New Members Elected for the Neag Alumni Society Board of Governors

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The following eight individuals were elected to the Neag Alumni Society Board of Governors at the annual meeting in November at the Alumni Center.

Neag alumni board
Pictured top row (L-R): Kate Heintz Lund, Rebecca Stearns and Margaret Clifton. Bottom row (L-R): Jeremy Vigneault, Christine Emmons, John Gedney and Anthony Distasio. Not pictured: Desi Nesmith.

Margaret Clifton (M.A. Curriculum and Instruction, English Education ’05) is an English teacher at RHAM High School in Hebron, CT. Clifton hopes to promote Neag School’s benefits to prospective students as well as those already affiliated with education instruction. She has worked at RHAM High School since graduating from the Neag School, preparing and teaching lessons for grades  10 and 12 college preparatory English classes, as well as co-teaching a print journalism class. Clifton received her B.A. in English and Journalism from UConn, she went onto her earn her M.A. through the Teacher Certification Teacher Preparation Program in the Neag School. She is a member of the NEA and CEA and participates in the Manchester Musical Players and Windham Theatre Guild.

Anthony W. Distasio (Sixth-Year Diploma in Educational Administration  ’82 and Ph.D. in Educational Administration ’85) has been  superintendent of the Plymouth School District since 2001. He has attended several workshops and seminars sponsored by the Neag School of Education. Distasio, principal of Torrington Middle School, 1985- 94, and Northeast Middle School, 1994-2001,  hopes to bring a practicing administrator’s perspective to his new position.

Christine L. Emmons (Ph.D. in Educational Psychology ’92) is an associate research scientist for Yale University’s Child Study Center and the director of program evaluation at the Yale School Development Program in the Yale School of Medicine Child Study Center. She received her B.A. from the University of the West Indies and a master’s in library science from the University of Western Ontario. She was previously an elementary school teacher and, in her native Granada, was librarian of the Education Resource Centers. Emmons’ responsibilities i include the design and management of the Yale School Development research program. Her research interests include  the relationship between the psychosocial environment of schools, students’ sense of self and student behavior.

John Gedney (Sixth-Year Diploma in Educational Administration in ’03) is a former member of the UCAPP 12 cohort and is the principal of Region 10’s Lake Garda School. For eight years, Gedney was  co-principal of Lewin Joel School in Clinton, CT, and before that taught fourth and fifth grade at Southwest School in Torrington, CT.  Gedney also served in the Navy Submarine Force for  23 years.

Kate Heintz Lund (B.S. in English Education ’06 and M.A. in Curriculum and Instruction, English Education, ’07) teaches English at Lyme-Old Lyme High School in Old Lyme, CT, and is  enrolled in the Neag School’s Sixth-Year Diploma in Educational Administration Program.

Desi D. Nesmith (B.S. in Elementary Education ’01, M.A. in Curriculum and Instruction, Elementary Education, ’02, and Sixth-Year Diploma in Educational Administration ’09) is the principal of Metacomet Elementary School in Bloomfield, CT. In 2010, Nesmith was honored as the recipient of the Neag School of Education’s Promising Young Professional Award. In the past year, Nesmith has served as a principal consultant for Cambridge Education, providing high quality service and collaborative efforts to improve student learning for teachers, administrators and districts.

Rebecca Stearns (M.A. in Kinesiology, Exercise Science, ’08 and currently enrolled in the Ph.D. program in Kinesiology, Exercise Science) is the director of education for the Korey Stringer Institute in the Neag School. From her education at UConn and her current position within Neag, Stearns has a unique insight to the  workings, accomplishments and opportunities the school has to offer. Stearns has served as an athletic training laboratory instructor, administrative graduate assistant and research graduate assistant for the university. She has also worked at the Marine Corps Marathon, the Boston Marathon and the Pennsylvania Special Olympics.

Jeremy Vigneault (B.S. in Pre-Physical Therapy  ’00; M.S. in Physical Therapy ’02) is a faculty member in the Department of Kinesiology at the Neag School and co-director of the Nayden Rehabilitation Clinic. Vigneault instructs physical therapy students in the clinic setting. With his primary focus in outpatient orthopedics, he also has experience in the assistive technology and home health fields.

Boldly Going into Middle School Science

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Pictured L-R: Keith Sevigny, Christopher Pickett, Dr. John Settlage and Liza Boyle, on Graduation Day in 2007. Sevigny, Pickett and Boyle are members of the TCPCG Class of '07; Dr. Settlage was one of their professors. Photo credit: Jennifer Sevigny.
Pictured L-R: Keith Sevigny, Christopher Pickett, Dr. John Settlage and Liza Boyle, on Graduation Day in 2007. Sevigny, Pickett and Boyle are members of the TCPCG Class of ’07; Dr. Settlage was one of their professors. Photo credit: Jennifer Sevigny.

Keith Sevigny, lover of science, got liftoff last summer for a team of 8th-grade students at Annie Fisher STEM Magnet School in Hartford. The boys landed their tiny science project on whether seeds will germinate in microgravity on the final mission of NASA’s Space Shuttle program in July.

But the launching pad for Sevigny was Neag‘s Teacher Certification Program for College Graduates (TCPCG). After earning his master’s of art in Curriculum and Instruction in 2007, he landed in a dream job teaching science at Annie Fisher STEM Magnet.

