Suzanne Wilson Named Curriculum and Instruction Department Head

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Suzanne Wilson shares insights with Neag School doctoral students. (Photo credit: Shawn Kornegay)

Neag Endowed Professor of Teacher Education and AERA Fellow Suzanne M. Wilson has been named head of the Department of Curriculum and Instruction (EDCI) at the Neag School. She takes over for Mary Anne Doyle, who served as department head for 17 years and returned to a faculty role to focus on literacy research.

Wilson, who arrived at the Neag School in 2013 from Michigan State University, was one of 17 new faculty members recruited to the Neag School as part of the University of Connecticut’s ambitious hiring plan.

“I’m filling big shoes, taking over for Dr. Doyle,” says Wilson. “During her tenure, she built a strong department, and I’ll be building on those strengths and taking advantage of the good work that’s been done before.”

In addition to being a University Distinguished Professor at Michigan State University (MSU), Wilson also previously served as chair for MSU’s Department of Teacher Education, where she was a faculty member for 26 years. While at Michigan State, she raised millions of dollars for grants with colleagues. Most notable was a $2.5 million National Science Foundation grant for a research project with the American Museum of Natural History. When she arrived at the Neag School, she secured a grant for another $2.9 million for a project focused on moving the Next Generation of Science Standards into practice, along with several other grants to study mathematics and science teacher learning in early career and professional development programs. She will continue her grant work for another two years and wrap up a book she has been working on about teacher preparation.

“We are excited to have someone with Dr. Suzanne Wilson’s national prominence and insightful perspectives on education join the Neag School of Education leadership team,” says Del Siegle, Neag School associate dean for research and faculty affairs. “Her appointment to department head benefits the entire School, in addition to the Department of Curriculum and Instruction.”

“One mission of the University is service, and being a department chair allows you to support faculty in pursuing their interests while also working on program development and new research and/or outreach collaborations.” —Suzanne M. Wilson

Wilson’s Vision
Wilson says she sees the role of department chair as institutional and professional service. “One mission of the University is service, and being a department chair allows you to support faculty in pursuing their interests while also working on program development and new research and/or outreach collaborations,” she says.

Using her experience leading a large department at MSU, Wilson says she will work to advance the Neag School’s strategic plan, including continuing the substantial faculty-led revisions of the Teacher Preparation Program, and work focused on equity and social justice, STEM initiatives, creativity and innovation, and educator quality.

“UConn has a very highly regarded teacher education program, so my experiences being supportive of faculty and staff, and working toward having strong teacher preparation, will hopefully help,” she says.

Wilson’s concept of leadership focuses on enabling the work of others. “I’ll be trying to nurture a departmental culture,” she says, “that is attracting, exciting, and supportive, and a home for students — doctoral, master’s, and undergraduates — and faculty alike.”

Since arriving at the Neag School, Wilson says she has enjoyed getting to know the faculty — long-time and newer additions— and developing cross-generational relationships. “A lot of the new faculty come from different backgrounds and perspectives, and learning from them is very exciting and invigorating,” she says.

Wilson says she looks forward hearing from EDCI faculty and students, and learning about their interests and concerns. She also notes the importance of keeping an eye on the political, intellectual, and economic environment, and anticipates helping the department think about new kinds of programs and services that respond to pressing needs in public education. “I’ll be looking at how we can develop programs and resources that are relevant and appealing to the larger Connecticut public to whom we’re responsible,” she says.

Wilson earned her Ph.D. in education and her master of science degree in statistics from Stanford University, and her bachelor degree in American history and civilization from Brown University.

Taking a Step Forward: The Impact of Privilege in the Classroom

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Editor’s Note: Neag School alumna Jennifer Lanese ’94 (ED), ’95 MA authors this original piece, reflecting on the meaning of privilege, its impact in the classroom, and how educators can work toward fostering a culturally competent learning environment for their students. Lanese, an English teacher at Hall High School in West Hartford, Conn., was recognized as Teacher of the Year by the West Hartford Board of Education in 2015.

