Biography
Tatiana Erukhimova received a Ph.D. in Physics from the Russian Academy of Sciences in 1999 and joined TAMU in 2001. She organizes annual Physics & Engineering Festivals attended by thousands of visitors. She developed the Physics Show, an interactive presentation involving physics demonstrations and hands-on exhibits, attended by more than 30,000 people since 2007. In 2012, she started the innovative program Discover, Explorer, and Enjoy Physics & Engineering (DEEP), which engages students in hands-on teamwork and outreach activities. She is a co-organizer of the Mitchell Institute Physics Enhancement Program (MIPEP), which includes annual summer boarding schools for physics teachers from Texas high schools. Tatiana was a 2016 TEDxTAMU speaker and 2019 Fish Camp namesake. She is a co-author, with Gerald North, of an undergraduate textbook on Atmospheric Thermodynamics published by Cambridge University Press in 2009. Currently Dr. Erukhimova teaches calculus-based introductory physics classes, Mechanics and Electricity & Magnetism. In 2022, Tatiana was awarded the inaugural Marsha L. ’69 and Ralph F. Schilling ’68 Chair for Physics Outreach. She is a Fellow of the APS, AAPT, and AAAS. She received the 2023 APS Dwight Nicholson Medal and the 2024 AAPT Halliday and Resnick Award.
Institutional Partnerships
Awards & Honors
- College of Arts and Sciences Outstanding Career Award, 2024
- Wells Fargo Honors Faculty Mentor Award, 2024
- David Halliday and Robert Resnick Award for Excellence in Undergraduate Physics Teaching, American Association for Physics Teachers, 2024
- American Association for Physics Teachers Fellow, 2024
- Homer L. Dodge Citation for Distinguished Service to American Association for Physics Teachers, 2024
- Fellow, American Association for the Advancement of Science, 2023
- American Physical Society’s Dwight Nicholson Medal for Outreach, 2023
- University Professor for Undergraduate Teaching Excellence (2021)
- Provost Academic Professional Track Faculty Teaching Excellence Award, 2021
- American Physical Society Fellow, 2019
- Distinguished Achievement University-Level Award in Extension & Outreach (Texas A&M Association of Former Students, 2019)
- Presidential Professor for Teaching Excellence (2017)
Selected Publications
- Oaks, J. Hirons, T. Erukhimova, J. D. Perry, T. Sauncy, S. White, R. Ivie, Chicken and the egg: does outreach lead to a growth mindset or vice versa?, 2025 Physics Education Research Conference (PERC) Proceedings, https://doi.org/10.1119/perc.2025.pr.Oaks, pp 332-337, (2025)
- J. K. Hirons, J. D. Perry, D. T. Nodurft, S. Crawford, W. Bassichis, and T. Erukhimova, Click, Watch, Learn: The Impact of Student Self-Study Materials on Physics Electricity and Magnetism Course Outcomes, https://arxiv.org/abs/2508.12143 submitted to Phys. Rev. Phys. Educ. Res. (2025)
- J. D. Perry, C. Garrett, I. Oaks, J. Hirons, T. Sauncy, J. P. Donaldson, S. White, R. Ivie, and T. Erukhimova, Impact of Outreach on Physics Student Development: Qualitative Results from a National Survey, https://arxiv.org/abs/2506.22700; submitted to Phys. Rev. Phys. Educ. Res. (2025)
- J. D. Perry, T. Sauncy, S. White, R. Ivie, J. Tyler, and T. Erukhimova, Impact of Outreach on Physics Student Development: Quantitative Results from a National Survey, https://arxiv.org/abs/2505.09874 accepted to Phys. Rev. Phys. Educ. Res. (2025)
- J. Perry, C. Garrett, J. P. Donaldson, and T.Erukhimova, Enhancing Student Learning through Facilitating Informal Programs, Journal of STEM Outreach, 8(1), 1–13 (2025).
- T. Erukhimova, 2024 David Halliday and Robert Resnick award for excellence in undergraduate physics teaching lecture: It's not business, it's personal. Teaching large classes, one student at a time, Am. J. Phys. 92, 910–917 (2024) https://doi.org/10.1119/5.0243729
- J. D. Perry, A. Wang, C. Garrett, M. Dew, M. Head, A. Belyanin, B. Dutta, and T. Erukhimova, Mitchell Institute Physics Enhancement Program - Supporting the Development of Out-of-Field, In-Service Teachers of High School Physics, Phys. Teach. 62, 480–483 (2024) https://doi.org/10.1119/5.0142715
- J. D. Perry, T. L. Erukhimova, C. Garrett, T. Sauncy, J. P. Donaldson, S. White, J. Tyler, and R. L. Ivie, Exploring Impacts of Outreach on a National Sample of Undergraduate Physics Students, 2024 Physics Education Research Conference (PERC) Proceedings, pp. 318-323, doi:10.1119/perc.2024.pr.Perry
- Jessi Randolph, Jonathan Perry, Jonan Phillip Donaldson, Callie Rethman, and Tatiana Erukhimova. “Female physics students gain from facilitating informal physics programs.” Physical Review Physics Education Research, 18(2), Oct 2022.
- Matthew Dew, Lewis Ford, Dawson T. Nodurft, Tatiana Erukhimova, and Jonathan Perry. “Student Responses to Changes in Introductory Physics Learning Due to the COVID-19 Pandemic.” The Physics Teacher, 59(3), 162--165, Mar 2021.
- Matthew Dew, Jonathan Perry, Lewis Ford, William Bassichis, and Tatiana Erukhimova. “Gendered performance differences in introductory physics: A study from a large land-grant university.” Physical Review Physics Education Research, 17(1), Feb 2021.
- Callie Rethman, Jonathan Perry, Jonan Phillip Donaldson, Daniel Choi, and Tatiana Erukhimova. “Impact of informal physics programs on university student development: Creating a physicist.” Physical Review Physics Education Research, 17(2), Aug 2021.
- Jonathan D. Perry, Tatiana L. Erukhimova, and William H. Bassichis. “New video resource for calculus-based introductory physics, design and assessment. I. Electricity and magnetism.” American Journal of Physics, 87(5), 335--340, May 2019.