New Leadership to Implement Neag School’s Ambitious Academic Vision

Posted on August 7, 2014February 17, 2023 by

Group IMG_0214B&W_web It wasn’t a desire for prestige that motivated Richard Schwab, Ph.D., to accept a second appointment as dean of UConn’s Neag School of Education for the next two years. It was a “passionate” desire to help the school achieve its ambitious academic vision, take the school and University to new heights, and to work with what he believes may be the most talented team of leaders and faculty the Neag School has ever had in place. “It’s more than a job to me,” said Schwab, who first served as dean from 1997-2009. His re-appointment this year makes him the longest-serving dean in the history of the school and the only alum to hold the position.

“I passionately believe in UConn, our leadership team, the faculty we have on board, and the mission we’ve put together,” he said. Outlined in the Neag School’s “Our Time: UConn’s Path to Excellence” academic plan, that mission includes being a state, national and global leader in how teachers are taught, as well as how educational policies and teaching methods are developed and implemented. Created by a diverse, multifaceted team consisting of Neag School administrators, staff, faculty and students, the plan outlines how UConn is uniquely positioned to use its expertise and knowledge base to address state and federal efforts to reinvent public education for the 21st century and address the educational inequalities that President Barack Obama calls “the civil rights issue of our time.” The plan also shows the many opportunities that exist for external funding, research, and collaboration with scholars not just from UConn, but from other universities around the nation and world, such as what occurs through UConn’s membership in Universitas 21, an international network of 21 leading research-intensive universities in 13 countries. It also shines a spotlight on four areas of research strength and scholarship that particularly position the Neag School and UConn as a global leader in education, including:

Equity and social justice
STEM education
Creativity and innovation
Educator quality and effectiveness

Actualizing these goals is Schwab’s top priority.

Schwab_headshot-for-web-256x300 “Education is at the heart of all the of the goals outlined in the University’s strategic plan, because education is at the heart of every job performed in this country,” said Schwab, who chaired the university-wide Academic Vision Committee that designed and produced UConn’s five-year strategic plan. “Without the best educators, we don’t have the best lawyers, engineers or policy makers. Even more fundamental than that, if we don’t have effective, vibrant K-12 teachers, we don’t have vibrant students who believe in their abilities, want to go on to college and make a difference in the world. So ensuring that the Neag School jumpstarts and actualizes its plan is my top priority.”

Among those working with Schwab to, ultimately, improve the way students learn is a team of new and existing faculty members brought together as part of an ambitious hiring plan launched in 2012 by UConn President Susan Herbst. Tasked with re-envisioning how both the Neag School and scholars in the field of education can best improve educational practices and policies, that team includes 17 new faculty members—all of them proven or emerging leaders in their areas of expertise—working alongside already exemplary, existing faculty members.

Included within this highly energized and committed group are experts in school change, education equity and access, large-scale measurement and evaluation, STEM education, and educator preparation. And for Melinda George, president of the Washington, D.C.-based National Commission on Teaching & America’s Future, there is no person better than Schwab to lead them.

“The Neag School is so fortunate to have Dr. Schwab return as dean, and I have no doubt his leadership will bring the school to the next level,” George said. “His vision for teacher preparation is one that is modern, effective and needed. He understands not only what is needed on a university campus, but also the current environments that his students will enter as novice teachers. He is building a program that will graduate teacher leaders—new teachers ready to address the challenges of a 21^st century education, and who will make a huge difference in the lives of future students.”

That understanding George refers to comes from Schwab’s more than 40 years in education, which started as an eighth-grade history teacher in Chelmsford, Mass., after earning a bachelor’s degree from Boston University. Earning master’s and doctorate degrees from UConn followed, as did 10 years serving on the education faculty at the University of New Hampshire. He spent the next eight years at Drake University in Iowa, where he served three years as head of its Department of Educational Administration, and then five as dean of the School of Education. In 1997, he returned to his alma mater to serve as dean of the Neag School of Education, where he remained until returning to the classroom in 2009. He was later invested as a Raymond Neag Endowed Professor of Educational Leadership in 2012 in recognition for his leadership and dedication to the Neag School.

This past July, he returned as dean to lead the Neag School in implementing its strategic academic plan, which aligns imperatives related to diversity, equity, access, and public engagement with those established at the state level by Connecticut Gov. Dannel Malloy and at the national level by President Barack Obama.

Someone who has known Schwab for over 10 years has high regards for his ability to take the Neag School to the next level. “I met him when he first came to the Neag School of Education and for all the time during which he was in a leadership position at Neag,” said Dr. Joseph J. Cirasuolo, executive director of the CT Association of Public School Superintendents. “I was continually impressed with his knowledge of what it takes to prepare educators for teaching and/or leadership positions and his ability to put that knowledge into practice in the policies and program offered by Neag. I am very pleased that he is back in a leadership position at Neag. Given what he has done in the past, I am confident that Dr. Schwab will make major contributions.”

Cirasuolo sees Schwab as a leader catalyst for efforts to build upon an already strong Neag program so that it becomes what is known that preparation programs need to be. “They need to be programs that credential participants not based on the number of courses that are passed but instead on demonstration of the competencies that are needed to be successful educators and educator leaders.”

“What Neag will become under Dr. Schwab’s leadership will make the school a national beacon for educator preparation programs,” he said. “I am excited about what is about to happen at Neag under Dr. Schwab’s leadership and I look forward to working with him.”

Like the academic plan, Schwab stresses his belief in the necessity of developing children’s and adult’s critical thinking skills, creativity and desire for innovation, along with ways for them to access information that will allow them to make informed decisions about themselves and their communities.

“As someone who received a scholarship from UConn as a graduate student, the chance to give back to the school in this way is a great honor,” Schwab said, adding that he hopes to accomplish many things during his tenure. “I’d like to see us steadily increase the quality and amount of research we do. I’d like to see that we’ve increased the number and academic qualifications of our graduate students. I’d like to see that we’ve created new, vibrant undergraduate minors and interdisciplinary programs that allow students from other areas of the University to grow and benefit from our expertise. I’d like to see our rankings continue to rise.”

UConn’s Neag School of Education is currently ranked as the #1 public graduate school of education in the Northeast, and within the top 10 percent of all graduate schools of education in the United States. U.S. News & World Report ranks the Neag School #33 among private and public education schools, as well as ranks three of its programs among the nation’s top 25: Special Education (#12), Educational Psychology (#16), and Secondary Teacher Education (#18).

Widely-known and well-respected for its professional education programs across all departments, including preparing highly sought-after sport management professionals, the Neag School’s rankings and reputation were part of the reason it was selected to join the prestigious Carnegie Corporation Teachers for a New Era network. Schwab predicts more great things to come.

Casey C web The leadership team of new Associate Dean Casey D. Cobb, PhD, and Associate Dean for Research Sandra M. Chafouleas, PhD, are part of the reason why. Cobb takes over for Marijke Kehrhahn, Ph.D. who returned to faculty, to pursue a research agenda in adult education.

“The opportunity to work closely with such bright, talented people that share a common vision, and possess skills that in some cases you don’t have, makes you and your work stronger,” said Schwab, who for 12 years taught for the American Association of Colleges of Teacher Education‘s New Deans Institute. He’s also past president of AACTE’s Connecticut chapter. “One of our goals during the next couple of years is to make all of us better, me included. In some way, all of us can be mentors to each other.”