 “If your family ever had to choose between paying for medical care or buying food, take a step backward.”

“If you have ever been catcalled, whistled at, or sexually harassed, take a step backward.”

“If your school is closed during your major religious holidays, take a step forward.”

“If you can shop in a store and never have to worry about being followed by an employee or security guard, take a step forward.”

Jennifer Lanese
Neag School alumna Jennifer Lanese ’94 (ED), ’95 MA is an English teacher at Hall High School in West Hartford, Conn.

On this bright fall morning, we stand side-by-side in a line on a field at YMCA Camp Jewell, a handful of high school teachers with almost 100 of our students. In front of us stand the dynamic and earnest youth program directors employed by the National Conference for Community and Justice (NCCJ), who are reading these statements to us and watching our reactions as we take our steps away from the starting line. At the far end of the field is “the prize”: this year, an oversized chocolate bar that makes the young people groan with excitement. After 20 minutes of moving forward and backward, falling into our memories of our life experiences thus far, some of us are within arm’s reach of the finish line and its tempting reward, while others are so far back into the edge of the woods as to be almost hidden from view.

This activity is commonly referred to as the “Privilege Walk.” Each year for the past decade, I have had the good fortune to participate alongside my students in this powerful community-building and eye-opening experience. Each year, I am reminded of my place in our society. Each year, I am impressed by the willingness of the young people around me to be honest and vulnerable in front of their peers. Each year, after our thoughtful and emotional debrief on this activity and its meaning, I am humbled, I am grateful, and I am re-energized about taking what I’ve learned back to my classroom.

As a teacher, I feel a responsibility to consider my students’ privileges — or, conversely, the ways in which they may be marginalized — and to determine ways to reconcile this with what and how we learn in our high school English classroom.

So many of life’s circumstances are influenced by what seem like flukes: the randomness of our genetics and our geography. As a white, Christian, middle-class, middle-aged, cisgendered citizen currently in good health, I have so many privileges and so many opportunities to accrue and to exercise my social power. As a woman, and more specifically as a lesbian, there are times when I feel my position on the hierarchy slip. As a teacher, I feel a responsibility to consider my students’ privileges — or, conversely, the ways in which they may be marginalized — and to determine ways to reconcile this with what and how we learn in our high school English classroom.

Recently, we have been calling this idea “cultural competence”: According to the National Education Association, this means “having an awareness of one’s own cultural identity and views about difference, and the ability to learn and build on the varying cultural and community norms of students and their families. It is the ability to understand the within-group differences that make each student unique, while celebrating the between-group variations that make our country a tapestry.”

For some teachers, this is instinct. For others, it must be learned and practiced. For me, and perhaps for many of you, it’s both. In the classroom, I almost always say “family” instead of using the words “Mom” or “Dad.” I work on quickly and consistently using a student’s preferred pronouns. I address the class as “folks” or “friends,” instead of “guys” or “kids.” I offer ways for students to bring their prior knowledge and life experiences into their writing and into their interpretations of our readings. I unabashedly steal great community-building ideas from my colleagues and try to implement them authentically. But these are broad and general practices, and my classroom does not yet reflect the truly culturally competent learning environment that I and my students long for.

Among my many other privileges, I have the privilege of being the person whose name is on a classroom door, and I proudly own all of the responsibilities and opportunities that come along with that. This year, I am recommitting myself to improving my cultural competence within the classroom, both in planning and in instruction. I recommit myself to seeing the young people in front of me for where and who they are at this point in time, and to letting that guide me. I recommit myself to my profession and to my students, both of which never cease to inspire and challenge me. Together, I know that we can all find ways to keep taking a step forward.

Personalizing Learning in Every Classroom: A Case for Implementing the Schoolwide Enrichment Model

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Editor’s Note: The following was originally written and published by Blane McCann, superintendent of Westside Community Schools in Omaha, Neb., on his blog.

