Donna Wilson

Psychologist and author Donna Wilson, PhD, is an international speaker on improving educational outcomes through innovative applications of mind, brain, and education research. Growing up in rural Oklahoma, Donna was the first in her family to go to college; she went on to become the Chair of Education at the University of Detroit-Mercy and later cofounded and became president of BrainSMART® and the nonprofit Center for Innovative Education and Prevention. With her passion for empowering all learners with the science and strategies for achieving academic and life success, Donna codeveloped the world’s first doctoral minor in Brain-Based Leadership and the first MS and EdS degree programs in applied mind, brain, and education research (BrainSMART Programs) with Nova Southeastern University. She has shared her work with more than 60,000 participants in live events in Asia, the Middle East, Australia, Europe, and Jamaica and throughout the United States and Canada. Donna is an author of 20 books, including Developing Growth Mindsets (2020), Smarter Teacher Leadership (Teachers College Press, 2016), Teaching Students to Drive Their Brains (2016), and Introduction to BrainSMART Teaching (2018). To bring Donna to your college, district, or state, contact her at donna@brainsmart.org. View her blog at donnawilsonphd.blogspot.com or connect with her on LinkedIn and Facebook.