Setting internal benchmarks and assigning accountability will be key parts of that process, Cobb said.

“My top priority is to serve our faculty and students and to support them in ways that allow them to do their best work,” continued Cobb, who accepted his new role after four years serving a department head of Educational Leadership. It was a challenge and opportunity to have an even greater influence on the Neag School. “I plan on becoming acclimated to the new position by learning all about the good work being done by our faculty and academic programs school-wide. I want to be able to make a difference and enhance Neag’s standing worldwide, as well as locally in our own state.”

The Neag School’s Academic Plan also matches Cobb’s professional interests and background, in particular in regard to the expansion of the Neag School’s Center for Education Policy Analysis into a world-class research center. “The other strategic area that especially excites me is our desire to promote social justice and educational equity through our programs, practices, and scholarship. I would like Neag to take the lead in developing a ‘social tech park,’ which is an idea named in UConn’s Academic Vision.”

Plans to increase the number of full-time graduate assistantships in doctoral programs, develop a coordinated outreach strategy and promote the “fantastic work” of faculty, staff, and students also excites him: “I want to help the Neag School grow in areas where we have burgeoning expertise and can make a real difference in our world.”

Sandy C web Chafouleas, whose role is a new position, has a similarly impressive agenda, beginning with leading the Neag School’s research enterprises and efforts to maintain organizational accountability. “My top priorities include enacting the Academic Plan in relation to research and scholarly productivity. This means working to strengthen the research infrastructure, including both pre- and post-awards and faculty development.”

“I’ll be focusing on building the research infrastructure and associated operational procedures, so all can efficiently understand and work with our systems,” Chafouleas continued. “I would like to end the first year with a good start building the infrastructure and operational procedures, as well as have clearly articulated goals to be accomplished over a three- to five-year period.”

Chafouleas said she accepted the associate dean for research position to be part of this “very exciting, yet very important,” time at UConn. She believes her expertise matches the Neag School’s and University’s ambitious plans for growth and achievement. “Given my prior role as associate dean of The Graduate School at UConn, I have good understanding as to how Neag can play critical roles in facilitating the success of the University Academic Plan, particularly with research and scholarship,” she said.

Even while at The Graduate School, Chafouleas served as a faculty researcher at the Neag School, overseeing projects funded by more than $6 million from the Institute of Education Sciences, along with additional proposals.

“It’s important to me personally to see the outcomes related to research infrastructure and growth realized,” added Chafouleas, who will continue her work as a research scientist with the Center for Behavioral Education and Research in addition to advancing the Neag’s School’s priorities.

“We are excited to be working together to do whatever is needed to accomplish the vision,” Chafouleas added. “We collaborate to set smart goals, we divvy up the work and then attack it. As Dean Schwab said, our focus is to move in one direction.”

Linda Darling-Hammond, Stanford University’s Charles E. Ducommun Professor of Education and co-director of the Stanford Center for Opportunity Policy in Education, has no doubt it will happen.

“Richard Schwab is highly respected across the country for his contributions to teacher education research and reform efforts, as well as for his success in leading implementation of the new and rigorous programs,” said Darling-Hammond said. “I expect his strategic vision will elevate the Neag School of Education to new heights and positively influence education reform and policy both in Connecticut and nationwide for years to come.”

UConn Joins National Program to Recruit Minority Male Teachers

Posted on August 5, 2014December 31, 2020 by

Mark Jenkins Jr. ’13 (CLAS), ’14 MA speaks at a Neag School of Education event about the importance of having minority teachers in the classroom to inspire students. (Photo courtesy of Neag School of Education)

The Neag School of Education at UConn has been selected to participate in a national program aimed at recruiting more black and Hispanic men into teacher preparation programs.

UConn is among 10 universities from the 800-member American Association of Colleges for Teacher Education (AACTE) selected to participate in the organization’s first Networked Improvement Community project, which seeks to increase the diversity of the nation’s teacher candidate pool.

According to data collected by AACTE, 80 percent of PK-12 teachers are white, middle-class women, and more than 40 percent of public schools have no teachers of color at all. Studies by the National Center for Education Statistics report that 2 percent of public school teachers are black males and fewer are Hispanic males.

Saroja Barnes, senior director for professional issues at AACTE, says universities were selected for the program based on great diversity within the school districts and community they serve, alignment of the project’s goals to the existing strategic initiatives and mission of the institution, and strategic attention to enrollment trends.

“AACTE is committed to working with our members to support innovative practices and the dissemination of those practices to the larger professional community,” says Barnes. “Our goal is to ensure the innovations that emerge from the work of this small group will be shared with the entire AACTE membership.”

Dean Thomas DeFranco says goals for expanding the diversity of teacher preparation within the Neag School of Education align closely with the objectives of AACTE.

“Given both the urgent need to address Connecticut’s achievement gap and the number of concerted efforts we have made to address this gap, I believe we are poised both to make significant contributions to AACTE and to engage in significant improvement efforts through our collaboration with [Networked Improvement Community] members,” he says.

Efforts by the Neag School of Education to expand the diversity of students enrolled in teacher education programs include the creation of the Teacher Prep Academy in Bulkeley High School in Hartford; designation of an academic advisor specifically charged with recruiting minority students into the Integrated Bachelor’s/Master’s Program; and providing a variety of scholarship opportunities, such as the Connecticut State Minority Teacher Incentive Grants.

Dorothea Anagnostopoulos, director of teacher education in the Neag School, says a multipronged approach through the collaboration of a group of institutions will help to address the challenge of developing new approaches to expanding the teacher candidate pool.

“This Networked Improvement Community that we’ll be part of will help us collect data on whether those initiatives are working, how they are working, and provide us with insights and feedback where they are working,” says Anagnostopoulos. “The AACTE objective is on a parallel path with the Neag School. We hope to put our school at the forefront of these initiatives and get some cutting-edge research on these initiatives. It’s a complex terrain. That’s why we need a number of initiatives.”

Among the challenges to diversifying the teaching profession is the fact that students of color do not see themselves represented in front of the classroom, a point noted in a speech on campus last fall by Mark Jenkins Jr. ’13 (CLAS), ’14 MA, who completed his master’s degree in curriculum and instruction in the Neag School. His remarks were later published in The Hartford Courant.

“Low expectations and lack of both role models and support are what keep African-Americans from becoming teachers,” Jenkins said. “Children learn what they live. So how can they be expected to pursue – or believe they’ll receive support from – a field where few people look, sound, or come from places like they do?”

Jenkins also noted that teachers place low expectations on minority students, and that is “strangling the relationship they have with education.” Still, he was hopeful that the situation could change. He described how one of his students, an African American male, told another they would have to meet their teacher half way to get help in the classroom, and that they were also responsible for their own future.

“These words sparked the realization that my students knew I held them to the highest standard,” Jenkins said. “That they were responsible for their own educations, and that I was there for them to provide guidance and support.”

First-Grade Teacher Uses Neag School’s Learning Technology Program to Earn 6th Year Diploma, Excite Her Classroom

Posted on August 5, 2014February 17, 2023 by

Enfield's teacher of the year is Mary Almeida, who has taught at the Hazardville Memorial School for 11 years. (Jim Michaud / Journal Inquirer) — Enfield’s teacher of the year is Mary Almeida, who has taught at the Hazardville Memorial School for 11 years. (Jim Michaud / Journal Inquirer)

Students in Mary Almeida’s first-grade class at Hazardville Memorial School in Enfield use iPads to practice spelling, create digital stories, submit subtraction quizzes and follow QR code-driven scavenger hunts. They also locate and use live texts and, through an app called ClassDojo, Almeida provides parents with real-time updates on their child’s behavior.