I recently attended the 40th anniversary of Confratute, sponsored by University of Connecticut’s Neag School of Education. This was the eighth or ninth time I have attended this very special event. As described by founders Joe Renzulli and Sally Reis, the event is a hybrid of a conference, institute and fraternity, or a “Confratutue.”

At each event, I learn so much that I am able to use in my daily work. The following is my reflection of my time learning over the years at Confratutue and the fact that I believe that all teachers must treat all kids as gifted students because they all learn in their own ways.

Group photo of Blane McCann with students
Superintendent Blane McCann, a longtime Confratute attendee, shares his experiences implementing Joseph Renzulli’s Schoolwide Enrichment Model in his school district. (Photo Courtesy of Blane McCann)

Consider the notion that any student with a commitment to learning is gifted. It is not only intelligence that plays a role, but also creativity and commitment. Giftedness is not just a test score.

How many students have we, as educators, seen who did not have a test score to qualify for a gifted program, but became an expert in an area of passion and interest? I’ve personally seen hundreds of students. I remember one learner vividly who I knew would become a meteorologist. Today, he is considered an expert on the weather of the Great Lakes region and is sharing his research at the University of Wisconsin-Madison with the National Weather Service. Task commitment can take students places they never thought possible.

Consider the notion that any student with a commitment to learning is gifted. It is not only intelligence that plays a role, but also creativity and commitment. Giftedness is not just a test score.

This broader definition of giftedness is one I learned from Dr. Joseph Renzulli, a longtime professor of educational psychology at the University of Connecticut, for whom the Renzulli Center for Creativity, Gifted Education, and Talent Development is named. I met Renzulli at a conference in 1996 and in the more than 20 years since, I have worked in three school districts as a building principal and superintendent, collaborating with him to apply his pioneering ideas about giftedness and personalized learning approaches in PK-12 settings.

Implementing change in public education is not easy. Renzulli understands this. He himself encouraged me to embrace the vulnerability I felt and he provided me with the courage needed to make changes based on what my students wanted and needed to be successful. I was able to help teachers see how student agency and student engagement could be improved along with their test scores. We built a school culture focused on learning and engagement for all students. I observed changes with our teachers as they implemented these practices in their regular education classroom. They took into consideration students’ interests and allowed for more student voice and choice as well as flexibility in their classrooms because they facilitated an enrichment cluster.

In working as superintendent of Westside Community Schools in Omaha, Neb., I wanted to put the joy and wonder back into learning after decades of high-stakes testing had sucked the joy from our classrooms. So I asked our staff the question: What if we could personalize learning for all kids in all classrooms?

Another of Renzulli’s principles — the Schoolwide Enrichment Model (SEM) — serves as an entry point for schools that want to do just this. I want all kids to be able to follow their passions and interests every day. Every one of them could be “gifted” if we could find ways to engage them in their learning. As I learned about personalized learning, I quickly saw the connection to SEM to this evolution of learning.

Students working with robots
“I wanted to put the joy and wonder back into learning after decades of high stakes testing had sucked the joy from our classrooms,” says McCann. (Photo courtesy of Blane McCann)

What connections did I make? First, students identify their interests and passions through a survey. Next, SEM is about student ownership of their learning. In a SEM cluster, students drive their learning with the help of the cluster facilitator. Additionally, teachers do not create a lesson plan prior to the cluster meeting but help student determine their own learning path through class discussions, which allows students to choose different learning paths.

From my 20 years of experience with SEM and now personalized learning, my colleague and I have identified five elements to personalize learning. Those elements are:

  1. Know your Students;
  2. Voice and Choice;
  3. Flexible Groups, Spaces and Mindsets;
  4. Data Informed; and
  5. Technology Support.