And now he’s part of the state’s first K-8 STEM school (STEM stands for science, technology, engineering and math) and one of the authors of a unified science curriculum in the large Hartford district.

“A lot of time science goes by the wayside,” Sevigny, 29, says. “But here every kid gets at least one hour of science every single day, no matter the grade level.”

The four designers of the space tomato project – Ramone Clahar, Justice Dawkins, David Jackson and Alonzo Clarke – were interested in whether food could one day be grown in space. Space in space was a precious commodity, but “Dream big,” they were told. And their idea was selected by engineers at Hamilton Sundstrand, which helped sponsor the science project in space program.

So, what did the Annie Fisher team discover by sending those seeds into space on a 5 million-mile round trip on the middeck of the Shuttle Atlantis, with an astronaut doing the watering?

“When a seed germinates on the ground, the shoots go up and the roots go down. But in microgravity, where there’s no sense of up or down, how does the plant know where to go, and does it grow the same way,” Sevigny explains.

The seeds did germinate, but, once back on Earth, they would not take root. Sevigny is trying to round up the team, now moved on to high school, to report back on their findings.

Sevigny loves science and its world-changing promise. So, after getting his bachelor’s degree in molecular and cell biology in 2004 at UConn, he took a job at a pharmaceutical firm, hoping to be part of a breakthrough that would, well, save lives.

“I was working toward this goal of having a drug discovery, but you never really know if you’re going to make it or if it’s going to make it to the people that it’s going to help. So, I wanted to be able to see that I was going to make a difference in people’s lives on a daily basis, and that steered me toward education.”

And now, after the one-year TCPCG whirlwind, Sevigny is getting that daily fix. He credits three Neag educators on the Greater Hartford campus – Michael Alfano, executive director of teacher education programs, John Zack and John Settlage – for the teacher he is today.

Settlage, associate professor in science teacher education, taught him how to engage in scientific inquiry and hold a captive audience. “His class was why I was able to fit so well here at Fisher,” Sevigny says.

Zack, assistant clinical instructor, got Sevigny, who hails from a teacher-rich family, thinking about teaching in the inner city. “There were 50 other teachers from UConn lined up to get a job in Farmington or Avon, but how many are lining up for a job in the inner city? And for a lot of those kids, you’re it,” Sevigny says.

Alfano amazed him in the way he makes the one-year master’s program work.  “You’ve got one year when it’s this whole tornado, and he was able to figure out how to orchestrate it and make it seamless,” Sevigny says. “And he’s been doing it for years.”

Alfano’s class on literacy also made Sevigny see that element as every teacher’s mission, and even moral obligation.

Sevigny has seen the STEM magnet’s results, particularly on the Connecticut Mastery Tests that are now measuring science learning.

He loves the daily impact of teaching but also has the long view. “It’s wonderful just thinking where the little kindergartners are going to be by the time they get to 8th grade,” he says.

Nominations Requested for Neag School Alumni Society Awards

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Neag Alumni Awards The Neag School of Education is seeking nominations for the 14th annual Alumni Society Awards banquet. Nominations for Outstanding Alumni are open until Friday, Dec. 9.

The Neag Alumni Society Awards banquet is scheduled for Saturday, March 31, 2012, in the South Campus Ballroom on the Storrs campus. At the dinner, the Neag Alumni Society will bestow numerous awards, which will recognize educators and professionals who have made significant contributions across all levels of education.

The evening promises to be memorable as faculty, staff and alumni gather to formally recognize the achievements of some of Neag’s outstanding graduates. Ticket and RSVP information will be available soon. To view a slide show of last year’s festivities, visit here. Check for details at www.education.uconn.edu.

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

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104516017-hands-clapping1-300x2001Accolades – 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.

Alumni

Francis J. Di Vesta (B.S. in Ed. ‘42; Ph. D. Cornell University ‘48; Professor Emeritus of Psychology and Education, Pennsylvania State University, 1994-present) has co-authored a text with Mark D. Shermis, Dean of the College of Education at the University of Akron, titled Classroom Assessment in Action. The book targets what teachers should know about assessments in the school with a functional emphasis on formative assessment, especially designed for courses in the preparation of teachers.

Vincent M. Gagliardi (M.A. education ‘60) was recognized as part of the Southern Connecticut State University’s 2011 Distinguished and Outstanding Alumni Luncheon. Gagliardi was presented with the Charlene Hill Ricciardi Alumni Service Award. He earned a master’s degree from the University of Connecticut and a certified advanced degree studies (CAGS) degree at Fairfield University. He had a decorated career in education and served as a teacher, coach, athletic director, counselor and assistant principal. Gagliardi also served in the US Army.

Jack Gedney (Sixth-Year Diploma in Educational Administration ’03), school principal in Clinton, had 464 applicants and they interviewed 23 candidates for three positions at his school. About eight were Neag alums. Of their eight finalists, three were UCONN students. “All of your students performed superbly and it truly came down to personalities and ‘fit’ with the team,” said Gegney.  “I am pleased to tell you that Anne Begin (B.S. elementary education ’10, M.A. curriculum and instruction ’11) accepted a contract with Clinton and began working here in Sept. She was wonderful and will make a great addition to the staff.”