While some may find this use of technology surprising, to Almeida it only makes sense: “Exposure to technology is happening in more and more homes prior to children even entering school. By positioning it as a learning tool, and not just a gaming device, students are provided with resources and practice that extend beyond the classroom.”

Guiding Almeida’s efforts to use technology to make learning not just rich, but rigorous, are the experienced UConn faculty members overseeing the Neag School of Education’s Two Summers Master’s or Sixth Year program in Learning Technology within the Department of Educational Psychology. As the name suggests, the Two Summers Program takes places over two summers, designed to help working K-12 teachers learn how to wisely and effectively integrate learning technology into classroom instruction.

Participants attend classes at UConn’s Storrs campus for one week during two summers and complete the rest of the coursework online during the Fall and Spring semesters. At the end of the second summer session, as Almeida will do this July, graduating students present a capstone project.

When that occurs, Almeida, who in June was named Enfield Teacher of the Year, will have earned her Sixth Year diploma. She will also be part of a group of like-minded colleagues that, in her words, “I can always turn to.”

Because program cohorts are limited to no more than 20 students who all follow the same course of study, friendships and support systems form as cohort members explore digital literacy and learning strategies, develop research methods, analyze effective instructional design principles and participate in online communities. They also learn how to use technology for the professional development of teachers, as well as about assistive technology available for students across the K-12 spectrum.

Founded in 2006, the program has a more than 90 percent completion rate, said Two Summers Learning Technology Program Director Michael Young, who served as Almeida’s advisor.

“Like many districts, Mary’s works within many technological constraints, yet she’d been able to take what she’s learned in the program, apply for grants and integrate technology in a way that enhances student engagement and learning,” Young said. “And her enthusiasm is infectious. Like many of the teachers in the Two Summers program, she sees the integration of technology as an opportunity for risk taking and creativity in the classroom.”

Part of the Enfield School District’s iPad Consortium, which ensures that every child in Almeida’s class has an iPad to use during the school day, Almeida has used her Learning Technology experience primarily to enrich her first-grade classroom. However, two peers in her cohort have used it to change jobs and become district-level technology coordinators.

Almeida’s classroom is also outfitted with a SmartBoard and Apple TV, and though she has no immediate plans to leave it, it’s exciting, she said, to know that her ongoing education has provided her with more versatility within her career.

“Building a strong foundation and a passion for learning is not only exciting, but something I feel strongly about. The option to have mobility with the degree—either as a coach, teacher or district coordinator—will be a benefit later in my career. I would love to share what I’ve learned about incorporating technology effectively in support of the curriculum. As [Education Professor and John and Maria Endowed Chair in Literacy and Technology Donald] Leu has said and written, no one person will know every new literacy. Collaboration and peer modeling is a key component to being an effective practitioner.”

She also believes in the importance of students being pushed outside their comfort zone, something she knew the Neag School of Education would do for her.

“UConn’s teacher education programs have amazing reputations, and when I came across the Two Summers Program, I knew that it was the perfect fit for me,” Almeida continued. “Course work hasn’t been about mastering the content in the syllabus, but about approaching new situations with a critical eye, creativity and forethought about how it will be effective for my learners in the future. I also found such value in the knowledge my peers brought to discussions. Whether you shared the same vantage point or not, we were able to feed off of one another’s ideas and mold them into something that worked for each of us. I love being a lifelong learner.”

Equally important, she loves to inspire her students to navigate their own learning: “My students are my family. I love that I get to shine light on the amazing things 6- and 7-year-olds can accomplish. Their curiosities fuel and inspire me when creating new learning experiences for them.”

To see a video on Ms. Almedia produced by the Enfield School District, click here.

To learn more about her program, visit the Neag Online Program website.

Meeting Common Core Standards for Math

Posted on August 5, 2014December 7, 2021 by

Megan Staples, associate professor of mathematics education, center, speaks with two teachers from Manchester High School, Cathy Mazzotta, left, and Adrianne Satin, during a workshop at the Neag School of Education. (Shawn Kornegay/UConn photo)

For three days this summer, math teachers from three Connecticut school districts have worked with UConn faculty members and graduate students to develop skills and resources to enable them to meet new teaching and assessment standards and improve their students’ learning in math. The workshop, part of a federally funded project known as Bridging Practices Among Connecticut Mathematics Educators, is led by four UConn faculty members: Megan Staples, Dorothea Anagnostopoulos, and Tutita Casa of the Neag School of Education and Fabiana Cardetti of the Department of Mathematics. Staples and Anagnostopoulos outlined the goals and rationale of the initiative for UConn Today.

Q: What are some of the new demands for math in the Common Core and accompanying assessments – in Connecticut, the Smarter Balanced Assessment Consortium test?

A: Both the Common Core and the Smarter Balanced Assessment are placing more emphasis on students’ abilities to construct, communicate, and critique mathematical arguments, as well as setting the bar a little higher for the depth of conceptual understanding students need. An emphasis on argumentation and communicating reasoning supports both goals. It moves beyond students using mathematical procedures, algorithms, or formulas. While students need to develop skills and fluency with procedures, they also need to understand the mathematical reasoning behind when you would use these procedures and why. A focus on argumentation and reasoning also means greater emphasis on expressing ideas verbally and in written form.

Q: What is the significance of these new demands?

A: These new demands represent a fundamental shift for teachers and students and for teacher educators. Although for decades the mathematics and mathematics education communities have called for deep understanding, reasoning, and good problem-solving skills, the Common Core puts these ideas more in the fore by articulating a set of standards of mathematical practice. In addition, the new assessment system targets these important outcomes – moving beyond just multiple choice testing of smaller bits of knowledge. This emphasis – both in standards and assessment – on understanding, reasoning, and communication is very different from conventional mathematics teaching and learning in U.S. K-12 schools.

Although many teachers already emphasize some Common Core mathematical practices, teaching students to reason abstractly, share their reasoning, and formulate mathematical arguments will require teachers to deepen both their own mathematical knowledge for teaching and their ability to employ instructional practices that support students’ communication about their mathematical reasoning and understanding. When teachers engage students’ ideas so fully, it opens up a lot of uncertainty for the teacher, as she must manage multiple perspectives, misconceptions, and be able to hear the good mathematics in what students are saying, even if it is not so clearly articulated yet. Teacher educators will also need to deepen their knowledge and instructional skill to make sure that beginning teachers enter schools prepared to help their students meet the Common Core Standards.

Fabiana Cardetti, associate professor of mathematics, works with teachers from three Connecticut school districts on issues related to math instruction for Common Core. (Shawn Kornegay/UConn Photo)

Q: How does the UConn project address these challenges?

A: The Bridging Practices Among Connecticut Mathematics Educators project, or Bridging Mathematics Project, creates a professional learning community that includes multi-grade teams of mathematics teachers from the Hartford, Mansfield, and Manchester School Districts and UConn teacher education and mathematics faculty, and master’s level pre-service teachers. The teachers and faculty will work together to create curricular and instructional resources and tools that will support students in constructing, communicating, and critiquing arguments in mathematics.

