Isai Lopez

UC Los Angeles

Secondary Mathematics Specialist/Lecturer

Isai Lopez is a former high school mathematics teacher with experience teaching Algebra I, Geometry, Algebra II, Pre-Calculus, and AP Calculus AB. As a Secondary Mathematics Specialist at The Curtis Center for Mathematics and Teaching at UCLA, he currently provides mathematical and pedagogical training to mathematics teachers across California aimed at improving the quality of mathematics activity in K-12 schools.

As an author, editor, trainer, and instructional coach for The Curtis Center’s Applied Mathematics Program—a Bill & Melinda Gates Grand Challenge for U.S. Education awardee—Isai helped design three semester-long, data-driven investigations that position Grades 7-9 students on small research teams to investigate relevant and authentic mathematics questions related to their community. He has also authored Smarter Balanced Performance Evidence-Based Selected Response tasks for use on summative statewide mathematics assessments across 14+ U.S. States.

Isai is a lecturer in the UCLA Mathematics Department, where he teaches and co-teaches four specialized courses for undergraduates interested in careers in K-12 mathematics instruction, curriculum, and assessment. These courses provide extensive training in pedagogical content knowledge, professional standards, current mathematics education research, and clinical fieldwork. He also serves as an advisor for Math for LA students, guiding them through their pedagogical competence assessment for the California Secondary Teaching Credential in Mathematics.

Isai contributes to national and international mathematics education leadership, presenting at major conferences such as the California Mathematics Council – South (CMC-C), the National Council of Teachers of Mathematics (NCTM), Utrecht University’s Realistic Mathematics Education Summer School, and the 15th International Congress on Mathematical Education in Sydney, Australia.