Zato Kadambaya (M.A. mathematics education ‘03) – math department head at Norwich Free Academy was honored by Norwich branch of the NAACP with an Excellence in Education Award. Kadambaya, a Togo native and electrical engineer, worked as a plant manager in West Africa before immigrating to the US and did not begin first grade until the age of 11.

Scott V. Nicol (Sixth-Year Diploma in Educational Administration ’03, Ed.D. education leadership ’09) is the new director of performance management
for Hartford Public Schools.

Colleen Palmer (B.A. mathematics education ’75, Ph.D. educational administration ’07) is the new superintendent for Weston Schools.

Students

Three alumni from UConn’s Mentor Connection who had participated with the Puppetry Site are matriculating as undergrads in the same program. They include Austin Costello, a freshman, from Long Island; Xingxin Liu, a junior from New Haven, CT; and Alan Loiselle, a senior, from Providence, RI.

The UConn student chapter of the National Strength and Conditioning Association, led by with William Kraemer, had as their charity work this past semester to raise money for the Wounded Warrior Project (WWP).  The WWP is a nonprofit organization whose common goal is to fight for the rights of our nation’s fallen soldiers and provide comprehensive services to those severely wounded veterans of the U.S. armed forces. They are using the WWP as an opportunity to reach out and benefit not only our nations wounded veterans, but the UConn community as well. The students raised $600.00 and recently presented a check to the WWP.

Eileen Gonzalez, a doctoral student in Curriculum and Instruction, was recently awarded the prestigious Graduate Student Fellowship from the American Association of Hispanics in Higher Education (AAHHE).

Sarah Harris was recognized with a Provost Award for Public Engagement for her work and dedication to the homeless in Willimantic. Sarah has been active providing sustained leadership linking neighborhood organizations and initiative such as the No Freeze Shelter and local schools in the Windham area. Sarah is also advancing scholarship through incorporating this work into her honors thesis.

Kendrick Henes, a senior secondary science major, has been invited by Liz Buttner of the State Department of Education to serve on the committee reviewing drafts of the Next Generation Science Education Standards (the only student pre-service teacher to serve in CT and nationally). Bob Segall, her instructor, had Henes present at one of his Science Methods classes and the opportunity took off from there.

Nicole LaPierre and Melanie Rodriguez would like to thank everyone who “liked” the photo on Facebook of Clark Elementary and Middle Academy. They won the “We Give Books” contest and will now receive a library of books for Clark School in Hartford. They are renovating and reopening the currently closed school library in Clark for their Masters Inquiry Project and these books will help them immensely. They are very appreciative of the support.

Faculty & Staff

Neag’s School Psychology program has been selected by the Commission for the Recognition of Specialties and Proficiencies in Professional Psychology (CRSPPP) as one of four exemplary national programs to be identified for specialty petition for school psychology.

Numerous faculty members participated with presentations at the recent Northeastern Educational Research Association (NERA) Conference in Rocky Hill. Faculty members included: Robin Grenier, Finding a Needle in the Haystack: Using Inductive Analysis in Qualitative Inquiry; David Moss, Presidents Panel: Former NERA Presidents Discuss Educational Research; and Tom Levine & David Moss, Making the Most Out of Life in Academia: Insiders Share Their Secrets.

Marijke Kehrhahn, along with Susan Payne, Rene Roselle, Rebecca Eckert and Robin Hands, helped plan the 2011 Annual Conference of the National Network for Educational Renewal (NNER) at the Hilton Hotel in Hartford. Also, thanks to Neag staff members, Donalyn Maneggia and Lisa Rasicot, for their support. This year’s participation was sponsored by the Teachers for a New Era @ UCONN. Neag has been a member of the NNER for many years and this year, Neag co-hosted the conference with the City University of New York, Montclair State, and the University of Southern Maine.

Larry Armstrong gave a presentation in Beijing, China at a meeting sponsored by the Chinese Nutrition Society and the Center for Disease Control & Prevention.

Sandy Bell, co-authored an article, “The role of analogy-guided learning experiences in enhancing students’ clinical decision-making skills.” Journal of Nursing Education. She also co-presented “Learning to be human: An introduction to mirror neurons” at the 2011 AAACE Conference, Indianapolis, IN.

Richard Bohannon was identified by Physical Therapy as: 1) the most frequently published author in Physical Therapy, 2) author of the most frequently cited article in Physical Therapy, 3) author of three of the 20 most cited articles in Physical Therapy, and 4) author of the 14th most cited reference in Physical Therapy.

Laura Burton co-published a study in the Journal of Sport Management, which was quoted in College Sports Business News.

Doug Casa received a “5 STAR review” by Doody’s Review Service for his book Preventing Sudden Death in Sport and Physical Activity. Doody’s Book Reviews collects information on approximately 3,000 titles each year from over 250 of the world’s leading publishers of professional level healthcare publications. Doody’s sends its reviews to more than 300,000 healthcare and health information professionals through a weekly e-mail service and personalized web pages. Overall, only 8% of the titles ever receive five stars.