A teacher must know their students well before they can teach them. A teacher who knows their students well can allow for more voice and choice because they know their interests and their capacities to learn and work. Once students find their voice and make learning choices a teacher becomes more flexible. I had a teacher tell me she was letting go of deadlines because students wanted to make sure they submitted their best work and needed more time.

Data is used to inform our work with individual students. This data is critical for a teacher to map out a learning pathway that is personalized based on student needs, which can extend learning or help relearn content.

Finally, Westside Community Schools is a 1:1 learning environment. Our teachers enhance learning by using technology such as iPads and MacBook Air computers in our classrooms. We do this because we want our students to create personalized content and use individualized applications while they work at their own pace to master our standards and benchmarks through a personalized learning approach.

In working as superintendent of Westside Community Schools in Omaha, Neb., I wanted to put the joy and wonder back into learning after decades of high-stakes testing had sucked the joy from our classrooms. So I asked our staff the question: What if we could personalize learning for all kids in all classrooms?

Yes, I experienced many obstacles and barriers to building this culture. Most issues are about control and trust. We alleviate those issues by focusing on our district’s standards and benchmarks. However, I would hear comments such as “We don’t have time to implement this framework” and staff told me “The cluster did not exactly follow the curriculum” or “Students will miss critical learning time.” I explained that students would be applying district standards in many different, but authentic ways. In each district where I worked, the staff and I altered the daily schedule to accommodate student learning that allowed for this type of deep learning.

Students at Westside Community Schools in Omaha, Neb.
Nine of 10 Westside elementary elementary schools, and its middle school, have implemented SEM. (Photo Courtesy of Blane McCann)

The results we now are seeing are definitely worth the journey. Our current results are measured with not only test scores but with engagement, with voice and choice, and with student ownership for their learning. At Westside Community Schools, reading scores are improving, and fewer students are in need of remediation. Further, our Gallup student and staff engagement scores are on the rise, demonstrating that people enjoy the teaching and learning that takes place in our classrooms.

I have seen similar results every time I have implemented these types of learning approaches. For instance, we first implemented SEM in our middle school in 1997. At John Bullen Accelerated Middle School in Kenosha, Wis., I observed an increase in student ownership for learning as well as an increase in student attendance and a decrease in poor student behavior. Achievement gaps closed. Student achievement increased. Students seemed to see the relevance in the subject matter based on their interests. Most importantly, students’ academic confidence grew. They knew they would accomplish their learning goals, especially disadvantaged students who are rarely given an opportunity to experience learning in this manner. SEM leveled the playing field.

Today, Westside has nine of 10 elementary schools and our middle school implementing SEM. In addition, our high school, with the help of a U.S. Department of Labor grant, is implementing a version of SEM through our Center for Professional Studies (CAPS) and other academic departments, such as business, where high school students operate and manage the Colosseum, our school apparel store. All of these students participate in a variety of meaningful, real-world learning opportunities, such as job shadows and meaningful internships.

One group of students recently took part in a CAPS project focused on designing and building a circulation desk using recycled materials from a historic district elementary school that was recently torn down to make room for a brand-new school. One of those students became so engaged that he is now pursuing a major in architecture this fall at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln. His excitement and engagement is off the charts, thanks to his involvement in this project.

I strongly urge other educational leaders to consider making this journey. I was able to transform the middle school where I was principal in a two- to three-year period. At Westside, the district is making tremendous progress with staff to transform learning for all students in four short years. It can be done.

Today, with the emphasis on personalizing learning for every student, SEM is a perfect entry to explore and help staff feel comfortable relinquishing classroom control and begin to trust their students. It is my sincere belief that if you commit to this journey that like my former student, it will take your learners places you never thought they could go.

 

This piece has been republished with permission. To view the original piece, visit Superintendent McCann’s blog. Follow him on Twitter @BlaneMcCann. Learn more about Confratute at confratute.uconn.edu. 

