Like most kids heading into seventh grade, Jesús Cortés-Sanchez was not yet thinking ahead to a future career. What mattered most then was enjoying time with his friends. Even into his high school years, the idea of going to college was not on his mind. An undocumented student ineligible to apply for federal student aid, he viewed college as an unrealistic, financially impossible feat.

All of that would start to change when a recent Yale School of Music graduate named John Miller began recruiting students to a new band program he had established at Cortés-Sanchez’s middle school in New Haven, Conn.

Students from the UConn ScHOLA2RS House Learning Community visited Washington, D.C. last week to attend events surrounding the Congressional Black Caucus Annual Legislative Conference. While there, they met with UConn alumni and Connecticut legislators at a special networking reception honoring the students and their supporters.

In Degrees of Change: UConn Increases Diversity in Teaching Programs, Enright states that “UConn and the Neag School of Education have made a concerted effort to increase their minority student population, with the long-term hope of closing the gap that exists now in classrooms.”

Congratulations to our Neag School alumni, faculty, staff, and students on their continued accomplishments inside and outside the classroom. 

Over 75 students entering grades 6, 7, and 8 participated in a free STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Math) enrichment program at NFA this summer. Guided by NFA faculty in collaboration with aspiring teachers from UConn’s Neag School of Education, the young students from Norwich and surrounding towns received a summer boost in their STEM education with hands-on learning to explore creative approaches to scientific questions, applying mathematics to modern day problems, and solving complex STEM problems, while having fun working in teams with new friends.

In affiliation with the Neag School’s Center for Education Policy Analysis (CEPA), a group of doctoral students in the Learning, Leadership, and Education Policy program have recently released three issue briefs, each of which offers a closer look at specific topics of discussion in the realm of education, as well as recommendations for the future.

They are among 59 students that took part in the Jack Kent Cooke’s Young Scholars program July 7-27, a national scholarship initiative for students in 8th through 12th grade who demonstrate exceptional academic abilities, unique talents, and persistence.

Undocumented children and families face unique challenges that can affect their schooling experience and require the attention and care of educators. Chelsea Connery ’13 (ED), ’14 MA, a former public school teacher and now a Neag School doctoral student in the Learning, Leadership, and Education Policy program, prepared the following issue brief — in affiliation with the Center for Education Policy Analysis (CEPA) — about the impact of undocumented status on children’s learning. 

Podcasts often succeed because they convey authenticity and use vulnerability to create a sense of intimacy with the listener. They also find ways to make sometimes-abstract concepts feel relevant, often by using storytelling techniques. There’s a hook in the beginning, usually the story of a person. “It builds empathy and humanity,” say Kristi Kaeppel, a graduate assistant in the department of educational leadership at UConn.

It’s not often that a student who dropped out of high school goes on to pursue a Ph.D., but that’s the story of Neag School of Education doctoral student Kristi Kaeppel. Kaeppel, who studies Adult Learning in the Learning, Leadership, and Educational Policy program, runs a blog called “That Wasn’t on the Syllabus” for the Graduate Certificate in College Instruction program as a graduate assistant. Her blog posts on college education trends and issues included one very personal to her experience: “What Being a High School Dropout Taught Me about Teaching.”