Chanh Bao Lam, Ph.D. Pronunciation: /cɑːɲ-bɑʊ-ləm/

About

I am a data analyst in Teacher Education and Accreditation at the College of Education, Kansas State University. I also serve as a Program Reviewer for the Council for the Accreditation of Educator Preparation (CAEP) and the Kansas State Department of Education (KSDE).

I am originally from Phu Yen, Vietnam. I earned a bachelor's degree in Mathematics Education at the Ho Chi Minh City University of Education, a master's, and a Ph.D. degree in Curriculum and Instruction at Kansas State University, working with Dr. Tuan D. Nguyen (University of Missouri) and Dr. Sherri L. Martinie (Kansas State University).

Dr. Nguyen and I currently maintain a publicly available dataset on teacher shortages, aiming to inform policymakers and the public on the extent of teacher staffing challenges in the United States: teachershortages.com.

Outside of research and academic work, I enjoy exploring the world and learning from its diverse histories and cultures. Below is a photo from one of my favorite experiences.

Stonehenge (summer 2023) - UNESCO World Heritage Site and iconic prehistoric monument.

Research

My research focuses on policy and practice in teacher education, teacher workforce and labor markets, and teacher labor activism. I have authored and coauthored several papers on these topics, including:

• Liu, Y., Lam, C. B., Anglum, J. C., Funk, J. R., & Nguyen, T. D. (2025). Revisiting the rural teacher workforce: Insights from a novel rurality measure (EdWorkingPaper: 25-1231). Annenberg Institute at Brown University. https://edworkingpapers.com/ai25-1231
• Lam, C. B., Liu, Y., Anglum, J. C., & Nguyen, T. D. (2025). STEM teacher characteristics and mobility: Longitudinal evidence from the American Midwest, 2010 through 2023. Journal of Research in Science Teaching. https://doi.org/10.1002/tea.22024
• Nguyen, T. D., Lam, C. B., & Bruno, P. (2024). What do we know about the extent of teacher shortages nationwide? AERA Open, 10, 23328584241276512. https://doi.org/10.1177/23328584241276512
• Nguyen, T. D., Lam, C. B., & Bruno, P. (2022). Is there a national teacher shortage? (EdWorkingPaper: 22-631). Annenberg Institute at Brown University. https://doi.org/10.26300/76eq-hj32

I have also presented at state, national, and international seminars and conferences, including:

• Lam, C. B., Liu, Y., Anglum, J. C., & Nguyen, T. D. (2025, April 23-27). STEM teacher characteristics and mobility in the American Midwest [Roundtable presentation]. American Educational Research Association (AERA) Annual Meeting, Denver, CO, United States.
• Lam, C. B. (2025, April 4). Kansas teacher retention challenges: A 15 year perspective [Paper presentation]. Kansas Association of Teacher Educators (ATE-K), Manhattan, KS, United States.
• Lam, C. B. (2025, March 12). Teacher attrition in the midst of geographical, societal, and economic realities: Insights from fifteen years of the Kansas teacher workforce [Seminar presentation]. Quantitative Working Group, Department of Education Policy, Organization, and Leadership (EPOL Quant), University of Illinois, Champaign, IL, United States.
• Liu, Y., Lam, C. B., Anglum, J. C., & Nguyen, T. D. (2025, March 13-15). Revisiting rural teacher workforce: Insights from a novel rurality measure [Poster presentation]. Association for Education Finance and Policy (AEFP) Annual Conference, Washington, D.C., United States.
• Lam, C. B., Liu, Y., Anglum, J. C., & Nguyen, T. D. (2025, March 13-15). STEM teacher characteristics and mobility in the American Midwest [Paper presentation]. Association for Education Finance and Policy (AEFP) Annual Conference, Washington, D.C., United States.
• Lam, C. B., Liu, Y., Anglum, J. C., & Nguyen, T. D. (2024, November 21-23). STEM teacher characteristics and mobility in the American Midwest [Paper presentation]. Association for Public Policy Analysis & Management (APPAM) Fall Research Conference, National Harbor, MD, United States.
• Lam, C. B. (2023, November 8). Data practices and analytics [Seminar presentation]. Project CAMINO (Kansas State University-Universidad Laica Eloy Alfaro de Manabi Partnership), Manhattan, KS, United States.
• Lam, C. B. (2023, July 17-19). Teacher attrition in the State of Kansas [Paper presentation]. Oxford Education Research Symposium, Oxford, England, United Kingdom.
• Lam, C. B. (2022, June 3-4). Reading and interpreting data [Workshop presentation]. Noyce Workshop on Data-driven Decision Making, Manhattan, KS, United States.
• Nguyen, T. D., Rodriguez, L. A., Lam, C. B., & Angeles, C. L. (2022, April 21-26). Causes and consequences of contemporary teacher strikes: A systematic review of research on pre-K-12 teacher activism in the United States [Paper presentation]. American Educational Research Association (AERA) Annual Meeting, San Diego, CA, United States.
• Nguyen, T. D., Rodriguez, L. A., Lam, C. B., & Angeles, C. L. (2022, March 17-19). Causes and consequences of contemporary teacher strikes: A systematic review of research on pre-K-12 teacher activism in the United States [Paper presentation]. Association for Education Finance and Policy (AEFP) Annual Conference, Denver, CO, United States.

