“As in STEM fields – STEM education continues to present as a strong job market,” says David Moss, an associate professor in the Neag School of Education. “In the STEM fields the market appears strong across the spectrum of education – that is, post-secondary technical trading, 4-year degree graduates, as well as those with advanced all, face way better than average job prospects.”

To Miguel Cardona, it’s not “oh pobrecitos” — “oh poor them” — said Richard Gonzales, an associate professor in residence at the University of Connecticut’s Neag School of Education who has worked closely with Cardona on principal preparation initiatives. “No, no, no. We will serve them as well as possible, and we will ask them to do their part, and they will rise because they’re very capable.”

Connecting these school scenarios and Trump’s behaviors is not intended to contribute to the ever-mounting list of recommended consequences that could result from his fueling the insurrection that our nation has just experienced. It does bear noting, however, that if Trump were a Black teenager, he most certainly would have received exclusionary disciplinary action such as suspension and perhaps even expulsion from school.

Meriden is where Miguel Cardona — President-elect Joe Biden’s pick to become the next U.S. education secretary — grew up and spent 21 years of his 23-year career as an educator. And his experiences there — his battles and the district’s successes — will likely be front-of-mind as he coordinates policy for all the public schools in the country.

What Miguel Cardona, 45, lacks in years of leadership, Robert Villanova and others said he makes up for in his ability to work with teachers on often-contentious issues, from evaluation to lengthening the school day. During the vetting process for U.S. education secretary, Cardona “must have been able to tell a dozen stories about how he was able to connect conflicting points of view and come out with a better solution,” Villanova said.

Education Week (Neag School alumnus and the U.S. Secretary of Education nominee Miguel Cardona is profiled)

Under the guidance of Mansfield teacher and Neag School alumna Madison Corlett, grade four students who are learning remotely this year have engaged in a series of “passion” projects, including the gift card fundraiser. With a goal to raise $5,000, this group of students, representing all three Mansfield elementary schools, launched a Go Fund Me page, setting a goal to help local businesses who they had heard were struggling as a result of COVID-19

Supporting the rule of law by holding officials accountable, constructing an accurate account of the recent past, and recommitting to human rights at home are essential to restoring the confidence in government that underlies our shared national life. Such work can help create a new sense of community, which is a fundamental aspect of a healthy democracy.

“I don’t necessarily like to use this term in public, but … we have a generation of digital natives who are also digital doofuses,” said Don Leu, in a 2006 interview about his digital literacy research findings. “They are natives when it comes to video, social networks, and texting, but they are doofuses when it comes to information. They do not know how to locate information or evaluate information, and they do not know how to communicate information in a richer context beyond text messaging.”

Meriden Record-Journal (Richard Schwab is quoted about Miguel Cardona’s nomination for the U.S. Education Secretary)