E.B. Kennelly School in Hartford, Conn., hosted the second annual “UConn Day” at the school on May 2, an event that included a schoolwide parade and a basketball game with students playing against the teachers and staff.

The Neag School of Education, UConn’s Department of English, and the Connecticut Writing Project (CWP) at UConn are proud to announce Connecticut’s winners of the 26th annual Letters About Literature competition, a nationwide contest sponsored by the Library of Congress for students in grades 4 through 12.

Among the 53 “DREAMers” who played instruments and sang on the Grammy-winning big-band album “American Dreamers (Voices of Hope, Music of Freedom)” is Jesús Cortés-Sanchez ’18 (ED, SFA), ’19 MA, an aspiring music teacher in the integrated bachelor’s/master’s program with the School of Fine Arts and the Neag School of Education.

When Jim Penders applied to replace the retiring Baylock in 2003, Penders told then-athletic director Jeff Hathaway that his goal was not to be a college baseball coach. He said it was to be the UConn baseball coach.And in the years since, Penders has not simply been a great coach at UConn. He has been a great UConn coach. There is a difference.

When Alexandra Eckhardt ’11 (CLAS, ED) was in elementary school her dad taught her to play Earth, Wind & Fire tunes on a four-string, junior-sized electric bass. He also taught her the acoustic bass because she loved low-noted instruments — but even the mini version was a stretch.

The Rome Commons Ballroom at UConn’s Storrs campus was filled on Saturday evening with Neag School of Education Alumni Board members; Neag School faculty, staff, and administrators; friends of the University; and guests honoring seven distinguished Neag School alumni at the School’s annual Alumni Awards Celebration.

Fellow faculty members, students, alumni, family, and friends last month joined Joseph N. Cooper, assistant professor of sport management in the Neag School, to celebrate his newly released book, From Exploitation Back to Empowerment: Black Male Holistic (Under)Development Through Sport and (Mis)Education (Peter Lang, 2019), inspired by his research on the intersection between sport, education, race, and culture and the impact of sport involvement on the holistic development of Black male athletes.

When Alexandra Eckhardt ’11 (ED, SFA) was in elementary school her dad taught her to play Earth, Wind & Fire tunes on a four-string, junior-sized electric bass. He also taught her the acoustic bass because she loved low-noted instruments — but even the mini version was a stretch.

Congratulations to our Neag School alumni, faculty, staff, and students on their continued accomplishments inside and outside the classroom. If you have an accolade to share, we want to hear from you! Please send any news items and story ideas to neag-communications@uconn.edu.

Alan Addley is in his 11th year as the superintendent of Granby (Conn.) Public Schools. A native of Northern Ireland, Addley started his career as a professional soccer player and mathematics teacher. He has 34 years of administrative and teaching experience in private and public schools in the United States and Ireland. Addley completed a Connecticut Superintendent Certificate through the Executive Leadership Program in 2007 and earned his Ed.D. in 2014, both at the Neag School.