Carol Ann Tomlinson's career as an educator includes 21 years as a public school teacher of a differentiated classroom. For 12 years she served as a program administrator of special services for struggling and advanced learners. She was Virginia's Teacher of the Year in 1974.

More recently, she has been a faculty member at the University of Virginia's Curry School of Education, where she is currently professor of educational leadership, foundations, and policy and codirector of the university's Summer Institute on Academic Diversity and Best Practices Institutes. She was named Outstanding Professor in 2004.

Tomlinson is the author of more than 200 articles, book chapters, books, and other professional development materials.