Higher Education and Student Affairs Names New Program Director

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Kari B. Taylor headshot
Kari B. Taylor joins the Neag School as the Higher Education and Student Affairs program director. (Photo Credit: Shawn Kornegay/Neag School)

Editor’s Note: The following story was written by Meghan Farrell.

The Neag School’s Department of Educational Leadership welcomes Kari B. Taylor as the new program director for Higher Education and Student Affairs (HESA). She begins her new appointment as the HESA program director and as an assistant professor-in-residence on July 31.

Taylor joins the Neag School after most recently having earned her Ph.D. in higher education and student affairs at The Ohio State University (OSU), where she conducted research into the process of developmental growth among undergraduate and graduate students who participated in an international service-learning experience. Her dissertation focused on how a service-learning course helped students develop critical consciousness, which represents a complex way of making meaning of one’s self in relation to one’s social world. In her third year as a doctoral student, she received the Porterfield-Dickens Graduate Research Support Award in support of her dissertation research.

Rising Up the Ranks

Taylor’s interest in the learning and development of students in higher education was ignited during her second year as an undergraduate at the University of Missouri, where she served as a peer advisor for the Freshman Interest Groups, an immersive living-learning experience that creates cohesive communities where students study, take classes, and live together. At the time, Taylor, who majored in journalism and biological sciences, was also working for a local newspaper. While she enjoyed her work as a reporter, she says she always found herself eager to return to her advisees at the end of the day, ultimately prompting her to pursue graduate study in the realm of higher education and student affairs.

“[Kari] deeply cares about students and their development, which will make a meaningful contribution to the experience that our students have here.”

— Milagros Castillo-Montoya,
assistant professor and former interim HESA director

Going on to complete a master’s of science degree in college student personnel at Miami University in Oxford, Ohio, in 2006, Taylor began serving as assistant director for academic and co-curricular support at Miami University’s Honors and Academic Scholars programs. In this position, Taylor provided holistic advising for a large group of high-ability students; developed academic, social, and community service student programming; worked with the university’s Office of Residence Life to oversee the Honors Living Learning Community; and assisted in recruiting, training, and supervising instructors for the introductory honors seminar.

By 2011, she had been promoted to senior associate director, developing and supervising academic support policies and procedures for the university’s Honors Plan for Liberal Education, which allows honors students to meet general education requirements through an outcomes-based framework. She also supervised assistant directors; facilitated ongoing refinement of the program’s electronic portfolio process; and implemented training modules for academic advisors as chair of the professional development subcommittee of Miami’s Undergraduate Academic Advising Council.

It was this commitment to student learning and development that led Taylor to her Ph.D. program at OSU. Describing her work as “bringing passion to practice,” Taylor says she looks forward to being a heavily involved leader and mentor for the HESA program.

“I was drawn to the program at UConn because of the sense of community and the opportunity to work specifically with master’s students,” says Taylor, a native of Topeka, Kan. “I was very interested in the system of graduate assistantships and practicums that HESA offers, and am excited to assist graduate students in their development as educational leaders.”

Practitioner and Scholar

“We are excited to welcome Kari Taylor to the HESA program and to the department. She brings a blend of practitioner and scholarly experience with her, as well as a focus on issues of equity that will be a great fit,” says Jennifer McGarry, professor and head of the Department of Educational Leadership.

Taylor succeeds Neag School assistant professor Milagros Castillo-Montoya, who served as HESA’s interim director this past year.

“Kari brings expertise and experience that will be a strong value to the program,” says Castillo-Montoya. “She also deeply cares about students and their development, which will make a meaningful contribution to the experience that our students have here and the strong reputation we have as a program for supporting the development of higher education and student affairs administrators.”

Learn more about the Neag School’s HESA program at hesa.uconn.edu.  

