Dr. Zachary Minken is a leading voice in urban STEM education, specializing in the intersection of rigorous scientific inquiry and social justice. As an experienced school administrator and researcher, Dr. Minken has dedicated his career to dismantling the educational inequities that persist in high-poverty, urban school systems.

Currently serving as an Assistant Principal at a public middle school, Dr. Minken brings a unique "on-the-ground" perspective to educational reform. His work is grounded in the reality of modern school leadership—balancing state standards and administrative demands with the urgent need for culturally responsive, life-relevant instruction.

Dr. Minken earned his Doctorate in Educational Leadership from Arcadia University, where his seminal research focused on Social Justice STEM Pedagogy (SJSP). His dissertation, “Teaching STEM for Social Justice: An Exploration and Analysis of Teachers' Pedagogical Content Knowledge,” established a pioneering five-domain framework for practitioners seeking to bridge the gap between STEM content and socioscientific activism.

With over a decade of experience as a secondary science educator (grades 7-12) and a deep commitment to bilingual education, Dr. Minken’s mission is to provide teachers and leaders with the concrete tools—the "Pedagogical Content Knowledge"—required to make STEM a vehicle for student agency and community change.

He is the creator of the SJSP Framework and the founder of Urban STEM Solutions, a curriculum and consulting initiative designed to empower the next generation of scientifically literate, socially conscious leaders.

• Teaching STEM for Social Justice: An Exploration and Analysis of Teachers’ Pedagogical Content Knowledge

• Teachers’ pedagogical content knowledge on socioscientific issues and social justice

• Development of Teachers' Pedagogical Content Knowledge during Lesson Planning of Socioscientific Issues.

• Socioscientific Issues to Promote Discussions on Social Justice: Making STEM concepts accessible and relevant to everyday life experiences of grades 6-12 students

• SSI: Teachers Make STEM Concepts Relevant to Their Students

• Developing Teachers' Intentions of Incorporating Socioscientific Issues in Lesson Design.