The faculty and teachers have begun work on these tools in the 2014 Summer Workshop. During the workshop, teachers have explored various approaches to engaging students in mathematical argumentation, such as using a routine called the Talk Frame, as they have deepened their understanding of proportional and algebraic reasoning. Teaching routines that help shift classrooms from I-tell-and-you-do toward incorporating more student thinking, reasoning, and sorting through of challenging concepts have an important role to play.

Teachers also have developed their skills in working together with their colleagues to create tools they can use in and across their classrooms to support their students’ learning. This work is important because currently teachers do not have enough resources to implement Common Core well. Textbooks are still working to align to new standards, and teachers need materials with consistent attention to reasoning and sense making at all grade levels. One outcome of the project will be a shared repository of tools – tasks, rubrics, instructional tools – that have been developed and vetted by this group. This work will continue into the 2014-2015 school year, culminating in a final 2015 Summer Workshop.

Alvaro Lozano-Robledo, assistant professor of mathematics, works with teachers from three Connecticut school districts on issues related to math instruction for Common Core. (Shawn Kornegay/UConn Photo)

Q: What are the benefits of these techniques for how children learn math?

A: Over the decades, we’ve learned a lot about how students learn. Students learn by being able to build on their prior knowledge and figure out how new ideas fit in with and extend the old. Teaching in ways that center on student reasoning supports learning across the board. In addition, when students are asked to reason more, they generally are asked to talk more, share their thinking, and consider others’ perspectives. In doing so, they develop skills in expressing their ideas, communicating, and recognizing that there are multiple approaches to problem solving and ways of reasoning. They also learn that they can learn – that they can figure out ideas and collaborate with others to gain new knowledge. Two important goals of education are ensuring that students can learn independently and can contribute positively to our democratic society. Both are supported by pedagogies that focus on reasoning and sense making.

Q: Do you expect these techniques to mollify some of the controversy surrounding the introduction of the Common Core?

A: Primarily no. A lot of the controversy around Common Core is largely political. The controversies do not always focus on questions of what is best for children, but rather who should decide. So in that sense no. Another piece of the controversy likely comes from general anxiety about change, which is extremely reasonable given that this is a very large change and it does not seem that adequate time and resources are being devoted to supporting teachers to make this shift. In addition, teachers are under intense pressures with all the changes happening around teacher evaluation.

And this leads to the small sense in which the answer is yes. The more educators understand the goals, have opportunities to develop appropriate pedagogies, have time and resources to make the shift, including time to collaborate with colleagues, the better off, generally, their schools, their colleagues, their parents, and ultimately their students will be in approaching Common Core.

Grant Provides Summer Mentoring Opportunities for Promising High School Students

Posted on July 22, 2014December 9, 2016 by Heather Spottiswoode

The scholarship recipients gather after their first full day of working with the faculty members. Pictured include (l-r): Demi Rodriguez, Isabel Marshall, Destiny Colorado, Benjamin Vu and Brianna Collins. Photo credit: Shawn Kornegay

Five Fairfield County high school students interested in pursuing science and technology careers will have the opportunity to attend the UConn Mentor Connection program this summer, thanks to a $20,000 grant from the Fairfield County Community Foundation.

Coming from Bridgeport, Trumbull, Shelton and New Canaan, the scholarship recipients will spend three weeks in July living at UConn’s Storrs’ campus and working closely with faculty mentors in their areas of interest.

“Mentor Connection has a remarkable record of helping high potential/low-income students pursue their dreams of matriculation to four-year colleges and universities,” said Joseph Renzulli, Ph.D., director of the National Research Center on the Gifted and Talented, which oversees the program. “We are grateful for the support provided by the Fairfield County Community Foundation, which will help change the lives of young people as they pursue their dreams and progress along their paths to higher education.”

During the program, participants take on the role of scholar and practitioner by working on real, ongoing projects at the university. They also get a taste of college life by living in dorms, eating in dining halls and getting to know other talented, motivated students from around the state and across the country.

Founded in 1996, UConn Mentor Connection accepts talented rising high school juniors and seniors and matches them with university faculty or advanced graduate students who mentor the students for three weeks as they participate on research teams.

“Our young people must be exposed to exciting, emerging careers,” said Juanita James, president and CEO of the Fairfield County Community Foundation. “UConn’s Mentor Connection program immerses students in the actual work and college life that helps them experience what their futures could be.”

Of the five 2014 scholarship recipients, Brianna Collins from Shelton High School will work in Dr. Deborah Fein’s Psychology lab on a project related to understanding Autism Spectrum Disorders.

Destiny Colorado from Bridge Academy in Bridgeport, Isabel Marshall from New Canaan High School, and Demi Rodriguez from Central Magnet High School in Bridgeport will work with Tim Hunter on projects being developed in the Digital Media and Design Center.

Benjamin Vu from Trumbull High School will work with Dr. Robin Bogner on a project focused on developing pharmaceutics.

More than 70 students from Connecticut and six other states will participate in this summer’s program, working with mentors in 24 different areas across the university. Each year, the program strives to provide scholarship support from a variety of sources for students to attend, ensuring that no student’s financial circumstance prevents participation.

“When students complete the 18-day experience, they return to school in the fall intellectually and creatively energized by their time spent on the University of Connecticut campus,” said George Moran, guidance counselor at Central Magnet High School.

One of the program’s past participants, now a graduate of the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, recently described the program’s influence as igniting a “lifelong spirit of discovery.”

The Fairfield County Community Foundation promotes the growth of community and regional philanthropy to improve the quality of life throughout Fairfield County. Individuals, families, corporations and organizations can establish charitable funds or contribute to existing funds. The Foundation also provides philanthropic advisory services and develops and leads initiatives to tackle critical community issues. It is in compliance with the Council on Foundations’ national standards for community foundations. The Foundation has awarded more than $168 million in grants to nonprofits in Fairfield County and beyond. For more information, visit www.fccfoundation.org.

Accolades: Read About the News and Accomplishments from our Students, Alumni and Faculty/Staff

Posted on June 4, 2014February 10, 2022 by

Accolades – below are news and notes from our alumni, faculty, staff, and students. We are proud of all the amazing accomplishments by our Neag family. If you have an accolade to share, we want to hear from you! Please send any news items (and story ideas) to shawn.kornegay@uconn.edu.

Students

Jennifer Fiestas, a New London Renzulli Academy student, was one of three students to win an award from Microsoft for Best Invention for Enabling Improved Lifestyle Living or Access by the Disabled. Jennifer invented the “Zee Key” – a piano keyboard with braille notes to aid the visually impaired in learning to play the piano.

Congratulations to the following NGSA Spring 2014 Travel Awards recipients! Once again we had an impressive group of researchers!

Receiving a travel award of $175 are:

William Adams
Beomkyu Choi
Robert Huggins
Jennifer Hyde
Hayley MacDonald
Jessica Martinez
Isabel Park
Jon Rizzo
Sudha Srinivasin
Adam J Sterczala
Michael Sundeen
Nicole Timbrell
Lesley Vandermark
Yan Wei
Huihui Yu

Receiving a travel award of $100 are…

Brent Creighton
Abby Gordon
Zhao Xuelian
Colleen Munoz

UConn Collegiate Chapter of the National Association for Music Education (NAfME) organized and hosted a mini-conference for music education majors in the Gentry building. The event, titled “Behind the Scenes of a Successful Program: a Professional Development Day for Aspiring Music Educators,” involved three music educators presenting on a variety of subjects important to the field of music education.

