It is with great sadness that the MSET Ed Research Group share the news that Colleen Vale passed away on Wednesday 5 August, 2026. Many of you are aware of the extraordinary legacy Colleen leaves in mathematics education. Her dedication to improving outcomes for both students and teachers, together with her significant contributions to the field, has had a profound and lasting impact on the mathematics education community and beyond. She was a valued colleague at Deakin for a number of years and continued to research with us following her move to Monash. To find out more about Colleen’s legacy, see here.
Thank you to Wanty Widjaja for sharing photos of Colleen.
When I first started at Deakin I remember that Colleen was a warm and generous colleague who asked great questions and had a great laugh. 🙂 A joy to be around.
I’ve had the pleasure of working with Colleen on the ARC DP project that she led with Mandi Berry, Jan van Driel, as well as Wanty and Lihua over the past few years. That’s how I got to know Colleen, and it was an honour and pleasure to do so. Not only did I learn lots from Colleen about doing research with rigour and integrity, but I also learned from Colleen about what it takes to be a good academic, most importantly how to care for colleagues and meaningfully contribute to community. I’ll miss Colleen’s sharp sense of humour and her advocacy for maths for all (Colleen was so very much driven by equity and inclusion). Colleen will be greatly missed, but her legacy will live on forever.
Joseph Ferguson
I was shocked and deeply saddened to learn about Colleen’s passing on Wednesday, 5 August. I first encountered about Colleen’s remarkable work long before we met at Deakin in 2012 – particularly her strong advocacy for gender equity in mathematics education through a feminist lens. Her words stay with me “Feminists simply did not accept that males were innately better at and more interested in mathematics than females or that mathematics was a male domain” (Forgasz & Rivera (Eds), 2012, p.145). That statement captures everything Colleen stood for – her belief that mathematics is for everyone.
Working alongside Colleen is a gift. I deeply admire her wit, her fairness, and her generosity as a mentor. Colleen and I were fortunate to participate in the International Math-teacher Professionalization Using Lesson Study (IMPULS) program hosted by Tokyo Gakugei University in 2012. I treasure a lovely photo of Colleen from our time in Japan. Working alongside Susie and Brian, Colleen brought warmth and rigour to everything she did. Her inclusive approach made everyone around her feel valued and capable.
Colleen’s vision and leadership shaped the mathematics education community nationally and internationally. She founded the Mathematical Reasoning Research Group (MaRG) at Deakin, which later grew into the Australian Academy of Science project on Assessing Reasoning. Even when facing illness, her leadership never wavered- she guided us with such strength that we continued to publish many articles from the project.
After moving to Monash, Colleen remained deeply committed to support our research community. Over the past four years, collaborating with Colleen on our ARC project has been a genuine gift. She had a remarkable ability to inspire those around her.
Colleen’s legacy extends far beyond publications and projects. She leaves us with a vision that mathematics education can be both inclusive and rigorous. Her intellectual generosity, her scholarship, and her genuine care for her colleagues will continue to inspire us.
Rest in peace Colleen. We will always miss you and carry your inspiration forward.
Our heartfelt thoughts are with Colleen’s partner Marg, and her family during this difficult time.
Wanty Widjaja
It was heartbreaking for me to learn of Colleen’s passing on 5 August. It has taken me some time to come to terms with this sad news and to find the words to honour someone who meant so much to many of us. I came to know Colleen after she had left Deakin and moved to Monash, and I feel deeply fortunate that our paths crossed. I first had the pleasure of working with Colleen, Mandi and colleagues on an ARC Discovery application on teacher expertise in interdisciplinary science and mathematics teaching. It took us two attempts, but I still remember Colleen’s persistence, optimism and determination. Although the first attempt did not get us over the line, Colleen and Mandi had already begun piloting two lesson sequences with teachers they had worked with, creating the strong foundation that helped make the second application successful. Over the next four to five years, I had the privilege of working closely with Colleen in designing and conducting teacher professional learning workshops, doing research and working on writing together. Through this work, she inspired me to think differently about mathematics and mathematics teaching, often by inviting me to see learning through the eyes of students. Even through illness, Colleen continued to share her wisdom, generosity and encouragement with those around her. Her deep commitment to mathematics education will remain with us for years to come, through the teachers, researchers, students and colleagues she inspired.
To Colleen’s family, I offer my deepest condolences and my heartfelt gratitude for the life, work and generosity she shared with so many of us.
I was deeply saddened to hear of Colleen’s passing. We connected through our shared interest in research on teaching out-of-field, and I always valued her thoughtful and considered approach to the work.
Colleen brought an important voice to the field, representing both mathematics and women scholars with insight and conviction. I remember with a smile that she had named her chickens after famous women scientists.
My sincerest condolences to Colleen’s family, friends, and all those who had the privilege of working with her. She made a meaningful contribution to our field and will be greatly missed.
Losing a colleague is always hard, particularly one who has contributed so much, and continues to contribute to the field. I was saddened to hear of Colleen’s passing, although was aware she’d had significant challenges these last few years. I interacted with Colleen through some of our significant professional learning projects at Deakin, and valued her energy, professionalism and sense of humour. She was someone around which things were always happening. It was disappointing to lose her to Monash, but the upside was the continuing of research relations with our team, again on significant projects.
Colleen was a significant voice in mathematics education and her passing is a loss to our community.