Robert Schwarzhaupt

Robert Schwarzhaupt is deputy director at the Center for Evolving Computer Science (CS@AIR). Schwarzhaupt primarily works as a principal investigator and analyst on CS and STEM education research and evaluation projects. Schwarzhaupt has led many of AIR’s computer science initiatives, working with the National Science Foundation, U.S. Department of Education, and state education agencies to generate knowledge and innovative solutions in CS and STEM education. Schwarzhaupt seeks to broaden participation in CS and STEM by examining PK-12 teacher preparation, instruction, and professional development.

Schwarzhaupt currently acts as the principal investigator or co-PI of several NSF-funded studies including the Investigating Black Educator Attitudes and Motivations for Teaching K-12 Computer Science and Computer Science Teacher Professional Development Alliance. On these projects, Schwarzhaupt collaborates with leading education organizations such as the Computer Science Teacher Association, Institute for Advancing Computing Education, and Teach for America to produce innovations and insights in CS education.

Additionally, Schwarzhaupt frequently collaborates with state partners and Universities to help bolster CS education. He currently acts as the principal investigator on the PAsmart grant evaluation, funded by the Pennsylvania Department of Education, which evaluates state grants aimed at bolstering CS teacher professional development. Moreover, Schwarzhaupt previously directed the NSF-funded Exploring Computer Science Fellows 2.0 project, which researched methods to recruit and support CS teachers in collaboration with the University of Oregon.   

Schwarzhaupt is also invested in using research and evaluation methods to support professional communities in CS & STEM. He previously acted as the research and evaluation lead on the NSF-funded CS for All Teachers Virtual Community of Practice and Evidence Quality and Research hub in which he uses survey and research methods to improve the community’s offerings and provide technical assistance to their members. 

Schwarzhaupt has published his results in the Journal of Computer Science Integration (Schwarzhaupt et al., 2021, Schwarzhaupt et al., 2024) and the Journal of Research on Education Effectiveness (Song et al., 2024) and presented at annual meetings for the Computer Science Teacher Association, Association for Education Finance and Policy, Society for Research on Educational Effectiveness, and the Special Interest Group on Computer Science Education.