Secondary pre-service math teachers in IB/M took a field trip to the Museum of Math in NYC. Sharon Heyman, a doctoral student in Curriculum & Instruction, is teaching the secondary Math Methods class while Megan Staples is on sabbatical leave this semester.

Lasan Kromah, a master’s student in Educational Psychology: Cognition, Instruction & Learning Technology, was on the 2014 National Championship Men’s Basketball team.

Scott McCarthy was chosen to be highlighted as an early career professional on the NASP website. He defended his dissertation last month.

Aimee Mwizerwa has been awarded a Margaret McNamara Memorial Fund (MMMF) grant of $16,800 to support her studies leading to a Master’s degree in the TCPCG Program. The MMMF nonprofit public charity was established in 1981 to honor the late Margaret McNamara, who dedicated her life to advocating for education for underserved populations worldwide. The MMMF awards grants to support the education of women from developing countries, who are enrolled in U.S. or Canadian universities and who are committed to work for the benefit of women and children in developing countries.

Alumni

Robert A. Corbo, a lifetime resident of Norwalk died April 29. He was 87. Corbo was born June 23, 1926, he was the son of Grace Mezzo Anderson and stepson of Arvid J. Anderson. He graduated from the Norwalk High, class of 1944, and was a World War II veteran of the United States Army Air Corps. He served from 1945 to 1946 and was discharged with the rank of sergeant. He then graduated from the University of Connecticut, earning a Bachelor’s, Master’s, and a 6th Year Certificate in Business Education. He taught for four years in Colchester at Bacon Academy, six years at Middlesex Junior High in Darien, and 23 years in Greenwich as a teacher and as an administrator. He retired from the Greenwich System in 1985.

Alumni from the Higher Education Student Administration (HESA) program celebrated their inaugural reunion coupled with professional development on May 3.

Neag School of Education Alumni Awards –

The Outstanding Early Career Professional is Jennifer C. Nelson, ’09 BS special education, ’10 MA special education, Special Education Teacher in Ridgefield Public Schools.

The Outstanding Early Career Professional is Jon Welty Peachey, Ph.D., ’09 Ph.D. in sports management, Assistant Professor in the Department of Recreation, Sport, and Tourism at the University of Illinois.

The Outstanding Kinesiology Professional is NiCole R. Keith, Ph.D., ’99 Ph.D. in exercise physiology, Research Scientist at Indiana University Center for Aging Research; Investigator in Regenstrief Institute Incorporated; and Associate Professor, Department of Kinesiology, Indiana University-Purdue University, Indianapolis.

The Outstanding Physical Therapy Professional is Michael L. Reed, PT, DPT, OCS, MTC, ’89 BS in physical therapy, Director of HSS Florida and HSS Spine & Sport, Hospital for Special Surgery, NYC.

Neag School of Education Alumni Awards –

Outstanding School Educator is Sandra M. Bidwell, ’87 MA, ’91 Sixth Year Degree, Reading Recovery Teacher and Reading and Writing Instructional Support Teacher at Staffordville Elementary School.

Outstanding School Administrator is Louis F. DeLoreto, Ph.D., ’00 Sixth Year Degree, ’12 Ph.D., Principal of Edwin O. Smith High School.

The Outstanding School Superintendent is Paul S. Freeman, Ed.D., ’09 Ed.D., Superintendent of Guilford Public Schools.

Outstanding Higher Education Professional is Sally M. Reis, Ph.D., ’81 Ph.D., Vice Provost for Academic Affairs; Board of Trustees Distinguished Professor, UConn.

Outstanding Professional is Felice M. Duffy, Ph.D., ’82 BA, ’85 MA, ’91 Ph.D., Assistant U.S. Attorney at the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Connecticut in New Haven, CT.

Distinguished Alumni of the Year is Dr. Robert C. Pianta, ’77 BS, ’78 MA, dean of the Curry School of Education at the University of Virginia

Aaron Anderson, the director of strategic organizational initiatives for the College of Business at San Francisco State University, is a winner of the 2014 Management Innovation eXchange (MIX) Digital Freedom Challenge for his “Working in Plain View” story. He earned a BS in math from the Neag School in 1987.

Elizabeth Bumgardner is the new principal at North Windham School. She earned a 6^th Year Certificate in educational administration from the Neag School in 2012.

Lenny Carlson ’62 (ED), ’63 MS, assistant men’s basketball coach at August State University – Georgia Regents University in Augusta, Ga., was inducted into the New England Basketball Hall of Fame in June 2013 in Worcester, Mass.

Craig Cooke was appointed superintendent of Windsor Public Schools. He had been serving as interim since 2009 and prior to that, he was Windsor School’s assistant superintendent for human resources. He earned a 6th Year Certificate in 2001 and a Ph.D. in 2009.

Kathryn (Scoville) Desrosiers ’01 (ED), music coordinator for Bolton (Conn.) Public Schools, was named the 2013-14 Bolton Public Schools’ Teacher of the Year. A flutist, she also teaches high school concert band, seventh- and eighth-grade concert band, advanced placement music theory, and music technology.

Angelo L. dos Santos ’70 (ED), ’73 JD, a senior judge on the Windham District Superior Court in Connecticut, received in October the Americo S. Ventura Lifetime Achievement Award from the Portuguese Bar Association of Connecticut; the Our Lady of Fatima Appreciation Award; the Outstanding Member Medal from the Portuguese Club of Hartford; official citations from the State of Connecticut Senate, the General Assembly, and the Office of the Connecticut Secretary of State Denise Merrill; and an official statement from the Office of Connecticut Lt. Gov. Nancy Wyman.

David Garvey ’06 Ph.D., director of UConn’s Nonprofit Leadership Program and adjunct professor in UConn’s College of Liberal Arts and Sciences, received the ACCESS Community Action Agency’s 2013 Community Service Award in recognition of his dedication to low-income families

Charles J. Hague, whobegan his career teaching in the Cheshire School System in 1956 where he worked at several elementary schools, recently passed away. Throughout his time with the school system he served as principal of both Chapman and Highland Elementary Schools before his retirement in 1992. He obtained his Master’s and 6th Year Certificate in education from the Neag School of Education.

Beth Hennessy appointed principal at Central Elementary School. Hennessy has been an elementary language arts consultant for the district at Squadron Line School and Central School for seven years. She earned a 6^th Year Certificate in curriculum and instruction in 2011.

Marshall Jenkins ’55 (ED), ’72 Ph.D. is the author of Intellectually Persecuted, published in December 2012 by Tate Publishing & Enterprises LLC. The book is available at Barnes & Noble and on amazon.com.

Michael Louis ’05 (ED), ’07 MA, a four-year letterwinner for the UConn men’s tennis team and a six-year assistant coach for the Huskies, is the UConn men’s tennis head coach. He previously served as head coach of the men’s and women’s teams at the University of Hartford.

Michael Luzietti was named principal at Latimer Lane School, Luzietti, who for the past two years has served as principal of New Hartford Elementary and Bakerville Consolidated Schools, worked for the school system as an elementary physical education teacher for 11 years, according to the release. He earned a 6^th Year Certificate in educational administration in 2009.

Maria Miranda ’70 was selected as the Eastern Connecticut Chamber of Commerce 64^th Annual Citizen of the Year. The veteran advertising executive and UConn graduate was awarded the honor for her contributions not only to the chamber’s growth, but the support she has provided to burgeoning entrepreneurs across the region.

