Hi, I’m Robert Talbert and thanks for being on my website. I am on a mission to make higher education a better version of itself, starting with individual faculty and without all the BS and all the buzzwords. This website is the home base for that mission.

I am Executive Director of the Center For Teaching Excellence at Texas A&M University. In that role, I work to promote innovation and excellence in teaching and learning at one of the largest universities in the United States, with over 77,000 undergraduates and thousands of faculty. Before coming to Texas A&M, I was a Professor of Mathematics at Grand Valley State University where I was a rank-and-file faculty member teaching three courses a semester, doing research, and serving on committees. I have faced all the challenges and joys that faculty face, and today help other faculty become better teachers.

Here is a brief review of how I got here:

• I grew up in rural middle Tennessee as the youngest of three kids, and my dad was an electrical engineer who formerly worked at NASA on the Gemini Project.

• I attended Tennessee Technological University first as a Psychology major, then in my second year changed majors to Mathematics after a late-night dare from my roommate. Long story. Graduated in 1992 with an honors B.S. in math (and minors in Psychology and English!).

• I was then accepted into Vanderbilt University, where I eventually earned my M.S. and then a Ph.D. in Mathematics. I studied algebraic topology and category theory, doing my doctoral dissertation under the direction of Efstratios Prassidis.

• After finishing my Ph.D. in 1997, I took a position as Assistant Professor of Mathematics at Bethel College (now Bethel University) in Mishawaka, Indiana.

• In 2001, I moved to Franklin College in Indiana where I was Assistant Professor and, after earning tenure, Associate Professor of Mathematics and Computing. It was here that I started my first blog, Casting Out Nines; and began experimenting with flipped instruction.

• In 2011, I moved again, to Grand Valley State University in Allendale, Michigan where I am today. I earned tenure (a second time) in 2017 and was promoted to Full Professor in 2018.

• And in 2026, I joined Texas A&M University as the Executive Director of the Center for Teaching Excellence.

I am based in College Station, TX (in the middle of the “Texas Triangle” formed by Houston, Dallas, and San Antonio) and enjoy outdoor adventures and live music. I have been a bass guitarist for over 30 years (off and on). Click here for more about my music.