Casey Cobb did a review of Both Sides Now: The Story of School Desegregation’s Graduates by Amy Stuart Wells et al. Education Review, retrieved from http://www.edrev.info/reviews/rev1109.pdf. He also conducted a review of “The Obama Education Blueprint: Researchers Examine the Evidence,” Democracy and Education Available at: http://democracyeducationjournal.org/home/vol19/iss1/14 Cobb was invited to the National Education Policy Center Fellows Meeting at the University of Colorado and he has become a member of a research advisory committee for the National Coalition on School Diversity.

Cristina Colon-Semenza has officially passed her Neurologic Certified Specialist (NCS) exam. She joins a very select group of only nine specialists in the state of Connecticut (and UConn now has two of them!). She has worked tirelessly to achieve this goal and her hard work and dedication have truly paid off.  Congratulations Cristina!

Morgaen Donaldson co-wrote (in press). “Coaching for Instructional Improvement: Conditions and Strategies that Matter.” The Cambridge Handbook of Implementation Science for Educational Psychology.

Robin Grenier wrote “Taking the lead: A qualitative study of expert docent characteristics.” Museum Management and Curatorship.

Doug Kaufman and David Moss have received notification from Routledge Education Journals that their article published in The Teacher Educator (Volume 45, Issue 2, 2010) titled, “A New Look at Preservice Teachers’ Conceptions of Classroom Management and Organization: Uncovering Complexity and Dissonance,” was their most downloaded article published last year and has been included in the ‘Routledge Education Class of 2011’ Campaign.

Tammy Kolbe’s manuscript entitled, “And They’re Off: Tracking Federal Race to the Top Investments from the Starting Gate” was accepted by Educational Policy.

Jennifer Lease Butts wrote “Stewardship practices at the University of Connecticut,” Advancing Undergraduate Research. She was also named a member of ACPA’s Books and Media Review Board and she delivered a professional development workshop on Creativity for the Department of the Student Union.

Kimberly LeChasseur and Casey Cobb presented “The meaning of ‘community’ in community collaboration for educational change.”  Paper presentation at the National Network for Educational Change Annual Conference in Hartford.

Kimberly LeChasseur, Anysia Mayer, Casey Cobb, & Morgaen Donaldson, presented “Democratic data values: Professional learning communities in six urban elementary schools.”  Paper presentation at the National Network for Educational Change Annual Conference in Hartford.

Carl Maresh, Doug Casa and some graduate assistants went to Hawaii for a Timex research study at the Ironman World Competition.

David Moss was recognized by the National Education Research Association (NERA) with the Leo D. Dorothy Memorial Award, the highest award from the organization. The Leo D. Doherty Memorial Award is given to a NERA member who exemplifies the qualities that Leo Doherty brought to NERA members, his colleagues, and students over his longstanding career. The award, instituted by the NERA Board of Directors in 1981, honors the memory of Leo Doherty. Moss is a past-president of the association and active member for many years.

Joe Renzulli was awarded an honorary doctorate from the Universidad Camilo Jose Cela in Spain for his “intellectual contribution to the world of educative ideas by establishing a new theory about highly gifted students.”

Eliana Rojas traveled to Chili this summer on a Fulbright. Also, Rojas has been asked by the U.S. Embassy to represent U.S. Leadership at two International Experts Seminars on Non-Traditional Teacher Education and Professional Development Programs, one in Chile and one in Colombia.

Yuhang Rong was a featured speaker for the Connecticut State University’s 2011 Spring Conference Series. His presentation on “When Diversity Is Bad: Different Standards Lead to Unequal Educational Opportunities” kicked off the Conference Series.

Sue Saunders co-authored an article “Efficacy of orientation for new student affairs professionals.” College Student Affairs Journal.

Sue Saunders and Jennifer Lease Butts co-wrote “Teaching integrity.” Advancing the integrity of professional practice. New Directions for Student Services.

Jeff Volek co-authored a new book The Art and Science of Low Carbohydrate Living. This is a follow up on the New Atkins for a New You which after a year continues to be in the New York Times Top 10 in the Paperback Advice and Misc category. This new book goes into more depth and is more targeted at healthcare professionals.

Dr. Michael Alfano has Been Promoted to Executive Director of Teacher Education Programs at the Neag School

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Photo credit: Shawn Kornegay
Photo credit: Shawn Kornegay

Dr. Michael Alfano has been promoted to executive director of teacher preparation programs in the Neag School of Education at UConn to take over for Dr. Wendy Glenn who is returning to a teaching role within the Neag School. In his new role, he will be responsible for overseeing the Office of Teacher Education, along with directing the Integrated Bachelor/Master’s Teacher Preparation Program and  Teacher Certification Program for College Graduates (TCPCG).  In his prior position at the Neag School, Dr. Alfano was an associate professor-in-residence and director of the TCPCG program where he has served since 2004.

“We’re thrilled that Dr. Alfano has accepted the new role,” said Dr. Tom DeFranco, dean of the Neag School of Education. “He has done an exceptional job with the TCPCG program and has had a successful career at the Neag School that will help elevate the Teacher Education Unit.”

“I am incredibly excited and fortunate to have the opportunity to work so closely with such a talented and committed group of students, faculty and staff,” said Dr. Alfano. “I am looking forward to helping to continue the Neag School of Education’s long-standing tradition of excellence in preparing highly effective professional educators.”