Candace Morell was appointed principal of Mansfield Middle School starting July 1. She previously served as the assistant principal. She has a BS, MA and 6^th Year Certificate from the Neag School.

Jan M. Murphy has been hired as the next principal of West Elementary School. She earned a 6^th Year Certificate in educational psychology/gifted & talented education in 2002.

Terry A. Osborn, dean and professor of the College of Education at USF Sarasota-Manatee since 2010, was appointed to regional vice chancellor for academic and student affairs. He earned a Ph.D. in curriculum and instruction in 1998.

Margaret “Maggie” (Shafran) Rosa ’64 (ED), an advisor for the Mortar Board National College Senior Honor Society at the University of Vermont, received in August the 2013 Excellence in Advising Award from Mortar Board, presented annually to an advisor who has provided exceptional support to help a Mortar Board chapter achieve its goals.

Kristen (Heiligman) Shanley ’99 (ED), ’00 MA, a seventh-grade language teacher at Dodd Middle School in Cheshire, Conn., was named the 2013-14 Cheshire Public Schools’ Teacher of the Year.

Two graduates of our Ph.D. in Adult Learning Program, Tim Speicher (2010) and Jason Zigmont (2008) were co-authors, along with a third author, of an article titled “Evidence Based Concept Mapping for the Athletic Training Student” which received First Place for the 2014 Athletic Training Education Journal Outstanding Non-Research Manuscript.

Tara (Kozulko) Stritch ’01 is assistant athletic trainer for the U.S. Lacrosse Women’s Senior National Team.

Lois Greene Stone, ‘55, writer and poet, has been syndicated worldwide. Poetry and personal essays have been included in hard & softcover book anthologies. Collections of her personal items/ photos/ memorabilia are in major museums including twelve different divisions of The Smithsonian. Married since 1956 to Dr. Gerald E. Stone, MD, she became a great-grandmother in May 2014. The first of her 15 grandchildren was born on May 8^th 27 years ago, and her first great-grandchild was born on May 8^th this year.

Denise E. Wilbur ’80 MA is interim vice president for academic affairs at Lincoln University in Pennsylvania. She previously served as vice president for academic affairs and professor education, chief academic officer of the Gwynedd-Valley College in Gwynedd-Valley, Pa.

Kristine Reed Woleck, who previously served as assistant principal at East Elementary School in New Canaan, will return to the school as principal. She earned a 6^th Year Certificate in educational administration in 2009.

Faculty

Tenure and Promotion

Promotion to Professor

Jennifer Bruening Educational Leadership

Michael Coyne Educational Psychology

Joseph Madaus Educational Psychology

D. Betsy McCoach Educational Psychology

Promotion to Associate Processor and Tenure

Morgaen Donaldson Educational Leadership

Natalie Olinghouse Educational Psychology

Anjana Bhat Kinesiology

Promotion to Associate Clinical Professor (non-tenure track)

Sandra Billings Curriculum & Instruction

Susan Payne Curriculum & Instruction

Promotion to Assistant Clinical Professor (non-tenure track)

Maryclaire Sullivan-Capetta Kinesiology

Tenure Track Reappointments

Tutita Casa Assistant Professor Curriculum & Instruction

Joseph Cooper Assistant Professor Educational Leadership

Lindsay DiStefano Assistant Professor Kinesiology

Hannah Dostal Assistant Professor Curriculum & Instruction

Shaun Dougherty Assistant Professor Educational Leadership

Jennifer Freeman Assistant Professor Educational Psychology

Rachael Gabriel Assistant Professor Curriculum & Instruction

Richard Gonzales Assistant Professor Educational Leadership

Justin LaFerrier Assistant Professor Kinesiology

Tamika LaSalle Assistant Professor Educational Psychology

Elaine Chuong Hee Lee Assistant Professor Kinesiology

Allison Lombardi Assistant Professor Educational Psychology

Stephanie Mazerolle Assistant Professor Kinesiology

Bianca Montrosse-Moorhead Assistant Professor Educational Psychology

Christopher Rhoads Assistant Professor Educational Psychology

Jennie Weiner Assistant Professor Educational Leadership

Megan Welsh Assistant Professor Educational Psychology

Sarah Woulfin Assistant Professor Educational Leadership

EMPLOYEE ANNIVERSARY RECOGNITION

Sally Reis Renzulli 25 years

Keith Barker 30 years

Jeffrey Crouse 30 years

Mary Anne Doyle 30 years

Joanne Roberg 30 years

Cheryl Bressette 35 years

Scott Brown was named Board of Trustee Distinguished Professor at UConn. This is the highest academic award bestowed to a faculty member.

The Institute for Teaching & Learning, First Year Experience Program & Learning Communities, and the Honors Program are pleased to announce their awardees for their excellence in teaching and advising awards. The recognition dinner was held on April 24^th at the Alumni House. The award recipients are:

Outstanding First Year Experience Teaching Awards
Jaci VanHeest, Educational Psychology & Kinesiology

2014-2015 Teaching Fellow Awards
Mary Truxaw, Curriculum & Instruction

2014-2015 – Outstanding Adjunct Awards
Jann Leppien, Educational Psychology

EDLR faculty (Morgaen L. Donaldson, Kimberly LeChasseur, Anjalé D. Welton and Casey D. Cobb) were awarded the Davis Award the best paper from EAQ for 2013. The William J. Davis Award is given annually to the authors of the most outstanding article published in Educational Administration Quarterly (EAQ) during the preceding volume year. The Davis Award was established in 1979 with contributions in honor of the late William J. Davis, former associate director of UCEA and assistant professor at the University of Wisconsin-Madison.

Neag School of Education’s Teacher Prep Program has been accepted into AACTE’s first networked improvement community (NIC). We were one of 10 member institutions selected out of 50 applications. The NIC is aimed at increasing the diversity of our nation’s teacher candidate pool by focusing on recruitment of more Black and Hispanic men into teacher preparation programs. This NIC is one of the programs AACTE has launched as part of their new initiative, The Innovation Exchange.

The Korey Stringer Institute has partnered with USA Football to support its Heads Up Football program that strives to make the game better and safer for youth and high school football players. Also, KSI has completed an agreement for a $300K donation with the NFL Foundation to support KSI’s work.

The Neag School of Education hosted a presentation on “Smarter Balance Assessment System in Connecticut” featuring the executive director of the Smarter Balanced Assessment Consortium, Dr. Joe Willhoft. The new system will replace the CT Master Test and CT Academic Performance Test.

Larry Armstrong was elected president-elect of the American College of Sports Medicine (ACSM).

The MA Dept of Elementary and Secondary Education Department has released a new research brief on the academic impact of career and technical education in Massachusetts. Authored by Shaun Dougherty, the report finds that enrolling in and attending an oversubscribed regional vocational-technical school increases the probability of on-time graduation to nearly 100 percent. That compares to a rate of roughly 60 percent for those students who just barely missed gaining admission and did not attend one of these schools. To read the report, go to http://www.doe.mass.edu/research/reports/2014/03EdLines-CTEimpact.pdf.

Tom Goodkind conducted a workshop entitled “Today’s Mass Media, Personal Technology, and Democratic Core Values” at the 45th annual Northeast Regional Conference on the Social Studies (NERC) on April 8, 2014.