40 Years of Confratute: The Legacy of Joseph Renzulli and Sally Reis

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You might presume that UConn’s main campus, tucked away in pastoral northeastern Connecticut, lay dormant over the summer months. Think again. Were you to peek into classrooms across campus in mid-July, you would be surprised to come across a few rather unusual sights:

… A Connecticut police officer enthralling a crowd of science teachers with real-life criminal cases as they learn how to dust for fingerprints and test for DNA evidence;

… Four young men presenting a lively spoken word performance, centered on improving education for economically disadvantaged students, to teachers and principals;

Student sitting in CSI class during Confratute 2017
Celebrating its 40th year this July, Confratute has drawn a total of more than 30,000 educators from around the world to the Storrs campus. (Photo Credit: Stefanie Dion Jones/Neag School)

… Educators from India, Italy, Brazil, Qatar, and Switzerland teaming up for a surprisingly entertaining math lesson led by the wittiest individual in the room, a sprightly octogenarian math whiz who liberally sprinkles her lecture with wisecracks.

These are just a few of the scenes you would catch at what is known as Confratute, an annual, weeklong event sponsored by the Renzulli Center for Giftedness, Creativity, and Talent Development at the University of Connecticut’s Neag School of Education. Arguably the most global initiative in all of UConn’s history, Confratute has, since 1978, drawn a total of more than 30,000 educators from around the world to the University’s Storrs campus to gain insight into research-based strategies intended to engage all types of students in learning.

“Confratute is a kind of gathering together of people who think there has got to be a different way — I would say a better way — of making schools more engaging, more enjoyable, and more exciting.”

— Board of Trustees Distinguished Professor
Joseph Renzulli

Celebrating its 40th anniversary this July, Confratute earlier this month brought together 600-plus educators from more than a dozen countries for nearly 50 sessions covering everything from how to incorporate CSI forensic science tactics into the classroom to creative storytelling using kinesthetics, music, and mime.

Students in a Forensics Science Lesson at Confratute 2017
Participants in a “CSI Forensics in the Classroom” Confratute session suit up for a lesson on testing for DNA evidence this July in Storrs. (Photo Credit: Shawn Kornegay/Neag School)

“Confratute is a kind of gathering together of people who think there has got to be a different way — I would say a better way — of making schools more engaging, more enjoyable, and more exciting,” says Board of Trustees Distinguished Professor Joseph Renzulli, a longtime educational psychology professor in the Neag School and Confratute’s co-founder.

Renzulli, after whom the Renzulli Center is named, established this “gathering” four decades ago with Board of Trustees Distinguished Professor and Letitia Neag Morgan Chair in Educational Psychology Sally Reis. From the outset, Renzulli says, he and Reis wanted to make it unlike any other professional development conference or training — and set out to create part conference, part institute, with “a great deal of fraternity in between.”

‘The Most Energizing Learning Experience I’ve Ever Had’
Early in his career, working as a middle-school math and science teacher in his home state of New Jersey, Renzulli says he found that many of his students were “smarter” than him. As a professor in higher education years later, he says he witnessed the same attribute in his doctoral students.

Student at Silk Screen Class at Confratute 2017
A Confratute attendee takes part in a session dedicated to silk screen printing on the Storrs campus this July. (Photo Credit: Shawn Kornegay/Neag School)

“Half of the doctoral students who come through the door are smarter than me,” he says. “So I can’t teach them everything that I know, but I can teach them how to develop an investigative and creative mindset — and that is what I did with [my middle-school students]; I got them involved in many different projects and hands-on activities.”

Keeping these early-career experiences in mind, Renzulli sought, in establishing Confratute, to share with educators a wealth of effective instructional approaches used in the field of gifted education — still a somewhat peripheral academic discipline 40 years ago — as well as to show how these approaches could be applied successfully across all types of students.

“At that time, most gifted education was all about acceleration and advanced courses covering material faster and in greater depth. I’ve never argued against that,” says Renzulli. “However, it did not promote the kinds of experiences I had as a teacher, where kids [of all levels] got interested in investigative projects.”