Dr. Alfano first joined UConn in 1998 as a learning specialist at the University Program for College Students with Learning Disabilities. He went on to conduct research in learning disabilities and was a graduate assistant in the Office of Special Education while he was earning a Ph.D. in special education from the Neag School. He later joined the Neag School of Education as project co-director GEAR-UP and then was promoted to an assistant professor-in-residence in educational psychology. In addition to his Ph.D., Dr. Alfano earned a M.Ed. in reading and learning disabilities from DePaul and a B.S. in history and social science from Southern Connecticut State University.

His areas of expertise include learning disabilities, special education, reading education and teacher education. Dr. Alfano has had funding with the National Science Foundation and been published in numerous journals, along with active involvement in the reading and special education communities. Dr. Alfano has also been an assistant professor in special education and reading at Southern Connecticut State University and served in the U.S. Marine Corps.

Neag Grad Sharon White Appointed as Stamford Campus Director

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Sharon White, director of the Stamford Campus. (Peter Morenus/UConn Photo)
Sharon White, director of the Stamford Campus. (Peter Morenus/UConn Photo)

Sharon White has been appointed the director of UConnʼs Stamford campus, following an extensive national search. White has served as the interim head of the campus for the past year, and her appointment is effective immediately.

“Sharon has provided outstanding leadership of the campus, including managing its academic programs, the campus budget, fundraising, community outreach and engagement, and faculty and student relationships,” says Douglas Cooper, vice provost for undergraduate education and the regional campuses. “Additionally, she has developed important relationships within the community among business and legislative leaders. Her fundraising and entrepreneurial activities have increased scholarship funding for campus students and support for programs.”

White has been with UConn for more than 30 years, beginning in 1980 as coordinator for the Center for Academic Programs at the Stamford campus. Prior to her position as interim campus director, she worked to address both retention of students and the quality of student life at the Stamford campus. She has served on both educational and community boards, and has presented extensively at professional conferences.

White holds a B.A. in English education from UConnʼs School of Education, now the Neag School of Education; an M.A. in higher education/student administration and counseling, also from UConn; and an Ed.D. in higher education/student personnel administration from Columbia University. She completed a summer fellowship at the 2010 Peabody Professional Institute for Higher Education Management at Vanderbilt University. She also was the recipient of the UConn “Women of Color” recognition award for 2007, 2008, and 2009, and the ACE Office of Women in Higher Educationʼs “Advancing Women in Leadership” award in 2007.

UConn has had a regional campus in Stamford since 1955 and the campus has been at its current location in downtown Stamford since 1998. More than 1,700 undergraduate and graduate students attend classes at the campus, which offers a variety of majors including American studies, business administration, business and technology, economics, English, human development and family studies, history, political science, psychology, general studies, and professional studies.

Nearly 100 faculty members and staff are based on the campus.

Let’s Aim Beyond Standards

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Stock image: classroom Raised by my grandparents, I grew up in China. After every major exam, my school ranked every student. No matter how well I did, I was never the No. 1 kid in the class, and my grandmother never seemed satisfied. One day after she scolded me again for only scoring 96 on a math test instead of a perfect 100, I resentfully asked her, “Why can’t everyone be number one?” She looked at me with an all-knowing smile and said, “If everyone is number one, then no one is number one.”

After almost 25 years of academic training and a professional education career in the United States (including 15 years as a naturalized American citizen), I notice that in current education achievement debates in this country, we often hear the phrase “high standards.” We hear politicians and commentators sound the alarm that the United States will soon fall behind those nations whose students achieve higher scores in mathematics, the sciences, and reading. And the persistent achievement gap between our minority and white students raises the question of fundamental fairness and equity, with no clear resolution in place.

With the high-stakes accountability measures at hand, as a result of the No Child Left Behind Act, teachers, administrators, and parents are collectively relieved if their schools are not on the “in need of improvement” list. Schools work hard to ensure that their students score at or above the state-defined proficiency level. Once the majority of students have attained the level of proficiency in standardized tests, their school receives accolades as a model “improved school.” Everyone is happy, because everyone is content with being good enough.

The concept behind federal legislation like NCLB is that it ensures that all children have only the minimal knowledge, skills, and disposition to be contributing members of society. Parents often hold on to the notion that they want their children to be “happy” and “enjoy their childhood.” It is much easier for us to reward our children with video games, iPhones, or new cars than it is to push them. It seems to me that, as Americans, we are missing the point. Shouldn’t we be asking if this the goal for which America should aim?

While Amy Chua’s “tiger mother” approach to raising her two daughters provoked us for her tactics and her definition of success, she captured the essential ingredients of education: Learning must be challenging, and achievement is a result of relentlessly high expectations. In other words, achievement requires commitment and dedication. As American educators, it is how we help our children reach for the stars that will distinguish our future generations from the rest of the world. What are the key aspects of aiming high? Can achievement be successfully married to a happy, healthy childhood?

First, parents must be involved in their children’s education. In order to stay at the top of the knowledge economy, America must produce innovators and inventors who will create the “next big thing.” American businesses and industries are increasingly concerned with the lack of talent in mathematics and the sciences in the workforce.

Not uncoincidentally, corporations like Intel are investing $100 million in education annually. Parents are the most effective group in affecting local education curriculum, and their role should not be discounted. Parents should demand that those who are responsible for curriculum in their local school districts articulate how their curricular standards compare with those of the top-performing schools at home and abroad. Parents should take an active role in their local school boards and demand that educational expectations rise above the baseline.