Elizabeth Howard co-directed a grant that resulted in Words in Motion, a cognate-based academic vocabulary curriculum for the middle school grades. Words in Motion is available for free download on the Center for Applied Linguistics (CAL) website. Words in Motion was developed, piloted, and implemented in Connecticut schools as part of the grant EVoCA: Enhancing Vocabulary through Cognate Awareness, funded by the U.S. Department of Education, Institute of Education Sciences. There are three versions of the curriculum: monolingual English, cross-linguistic (primarily in English with explicit connections to Spanish) and bilingual (English/Spanish

Elaine Lee won a Mentorship Award (M Award) from the Connecticut Institute for Clinical and Translational Science (CICATS) at UConn. The period of funding support runs April 1, 2014 – March 31, 2017, in the amount of $50,000 per year. She proposed a three-year initiative to promote STEM education from the earliest stages possible in underrepresented minorities, students from disadvantaged backgrounds, and also in young female students.

Don Leu is a member of the PIRLS 2016 Reading Development Group (RDG) developing the first international assessment of 10-year olds ability to read online and learn new information. He attended meetings of this group in London this month. He also gave a seminar at the University of Jyväskylä in Finland on the assessment of online research and comprehension.

Alan Marcus has a new partnership with the Fairfield Museum. “Behind the Scenes” provides visitors to the Fairfield Museum the chance to learn about the process of putting together Creating Community: Exploring 375 Years of Our Past. Designed by Marcus, Behind the Scenes gives visitors an inside look into how history is presented, making the exhibition design process more transparent by adding a form of “footnotes.” Exhibitor visitors will find 14 “behind the scenes” footnotes. Each footnote has a QR code that visitors can scan with their phone. Marcus, along with his master’s students, designed a new exhibit “The Impact of Weather & Geography on WWII” at the Connecticut State Museum of Natural History. It opened on May 5.

Natalie Olinghouse is a panel contributor to this IES practice guide.

Jim O’Neil will be releasing Men’s Gender Role Conflict: Psychological Costs, Consequences, and an Agenda for Change in October, 2014.

Linda Pescatello won a Core Interest Group (CIG) Award from the Connecticut Institute for Clinical and Translational Science (CICATS) in the amount of $30,000. She used part of the funds to host a full-day workshop on “Thinking About Obesity: Building Science Initiatives at UConn and UConn Health.” The workshop was on April 28.

Yuhang Rong, the assistant dean at the Neag School of Education, was appointed assistant vice provost for global affairs.

Del Siegle was recognized by the Montana AGATE Board with the Friend of AGATE Award. The Montana AGATE Handbook states that the recipient should have “in some way significantly furthered AGATE goals to improve Gifted Education” and should not be a member of AGATE. The Board wholeheartedly believes that Del embodies the essence of furthering the goals of AGATE.

Susanne Wilson was chosen by AERA and Educational Researcher as an Outstanding Reviewer for 2013. She will be publicly recognized at the AERA annual meeting in April.

HESA Alumni Celebrate Inaugural Reunion, Take Part in Professional Development

Posted on June 4, 2014December 7, 2021 by

HESA Students present their assessment project posters to conference attendees. Photo credit: Cody Lewin, HESA graduate student.

Neag School Higher Education & Student Affairs (HESA) alumni recently reconnected with friends and colleagues and networked at the first-of-its-kind, one-day professional development conference on the UConn campus. HESA is a graduate degree partnership program with UConn’s Student Affairs and the Neag School of Education.

Titled “Celebrate HESA/Change: Are you ready?,” the event brought together 45 HESA alumni, students and faculty members who attended a variety of presentations, including:

“Attaining Cultural Competencies for Student Affairs Professionals” presented by Angela Rola, director of UConn’s Asian American Cultural Center
“Considering, or Reconsidering Your Career Path, an Exploration of Your Next Step” presented by Beth Settje and Lisa McGuire, senior assistant directors at UConn’s Center for Career Development.

A roundtable for graduating HESA students also took place, entitled “Enhancing Your Search Process and Attracting the Best: Reflections of Current Job Seekers.”

HESA Program Director Sue Saunders addressing the audience. Photo credit: Cody Lewin, HESA graduate student.

“It was not only great to see the alumni coming back, but also to get a chance to listen to subjects that we don’t typically cover in class,” said HESA Program Coordinator Sue Saunders, an extension professor within the Department of Educational Leadership at Neag School of Education.

Two lectures that particularly caught her attention were those related to social media, “Harnessing the Power of Social Media for Positive Change” and “Getting Your Thumbs Dirty: 24 Social Media Tips and Uses in Student Affairs” presented by Ed Cabellon, director of Student Affairs at Bridgewater State University.

“If you work in student affairs, social media is getting more and more important. We really need to be conversant with its practices and how we can use the social media tools to engage our students more in the learning process,” Saunders said.

The HESA Alumni Council was also formed at the reunion, with 2007 graduate Joshua Brandfon named its first president.

“I’m glad to be able to help strengthen the connection between the HESA program and its alumni in any way I can,” said Brandfon, who currently works as director of Student Affairs at the University of Miami. “Our alumni have positions at institutions across the country and can be a great resource to current students.”

“We hope that alumni will be able to share career advice, connect with each other at national conferences, and stay informed about what’s happening in Storrs,” Brandfon continued.

Adam Frank, who graduated from the program in 2009, said he had a wonderful time at the reunion: “Everyone who has gone through the program has an undeniable bond. Even if we weren’t in the program together, we shared this unique and immersive learning experience.”

He is now director of Student Involvement at SUNY Westchester Community College in Valhalla, NY. “The professional development sessions provided some wonderful insights into how I can best leverage my position and experience to advance at my current institution and position myself better to move ahead in the future.”

Featuring classes taught by student affairs practitioner and full-time faculty scholars, the HESA program requires the completion of 44 credit hours. A cohort of 18-20 students is admitted into the program each year, completing core academic classes over two years of study.

“We are planning to make the reunion an annual or biannual event to provide systematic and continuing involvement for our alumni, current students and the program,” Saunders added.

Neag Alumna Using Education to Improve Teacher Training, Math Curriculum in Zambia

Posted on June 4, 2014December 7, 2021 by

Carly Buehler isn’t daunted by the idea of working with limited resources under challenging situations. The Neag alumna has been a volunteer teacher at a community school for orphans and other vulnerable, at-risk children in Lusaka, Zambia, since graduating from the Neag School’s Integrated Bachelor’s/Master’s Teacher Education program in 2012. And there, she is using her education and expertise to make a real difference.

Named Chikumbuso, meaning “remembrance,” the school is a grassroots project designed to provide children with a free education, as well as to provide widows with the job skills they need to support themselves and their families.

“I fell in love with Chikumbuso when I visited there for two weeks during my senior year in high school, working on a project called ‘The Stigma of AIDS.’ I told myself I would go back again,” said Buehler, who was introduced to the school by Connecticut family friend and founder Linda Wilkinson.

The opportunity to go back to Chikumbuso came in 2009, when she spent three months as an intern there, helping classroom teachers and working with single mothers and widows. It was then she began considering how to use opportunities for independent study and her Neag education to be even more useful in Zambia.

“The most powerful thing I took away from Chikumbuso was how eager the children were to learn,” Buehler said. “As a young student, I had always taken my education for granted. But in Zambia, most children don’t have the opportunity to go to school. Throughout my studies at UConn, I always appreciated what I was learning and was always thinking about how I could use my education to improve the work being done at Chikumbuso.”