“The collaboration and synergies that happened over the course of the week were amazing. It is the most energizing learning experience I’ve ever had, both times I attended.”

— Karen Kraeger, elementary gifted specialist,
Cobb County (Ga.) Schools

The intention of Confratute was not to advocate for doing away with any school’s regular curriculum, he says, but to bring together teachers and help them find ways to “jazz up” curricula in a way that would appeal to students at all levels. Confratute, he hoped, would show educators how to make school the kind of place that encouraged students to pursue their personal interests. “Schools should be places for talent development,” he says.

And even beyond the end goal of engaging all students, Renzulli wants Confratute to engage all teachers. “If you don’t enjoy teaching, you’re not going to get engaged; you’re not going to enjoy the act of learning,” he says.

For Confratute devotees, the program structure, which invites attendees to take part in dedicated weeklong sessions that concentrate on active learning, helps set it apart from other professional development opportunities in the realm of education. In addition, a focus on the Schoolwide Enrichment Model, developed by Renzulli and Reis more than 30 years ago, helps participants plan how to implement enriching and engaging programs in their schools and districts.

“The weeklong format allows for extensive time to dig deeply into a topic for thorough explanation … enough time to have a paradigm shift,” says Karen Kraeger, an elementary gifted specialist for Cobb County Schools, located outside of Atlanta, who this summer attended Confratute for the second time.

Confratute 2017 Session on Integrating Arts and Creativity in Curriculum
Participants take part in a Confratute session this July focused on integrating the arts into the regular classroom curriculum. (Photo Credit: Stefanie Dion Jones/Neag School)

“The extended time allows a group of people to grow, bond, and develop into a community of learners focused on improving learning for students,” she adds. “The collaboration and synergies that happened over the course of the week were amazing. It is the most energizing learning experience I’ve ever had, both times I attended.”

“At a more traditional conference,” says Melissa Thom, a longtime Confratute instructor and library media specialist in West Hartford, Conn., “you get a short overview of many different topics each day and, after three to four days, one often leaves feeling energized, but overwhelmed with all the new ideas and unsure of how to actually make something happen.”

In contrast, she says, Confratute’s weeklong strands “enable participants to explore a topic of interest much more deeply. … They leave Confratute with a product and/or a plan for how to implement the new ideas in their educational situation in the fall. In addition, deeper relationships are developed among the educators in the strand due to the added time together spent learning and sharing.”

Not to mention “the combination of learning, teaching, socializing, networking, and overall feeling of collegiality” that she believes makes Confratute unique. Thom, who this summer led a session titled “Talent Development Opportunities in the Library Media Center,” has been participating in Confratute for nine years.

While this annual event has endured year after year with an ever-ardent following, the road to Renzulli and Reis sharing their innovative work certainly posed its own challenges along the way.

Changing the Definition of Giftedness
Renzulli, a pioneering force in the field of educational psychology, giftedness, and creativity for nearly half a century, has, in that time, helped change the face of gifted education. He is quick to admit that his viewpoint on gifted education “has always been a little bit different.” To him, intelligence and giftedness are not defined solely by test scores or high IQ, and all students should be given the opportunity to develop their gifted behaviors.

Educators partner on an exercise during Confratute 2017 session on Creative Math Curriculum
Educators partner on an exercise during a Confratute session this July titled “Creative Mathematics Curriculum,” taught by Neag School alumna Rachel McAnallen ’11 Ph.D. (Photo Credit: Stefanie Dion Jones/Neag School)

One of the major concepts he championed — and for which he was in fact criticized, early on — is the idea that educators can successfully apply teaching strategies used in gifted education to engage all students, in part by giving students freedom to choose the kinds of projects and topics they explore, based on their own personal interests.

“We believe that all students can benefit from enjoyable and challenging learning opportunities,” states Confratute’s website. “Learning is maximized when we consider each student’s abilities, interests, learning styles, and preferred modes of expression.”

