Francis Photo

gregory_francis@byu.edu

 

Selected Honors and Awards

  • Robert A. Millikan Medal (American Association of Physics Teachers), 2021
  • MSU Engaged Teaching Fellow, 2014
  • James and Mary Ross Provost’s Award for Excellence, 2005
  • President's Excellence in Teaching Award, 2001
  • MSU Alumni Excellence Award, 2020, 2008, 2002, 2001, and 1995
  • Anna Fridley Award for Distinguished Teaching, 1998
  • College of Letters and Science Outstanding Teaching Award, 1997
  • College of Education Influential Educator Award, 2005 and 2001
  • Mortar Board Professor of the Month, 2010, 2002 and 1996
  • Pi Beta Phi Professor of the Year, 1994

Biographical Sketch

  • B.S. in Physics, 1980 Brigham Young University
  • Ph.D. in Physics, 1987 Massachusetts Institute of Technology
  • 2023 Professor Emeritus, Physics Department, Montana State University
  • 2017 - 2021 Director, Master of Science in Science Education (MSSE) Program, Montana State University
  • 2006 - 2023 Professor, Physics Department, Montana State University
  • 1998 - 2006 Associate Professor, Physics Department, Montana State University
  • 1992 - 1998 Assistant Professor, Physics Department, Montana State University
  • 1990 - 1992 Research Associate, Physics Education Group, University of Washington
  • 1987 - 1990 Post-Doctoral Research Fellow, Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory

Interests

Greg Francis is first and foremost a teacher. As an undergraduate at Brigham Young University, he taught recitation sections normally reserved for graduate students. Later as a graduate student studying plasma physics at MIT, he regularly found opportunities to teach classes normally reserved for research faculty. After finishing his doctorate in 1987 he served as a postdoctoral fellow at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratories. Although his day job gave him the opportunity to work with world-class scientists on exciting problems, he found that he really preferred his night job, teaching physics classes at the local community college. In 1990, Greg joined the Physics Education Research Group at the University of Washington-Seattle, learning the science of effective physics teaching. Greg continued to experiment with active learning approaches in large introductory classes for 31 years at Montana State University, retiring in 2023. He is currently a Teaching Professor in the Physics Department at Brigham Young University in Provo, Utah. 

Book Publications

  • Ron Hellings, Jeff Adams, and Greg Francis, College Physics: Putting It All Together, 1st Edition, (University Science Books, 2018)
  • Ron Hellings and Greg Francis, Instructor’s Resource Manual to Accompany College Physics: Putting It All Together, 1st Edition, (University Science Books, 2018)
  • Larry D. Kirkpatrick and Gregory E. Francis, Physics: A Conceptual World View, 7th Edition, (Cengage Learning, 2010)
  • Larry D. Kirkpatrick and Gregory E. Francis, Problem Solving to Accompany Physics: A World View, 7th Edition, (Cengage Learning, 2010)
  • Larry D. Kirkpatrick and Gregory E. Francis, Instructor’s Resource Manual to Accompany Physics: A World View, 7th Edition, (Cengage Learning, 2010)
  • Larry D. Kirkpatrick and Gregory E. Francis, Test Bank to Accompany Physics: A World View, 7th Edition, 1800 questions (Cengage Learning, 2010)