Second, educators must recognize that the proficiency is not negotiable. Educators must accept the fact that all children need to be proficient in mathematics, the sciences, and language literacy at levels appropriate to their development. They should understand and use measures developed through valid and reliable psychometric assessments to gauge student achievement. There should be opportunities for educators to work with parents to ensure there are additional curricular mechanisms and after-school activities to stimulate the intellectual curiosity and desire for achievement of their students. Talent is developed by using effective means to push a learner’s limits.

Third, state regulators and legislators should move beyond their single-minded focus on the traditional compliance model of enforcing policies and standards. Traditionally, the state has measured quality educator-preparation programs by counting course credits and reviewing course syllabi, and not much attention has been placed on student learning outcomes. State agencies must adapt to new ways of measuring student and teacher-candidate competencies. And they must ensure that staff members have the expertise in learning theories, assessment, and evaluation practices so that they can articulate to their community, which includes education-preparation faculty, parents, teachers, and students, the critical importance of a challenging and rigorous curriculum.

Finally, let’s not forget the students. They hold the greatest power to affect the outcome of their learning. Twenty-first century skills require our students to be productive citizens with a global perspective. Perhaps one of the ways to foster this could be for our students to learn what their international peers are mastering in mathematics, the sciences, and language arts. For traditionally disadvantaged students, it is America’s collective responsibility to give them hope by ensuring equal educational expectations and educational opportunities. Every community should expect its children to achieve beyond “good enough.”

Many major international corporations and firms have already outsourced their operations to countries outside the United States. It is true that better tax incentives and lower labor costs are major factors in these decisions. But no one should discount this fact: The overseas workforce, particularly in Asia, is more motivated and better educated than our own. The top graduates from our colleges and universities are being drained to foreign countries. This has created a tremendous challenge for medium to small businesses in the United States: How can they be competitive if they do not have the best workforce?

From district to district in this great nation, people are concerned about the economy and the impact it is having on school budgets. While it is important that we are fiscally conservative, we must also define what it means to be high-achieving and invest our resources accordingly. As a nation, there is no option for us to be left behind, or bullied by others. We must ensure that our children demand more of themselves.

When I was in the 1st grade, my classmates played in the neighborhood after school while I was forced to sit inside with my grandmother so that I could learn English. After hearing my constant complaints about this extra work, she said, “One day, you will thank me.” In fact, I do owe her an enormous debt of gratitude. She was the single most important factor in my education, growth, and success.

Our children will thank us, too, if we consistently ask them to aim high.

 

Yuhang Rong is the assistant dean at the Neag School of Education at the University of Connecticut. He lived in China from birth until the age of 24. He currently serves on the board of examiners for the National Council for Accreditation of Teacher Education.

This article appeared as a commentary in Education Week on July 8, 2011.

Compression Suits Provide Competitive Advantage

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To be the best, athletes are always searching for a competitive edge on and off the playing field. A new study by Professor of Kinesiology William Kraemer of the Neag School of Education shows that wearing a full-body compression suit is one way athletes can improve their performance even while they rest.

Known as “recovery wear,” these high-tech garments are engineered to contour to the body using strategic compression in order to help tired and worn muscles heal more quickly.

The garments are specifically designed to hug areas of soft tissue (quadriceps, calf muscles, and upper body muscles) that can be damaged during a rigorous workout or athletic activity. The flexible, tight-fitting fabric helps repair soft tissues by immobilizing muscle fibers to decrease swelling and regulate fluid buildup inside the body. Researchers say that such stabilization of muscles and joints rejuvenates the body better than traditional methods involving icing and rest alone.

The garments work best when they are worn directly after exercise. In this study subjects wore the suits for 24 hours after a workout. Since the suits are both lightweight and comfortable, it is possible to wear them under clothing and while sleeping, when the body does most of its repairing.

“Our bodies are always in repair mode,” Kraemer says “We are constantly repairing and remolding all the time, especially after a workout.”

One commercial line of recovery wear – the Under Armour ® RechargeTM whole body compression suit – is constructed to produce needed compression and to allow long term wear with comfort. It is made of 75% nylon and 25% spandex.

All compressive garments are not the same and it is important there is enough spandex or Lycra in the garment if it is to be more than just a fashion statement, Kraemer says. Many people have worn garments that are tight and contain spandex, such as the workout clothes of the 1980’s, but that clothing had low amounts of spandex or Lycra and was worn more for fashion, than for performance and/or recovery purposes, Kraemer says.

The whole-body compression suit represents one of the latest applications of compression technology in sport and exercise. Early applications of the technology often involved athletic trainers taping or bandaging for example, an injured muscle or sprained ankle. This was to help support the weakened tissue. This same principle now is being used to assist healthy athletes with muscle recovery.

Kraemer began looking into the benefits of garment compression and their effect on athlete performance in the late 1980’s when he was a professor at Penn State University. His research has shown that compression technology is helpful in aiding athletes’ performance under fatiguing conditions of all types. It also helps athletes improve their stability and reduces the oscillatory movement of muscle when impacting the ground during running and jumping.