Now living in Zambia and working at Chikumbuso as a full-time volunteer, Buehler’s responsibilities include lesson planning and assessment, improving the math curriculum, teaching math classes, and holding training workshops for local teachers who don’t have access to government support.

“Carly’s commitment and enthusiasm for her work is inspirational,” said Mary Truxaw, Neag School associate mathematics professor and Buehler’s independent study advisor. “I’m proud that she has developed a strong stance as a lifelong learner, where she continues to push herself to learn more so that she can support the learning of others.”

Buehler visited UConn last December with Getrude Banda, who earned her teaching certification by working at Chikumbuso and later became the school’s principal. “It was such a rewarding experience to share my unique story with the current Neag students,” Buehler said. “There are so many unique teaching experiences around the world, and I was pleased that I could share my experience with those at UConn who may have not considered ‘untraditional’ teaching opportunities.”

Buehler’s “untraditional” teaching experience includes getting used to working in a place where it’s hard to find a printer or copy machine, power outages occur at least once a week, and bad internet connections are common.

“I’ve learned how difficult it is to create an engaging and fun lesson with very limited supplies,” Buehler said. “It is difficult, but not impossible.”

Another challenge for Buehler has been the community’s unfamiliarity with books. Reading has not always been an important part of the lives of those who attend, and live near Chikumbuso—something Buehler is working to change. Toward this end, she created a school wide reading competition and encouraged teachers to use library books in their classrooms and read aloud to students. The school only received its first books three years ago.

“Carly has clearly been touched by the Chikumbuso project,” said Thomas Levine, Neag School assistant professor in Curriculum & Instruction, who helped arrange her recent Neag visit. “She has gained invaluable experience working on curriculum, professional development for teachers, and in teaching, despite the challenges she has faced.”

“After teaching in Zambia, I feel I could walk into any school district and make the best of what supplies are available to me,” said Buehler, who plans to one day teach in the United States and provide her students with a focus on global awareness. “I’ve gained a lot of strength and confidence and know, first-hand, how important it is for children to be exposed to different cultures, traditions and family structures. It can change a student’s outlook on life, just like it did to me.”

Kinesiology Moves, College of Agriculture Renamed

Posted on June 4, 2014December 7, 2021 by

In an effort to more closely align the teaching, research and outreach programs of the Department of Kinesiology with the college in which it is based, the department was recently relocated to the College of Agriculture and Natural Resources, an area that has increasingly expanded its focus on human health.

As part of that shift, the Board of Trustees voted to rename the new home of kinesiology the College of Agriculture, Health, and Natural Resources.

The relocation of the kinesiology department from the Neag School of Education reflects the natural evolution of a discipline rooted in the development of physical education teachers.

“Over the past few years the research focus of many of members within the Department of Kinesiology has shifted, in particular toward the area of genetics and genomics,” said Thomas DeFranco, dean of the Neag School of Education. “Ideologically, members of the department felt a better fit for their programs and research would be aligned with College of Agriculture and Natural Resources.

“I want to personally wish all the members of kinesiology good luck and success during the transition period and as they move to their new home,” said Dean DeFranco.

The College of Agriculture, Health, and Natural Resources’ goal is to connect food, people, and health in a manner that is economically viable and environmentally sustainable, according to the recommendation from the University. The academic and clinical domains related to kinesiology will strengthen the human health and athletic nutrition programs already within its new base, namely Allied Health Science and Nutritional Sciences.

Day-to-day, the Department of Kinesiology is expected to continue operating much as it has in the past. All undergraduate, graduate, and professional programming is anticipated to remain unchanged. And pre-kinesiology majors will continue to enter the program through the Academic Center for Exploratory Students.

The college last expanded its name from the College of Agriculture to the College of Agriculture and Natural Resources in 1969.

Neag School Named Host of Educational Administration Quarterly

Posted on June 4, 2014February 17, 2023 by

For the next five years, the Neag School will provide the editorial team and serve as host institution for the Educational Administration Quarterly (EAQ) journal—an honor that recognizes UConn’s strengths as a leader in education.

“This is a great recognition,” said Educational Leadership Department Head and Professor Casey Cobb, who assumed the role of EAQ editor in November 2013. “Serving as the editorial team of EAQ will only enhance our reputation as one of the top schools of education in the country.”

Founded by the University Council for Educational Administration (UCEA) in 1965, EAQ is one of the most prominent journals in the field of education. Its focus is to promote the publication of rigorous and relevant scholarly articles that advance educational policy, practice and research.

To become host institution, the Neag School went through a competitive application process that began in early 2013 and included UCEA reviewing each candidate institution’s vision for the journal. Institution resources, support and editorial team quality were also considered.

Having edited five issues since taking the EAQ helm, Cobb said it has been “a true team effort.” Editorial team members include associate editors Preston Green (John and Carla Klein Professor of Urban Education), Richard Schwab (Emeritus Dean and Professor of Educational Leadership), Kimberly LeChasseur (Assistant Research Professor with the Center for Education Policy Analysis), Morgaen Donaldson (Assistant Professor of Educational Leadership), Shaun Dougherty (Assistant Professor of Educational Policy & Leadership), Rachel Gabriel (Assistant Professor of Literacy Education), Richard Gonzales (Assistant Professor of Educational Leadership), Jennie Weiner (Assistant Professor of Educational Leadership), Megan Welsh (Assistant Professor in the Measurement, Evaluation and Assessment Program), Sarah Woulfin (Assistant Professor of Educational Leadership), Anysia Mayer (Assistant Professor of Educational Leadership) and Melissa Berggren (Graduate Assistant in School Psychology).

The team holds bi-weekly editorial meetings that include discussions about the journal’s vision and direction. “EAQ is a premier school leadership journal in the field, and we want to ensure we are honoring that domain,” said Cobb. “We hold authors to high standards through our review system, and we hope the articles and research produced have a real impact on the field of K-12 education and leadership preparation for principals, superintendents and teachers.”

“Historically EAQ has been an advocate for social justice,” Cobb continued, “and we are continuing in that tradition in emphasizing educational equity.”

Cobb’s personal research interests include educational policies on school choice, accountability and education reform. He has published in Educational Evaluation and Policy Analysis, Educational Policy, Education and Urban Society, Educational Leadership, and the Peabody Journal of Education.

The newly released February 2014 issue features 11 articles, including:

From a Managerial Imperative to a Learning Imperative: Experiences of Urban, Public School Principals by Aimee LaPointe Terosky
Educator Beliefs and Cultural Knowledge: Implications for School Improvement Efforts by Sarah W. Nelson and Patricia L. Guerra
Collective Student Trust: A Social Resource for Urban Elementary Students by Curt M. Adams
Mapping the Terrain: Educational Leadership Field Experiences in K-12 Virtual Schools by Jason A. LaFrance.

The journal is published by SAGE, a leading publisher in academics and education.

“It’s a tremendous experience for our earlier career faculty members and graduate students that serve on the editorial team,” Cobb said. “They are getting a lot from the behind-the-scene picture of the scholarly review process, which in a sense also helps them in their own writing.”

Cobb said he feels a great sense of responsibility as EAQ editor: “It has enlightened me in my own work, and it’s a good challenge for me professionally to work in this capacity. I feel the responsibility to carry the mantle for this prestigious journal, as we all know the importance of gatekeepers that we are as scholars.”