Yet these perspectives were not always popular.

During Renzulli’s early years in academia, his ideas were rejected outright by his contemporaries, with one article he authored about his research receiving rejections from every major gifted education academic journal. Eventually, Phi Delta Kappan accepted the piece for publication in 1978; today, that article continues to stand as the most frequently cited publication in the field of gifted education.

“Prior to Joe’s work on the definition [of giftedness], most professional educators equated giftedness strictly with high IQ scores,” writes Thomas P. Hébert[1], a friend and former graduate student of Renzulli, now a professor of gifted education at the University of South Carolina. “Renzulli’s definition challenged this antiquated approach and enabled gifted ed programs to be open to children of poverty, children from bilingual backgrounds, and children of color.”

“It is unusual for innovative or revolutionary ideas to be easily accepted by most, especially at the beginning. People want to see proof that changing from the known will offer better outcomes,” says Kraeger, the two-time Confratute attendee. Renzulli “persevered with his ideas, putting them into practice and studying the outcomes. His ideas … are still as relevant and powerful today as they were initially. That is the sign of a truly transcendent thinker.”

“You leave Confratute with a network of like-minded individuals — a vital aspect in today’s educational world.”

— Melissa Thom, Confratute instructor

International Reach

Lesson during Confratute 2017 strand on Storytelling, Mime, and Movement
Confratute instructor Gail Herman, center, leads participants in an exercise during her “Storytelling, Mime, and Movement” session this July. (Photo Credit: Shawn Kornegay/Neag School)

Under Renzulli’s visionary leadership, perhaps it is no wonder, then, that Confratute stands out from the crowd. In taking an approach unlike other professional development programs in education, in following an unconventional format, in bringing together a cast of colorful and keenly dedicated instructors, and even in touting a name that resists convention, Confratute continues to unite educators far and wide.

“You leave Confratute with a network of like-minded individuals — a vital aspect in today’s educational world, where educators who believe education should be joyful can often feel alone and isolated,” says longtime instructor Thom.

“Where else can you spend a week with so many of the eminent thinkers in education?” Kraeger says. “It is an experience unlike any other, one that is not to be missed.”

Even through Confratute’s decades-long evolution, from a yearly “gathering” at the UConn Storrs campus to an event with remarkable international reach, Renzulli, now in his 80s, has remained front and center at Confratute — “a kind of little oasis for people,” according to Renzulli, who affectionately calls Confratute supporters “positive malcontents who want to make a difference in their schools.”

With a career that now spans a near half-century, Renzulli has traveled around the globe many times over to share his research. He has won many accolades, advised doctoral students who have gone on to become prestigious researchers and experts in their field, has obtained more than $50 million in research grants, and is widely recognized as one of the world’s most influential psychologists. But ask what Renzulli considers his greatest legacy of such a long and storied career, and it is clear where his passion lies.

“I’ve published hundreds of articles and dozens of books, but when people ask what I feel is my major contribution, I say Confratute,” he says. “I’ve been able to reach more kids and more teachers serving more kids in schools around the country and around the world. This is what the theme of Confratute is all about.”

Joseph Renzulli gives opening remarks at Confratute 2017
Joseph Renzulli gives opening remarks at Confratute 2017 this July. (Photo Credit: Shawn Kornegay/Neag School)

Watch the opening ceremony for 40th annual Confratute, with welcome remarks by Joseph Renzulli, Sally Reis, Education Commissioner Dianna Wentzell, and Dean Gladis Kersaint of the Neag School.

Read a blog post about personalized learning and the Schoolwide Enrichment Model, written by Superintendent Blane McCann of Omaha, Neb., a longtime Confratute attendee.

View the Confratute 2017 photo album. 

[1] Excerpt from a piece authored by Hébert and reprinted in Reflections on Gifted Education: Critical Works by Joseph S. Renzulli and Colleagues (Prufrock, 2016).