through the life stages of caterpillar to chrysalis to adult butterflies. Another REAP Grant project is the Milkweed Growing Pilot Project where participants learn to cold stratify milkweed seeds, plant and grow the seeds, and share the plants with the community to increase habitat for monarch butterflies. To some youth, she is known as “The Caterpillar Lady.”

Lynne is the lead author for the 2018 Ag Innovators Experience Monarchs on the Move Challenge, the 2019 Ag Innovators Experience Native Bees Challenge, and the 2020 Ag Innovators Experience Water Connects Us All Challenge. Lynne has worked with Prairie Lakes Area Education Agency, a regional agency that supports educational efforts of 40 districts in north central Iowa, to support PK-12 science educators as they implement the Next Generation Science Standards. The best part of her role at Iowa State University is witnessing youth and adults who are excited about learning because the experiences are interesting, engaging, and impactful.  

Lynne brings education reform experience at the local, state, regional and national level. She was a classroom teacher where she taught physical science, biology, and middle school science for 19 years. During her eight years at Woodward-Granger, she was three times an Iowa Finalist for the Presidential Award for Excellence in Math and Science Teaching (PAEMST). Lynne received the Excellence in Science Teaching Award (ESTA) from the Iowa Academy of Science in 2002, and the Alumni Professional Achievement Award from Mount Mercy University in 2003.

At the national level, Lynne was selected to serve as one of the 2007 Albert Einstein Distinguished Educator Fellows in Washington, D.C where she was a staffer for the Committee on Education and Labor and worked to improve STEM education through policy. In 2008, Lynne participated in the Japan Fulbright Memorial Fund Program where she traveled to Japan to learn first-hand about Japan’s educational system. Lynne served four years a science consultant at Central Rivers AEA before accepting the position as the inaugural North Central STEM Hub Manager at Iowa State University.

Lynne Shared:  "My mission during my career has always been to improve my practice and facilitate opportunities for others to do the same. It has been rewarding to learn from researchers at Iowa State University and create programs that embrace the spirit of the land-grant mission of sharing new innovations with the citizens of Iowa. I am confident we are having an impact.”