“We found that when part of your body hits the ground while wearing a compression garment, there would be a reduction in the oscillation of the muscles, which resulted in lower amounts of muscle damage,” says Kraemer. “Furthermore, our research in the area of compression and soft tissue damage helped us develop this idea of using compression for recovery purposes after typical hard workouts or competition. We knew it would help recovery from dramatic eccentric muscle injury but were less sure about its potential benefits in relation to the normal workouts athletes perform all of the time. That theoretical concept had not yet been fully explored.”

Kraemer’s research also served as the inspiration for the popular Under Armour ® sports performance apparel company. While giving a lecture on his compression research in 1995, one of those in attendance was Kevin Plank, who would go on to launch Under Armour ®. Plank was a student athlete at the University of Maryland at the time, where he played football and had the idea of using compression to create a tight fitting t-shirt a player could wear under shoulder pads that would not collect sweat and weigh the player down.

As the story goes, Plank found Kraemer’s research on compression technology very interesting; it was something that he had been looking for, an edge in his game. He also found it to be a potential business opportunity. Plank began buying lingerie material and making compression shirts for athletes, all from his grandmother’s basement. This small business idea turned into Under Armour ®, which is today an industry leader in athletic apparel and considered the pioneer of compression clothing. Under Armour ® became the first company to use Kraemer’s theory on the value of compression for workout recovery and supported a grant to test its efficacy.

“Dr. Kraemer is a leader in innovation and one of the world1s top compression garment experts,” says Plank, founder and chief executive officer of Under Armour ®. “It’s an honor to continue to work with him to develop cutting-edge technologies like the UnderArmour ® Recharge suits that are designed to help athletes recover faster.”

In his latest study, Kraemer recruited 11 highly resistance-trained women and nine highly-resistance trained men. The participants were asked to perform an intense resistance training workout regimen that included back squats, bench press, stationary lunge, dead lift, bicep curls, sit-ups, and high pulls. They were closely monitored during the workouts.

After the workouts, the participants in the study were required to wear a whole-body compression garment for 24 hours. The study involved extensive controls for diet, hydration and activity.

“This research was under highly controlled conditions,” says Kraemer. “We tried to control everything so that any treatment effect of an intervention could be seen. Looking for the efficacy of a treatment requires a highly controlled laboratory environment.”

The students were evaluated after the 24-hour period measuring a host of different physical and biological variables. Questionnaires, ultrasounds, blood samples and measurements of muscle circumference were taken and compared to the results obtained prior to the experiment. These data were then compared with their own control conditions where they did not wear a full-body compression recovery suit. The study found that, “in both men and women, compressive garments influenced positive effects on recovery in various physiological and performance profiles.”

Ultrasounds taken to determine swelling were significantly lower in the thigh of participants who used the compression garment compared to their control conditions of no suit, according to the study results. Also, vitality rating, fatigue rating, and generalized muscle soreness were all lower than that of the control condition. Overall, the study said, the suit performed to its potential in testing and the findings proved a more rapid recovery of selected psychological, perceptual, physiological, and performance variables.

In addition to his role as professor of kinesiology in the Neag School of Education, Kraemer also holds appointments as professor of physiology and neurobiology in the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences and as professor of medicine at the UConn Health Center. In 2009, he was the recipient of the UConn Alumni Association’s Faculty Research Excellence Award in Science. The award is given to one faculty member at the University each year for prolific career records in scholarship, grant work, and publications

Neag’s Dr. Pescatello Provides Insight Into Genomics Role On Exercise Performance

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Linda Pescatello's book Linda S. Pescatello recently published Exercise Genomics, the first book of its kind to provide an extensive look into the research development and expert opinion on genetics and genomics across a range of exercise-related traits, including exercise performance, health-related fitness and physical activity.

The book emphasizes the analyses and comprehension of researchers from around the world on the past, present and future of exercise genomics. Dr. Pescatello is a professor in the Department of Kinesiology and Human Performance Laboratory at UConn’s Neag School of Education.

“This book is important because how a person responds to an exercise intervention is determined to a considerable extent by their genes,” said Dr. Pescatello. “Understanding how genes influence our weight, muscles, risk for certain diseases and exercise performance is critical to how best to prescribe exercise to maximize the health and fitness-related benefits of participation in physical activity and exercise programs.”

Dr. Pescatello’s text is tailored toward clinicians, health/fitness professionals and researchers looking to gain knowledge from new findings in the field, as well as evaluate unanswered questions regarding genomics effects on performance, metabolism, cardiovascular disease risk factors and more. Students and professionals will acquire a broad foundation on the subject, research methods and data.

“The ultimate goal of work in this area is ‘personalized medicine,’ which uses genetic information to tailor exercise interventions to maximize health outcomes. However, it is a general consensus of the expert contributors to this book that due to the significant challenges of research in this area that a personalized approach to exercise prescription is still a promise of the future rather than a reality of the present,” said Dr. Pescatello.

For more information, contact Dr. Pescatello at linda.pescatello@uconn.edu.

Scientific Breakthrough at Greenwich High School

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Stock image: science class“This is likely to be the most significant building block that these students will have in science,” said Dr. David Moss, an associate professor at the Neag School of Education at UConn, who specializes in environmental education, teacher education, international and cross-cultural learning, and curriculum studies.