Teaching

I teach undergraduate and graduate courses on educational data, statistical analysis, and data-informed decision making in broad educational settings, including:

• EDCI 514 - Leveraging Data in Educational Settings (3 credits)
  This course offers foundational understandings of data in education, introducing contemporary concepts such as big data and the emerging field of educational data. Topics include recent applications of big data, four major types of educational data (input, outcome, process, and satisfaction), common pitfalls in data interpretation, and strategies for ethical and effective data use in educational settings.
• EDCI 913 - Inquiry I: Statistical Analysis in Curriculum and Instruction (3 credits)
  This course provides an introduction of statistics and statistical analyses in education, including a wide range of descriptive and inferential statistics. The course focuses on understanding concepts and processes of statistics and interpreting statistical results based on educational research data.
• EDCI 917 - Inquiry IV: Advanced Quantitative Methods in Curriculum & Instruction (3 credits)
  This is an advance course of quantitative analysis in education. The course aims to equip students with the knowledge, skills, and dispositions needed to leverage quantitative data and statistical analysis for educational research and decision making. This course is designed for students who intend to use quantitative methods in their research and professional work.

Service

I support program review and accreditation efforts at Kansas State University. The K-State Educator Preparation Provider (EPP) is reviewed by the Kansas State Department of Education (KSDE) and accredited by the Council for the Accreditation of Educator Preparation (CAEP). My areas of expertise include CAEP sufficiency for EPP-created assessments, educational technology, quality assurance systems, stakeholder engagement, and continuous improvement. For our most recent visit (spring 2023), our EPP was awarded with the 2024 Frank Murray Leadership Recognition for Continuous Improvement.

I have authored and co-authored several white papers that were submitted for the EPP's CAEP Accreditation 2023:

• Lam, C. B., & Cox, R. (2023). Educational technology in teacher preparation: A systematic review of EPP practices. Kansas State University College of Education.
• Lam, C. B. (2023). KSU Student Teacher Final Evaluation validity and reliability study: A white paper. Kansas State University.
• Lam, C. B. (2023). The COE Dispositions: An updated validity and reliability study. Kansas State University.
• Lam, C. B. (2023). The KSU Student Intern Portfolio: An updated assessment of the instrument's reliability. Kansas State University.

Selected Policy Influences

• Edwards, K. A. (2023, September). Child care since the pandemic: Macroeconomic impacts of public policy measures [Testimony before the Senate Subcommittee on Economic Policy]. https://www.banking.senate.gov/imo/media/doc/edwards_testimony_9-20-23.pdf
• The Council of Economic Advisers. (2023, March). Economic report of the President. https://bidenwhitehouse.archives.gov/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/ERP-2023.pdf

Selected Media Appearances

• Council for the Accreditation of Educator Preparation. (2024, October 17). Kansas State interview at CAEPCon Fall 2024 [Video]. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TpTp4P87U5Q
• Greene, P. (2024, September 30). Which states are having the most trouble filling teaching positions. Forbes. https://www.forbes.com/sites/petergreene/2024/09/30/which-states-are-having-the-most-trouble-filling-teaching-positions/
• Cardoza, K. (2023, October 26). This teacher shortage solution has gone viral. But does it work? NPR. https://www.npr.org/2023/10/26/1207073068/grow-your-own-teacher-solution-research
• Edsall, T. B. (2022, December 14). There's a reason there aren't enough teachers in America. Many reasons, actually. The New York Times. https://www.nytimes.com/2022/12/14/opinion/teacher-shortage-education.html
• Neary, M. (2022, August 25). K-State researchers explore teacher shortages – along with lack of data. The Mercury. https://themercury.com/news/education/k-state-researchers-explore-teacher-shortages-along-with-lack-of-data/article_5d1e1552-86ad-5a44-8229-fae48bffa61f.html

Selected Honors and Awards

Contact

Chanh Bao Lam, Ph.D.


Teacher Education and Accreditation
College of Education, Kansas State University
02A Bluemont | cblam@ksu.edu | 785-532-2030
1114 Mid-Campus Dr, Manhattan, Kansas 66506