Moss is referring to the new Integrated Science class being offered for the first time in September to Greenwich High School freshmen. About 100 9th-graders are set to take the class in its inaugural year, which will meet seven times in a cycle and includes an additional lab.

Initially, the district projected four sections of the class, however, due to the number of students who have subscribed, there will be five sections this fall. The course was presented to the Board of Education at the Nov. 4, 2010 meeting and approved it unanimously 8-0 two weeks later.

According to the course description, Integrated Science at GHS is a “timely and innovative course (which) will offer students rigorous learning opportunities across the life, physical and Earth sciences by providing engaging and authentic experiences in the interdisciplinary connections which bridge science and society.” The class is meant to present different fields of science, not isolated concepts, and give students the opportunity to work hands-on with materials.

Certainly the class has a different appeal versus other classes and its availability was communicated last year to parents through middle school presentations and to students via their teachers.

The initiative to develop the Integrated Science course came as a result of a wish to increase student interest in science as well as to create a course, which had better alignment with the state science standards. A final contributor was an analysis of the Science CAPT trends over the last five school years, which failed to show progress in scores.

In creating the class, the district looked at other school districts but was not impressed with what they found. The title “integrated science” is not a new one and there are many such courses throughout the State of Connecticut.

However, the curricula in those classes mainly offer sections of biology, chemistry and physical science, for example; teaching science in silos rather than true integration. There are also several canned curriculas out there, which are marketed as integrated science, but not in the manner in which Greenwich was looking.

John DeLuca, GHS science program administrator and an advanced placement biology teacher in Clark House, was one of the lead facilitators in the creation of the new course. DeLuca was joined by fellow GHS science teachers Aimee Farnum (Sheldon House), Jason Goldstein (Cantor House), John Vellardito (Sheldon House) along with District Program Coordinator for Science, Sheila Civale and

Moss, who directs the Neag School of Education London Study Abroad program and pursues a reform-minded research agenda throughout Connecticut as well as in London, England, consults for districts that show what he believes is a real commitment to science.

Fortunately, he has been doing so with Greenwich since 2009. TLast school year, Moss met with the not only the science teachers at GHS but with those in all three middle schools as well as every 3rd-, 4th- and 5th-grade teacher in Greenwich.

What Moss brings to this equation is, in his words, “the perspective of a scientist and a science professor” as well as being someone that “advised conceptually from the beginning.”

The team met extensively and looked at models from all over the country, including for example the Integrated Science course offered at Princeton University. Moss says that the GHS class is “forging new trails for a high school.” He believes that the Integrated Science class will give the students a “scientific literacy” that will transcend “disconnected factoids of science” and work beyond “traditional disciplinary barriers.”

According the course description, the “four core units of the course: Survival, Human Performance, Space Explorations, and Sustainability, demonstrate to students how science affects their own lives, as well as the global community.”

DeLuca, who is as passionate about the new class as Moss, said that the uniqueness of the class lays in the lessons themselves. In the Survival unit for example, “students will be measuring the effectiveness of water purification utilizing different mechanisms such as an UV lamp, different filters as well as a variety of chemicals. The students will conduct experiments in different ways to purify water and determine if the water has been sanitized and how to measure the levels of purification.

In the Sports and Human Performance unit, DeLuca explains that one of the lessons will examine different types of sports drinks. The beverages will be analyzed for their various levels of electrolyte stimulus and its impact on the body.

Another groundbreaking aspect of the class is in textbook. Moss said that there are many integrated science books on the market that offer one- third life science, one-third physical science and one-third earth science, which is really not the kind of integration that Greenwich was looking for. Both Moss and DeLuca expressed the difficultly in finding a textbook that met the need of the class. So, they determined that they would need to create their own, resulting in a custom designed textbook published by Pearson Publishing.

In addition to a custom made curriculum and textbook, the students will be utilizing the latest technology as well. The GHS PTA very generously bought 80 iPADs for the students taking the Integrated Science class, which will be incorporated into the daily activities of the course.

While Integrated Science is strategically aligned with CAPT standards, the course is “rich with inquiry-oriented activities, where students collect, analyze and share data with each other, as well as with an international network of schools and scientists.” As well as its better alignment with CAPT standards, Moss believes this class is cutting edge.

In fact, on July 19, the National Academy of Sciences released a new report to guide K-12 science education in which they call for a shift in the way science is taught in the United States. The report identifies “key scientific ideas and practices all students should learn by the end of high school.” The framework will “serve as the foundation for new K-12 science education standards, to replace those issued more than a decade ago,” according to the National Academy of Sciences website.

Moss said the new GHS class definitely puts Greenwich High School in the “top percentiles of forward thinking high schools” and it is in “bold steps” like this class that we will really yield achievement. GHS has great success with its advance science classes, but Moss and others have asked, what about the hundreds of other students who are not in those classes?

Integrated Science is meant to engage those students and help them to achieve. A bold step, which may result in some true break-through learning for the 100 students who have decided to enroll in the course.

DeLuca adds that “students will have the opportunity to take the honors option,” which will have additional curricular expectations and allow the students to receive honors credit for the course. DeLuca also shares that the introduction of Integrated Science will have a ripple effect at GHS as the District is also “developing an honors Biochemistry class for students who took Integrated Science their freshman year and want an honors level class their sophomore year.”

Reprinted with permission from the Greenwich Patch.