College News Fall 2012
This is a year of transitions for the College of Education. We couldn’t anticipate that when Dr. Sue Schmitt stepped down last summer that we would be mourning her in the fall. That loss has been significant for all of us as we expected that we would have Dr. Schmitt with us for years in her capacity as a faculty member of the College. She was a brilliant and tireless leader who brought the College into new programs and directions throughout her 16 years as dean. We will miss her greatly.
In this first full quarter of my role as interim dean, I'm finding much to celebrate and look forward to as we build on past successes. Our newly designed doctoral program launched this year with 14 leaders. The Principal and Superintendent Certificate programs are growing, as are our Community and School Counseling programs. The Student Development Administration program continues to be a nationally recognized destination program that attracts applicants from around the country. In the year ahead, the college will fully launch its Middle College partnership with Seattle Public Schools and the Adult Education and Training program is launching a new focus around workforce development to workplace learning.
Our TESOL program hosted educators from Korea this past summer and is building on those relationships to reach out and attract students from around the world. The Masters in Teaching program is serving 37 new future teachers this fall, and this continues to be a major community outreach for the college. In addition to all of this, we are conducting searches for new faculty and our new dean. We will update you on all this and more in future editions of this newsletter. We also hope that you'll share this newsletter with others. We consider you ambassadors to let our regional, national, and global communities know of the work we're doing. We especially want you to share this with others who may be looking for a dynamic graduate degree that prepares them to be ethical leaders for a just and humane world.
College Mourns Dr. Sue Schmitt
Professor and former dean, Sue Schmitt, Ed.D, passed away on Friday, September 28, 2012. Dr. Schmitt stepped down as dean on July 31, 2012, after 16 years of leadership. She touched many lives during her remarkable career as an administrator, educator and scholar. The Dr. Sue A. Schmitt Scholarship Fund has been established to honor her memory and the legacy she has left at Seattle University. The fund will support the academic advancement of underrepresented students enrolled in the College of Education, a commitment that Dr. Schmitt championed during the course of her career. Please click here or contact Seattle University at 206-296-1896 if you are interested in contributing to this fund. READ MORE
Middle College High School Opens at Seattle University
This fall, Seattle Public Schools opened its fifth Middle College High School, and it is housed at Seattle University’s Loyola Hall. Middle College is an alternative high school program, offering a smaller learning environment with individualized attention to students who are motivated to graduate. The partnership will give many undergraduate and graduate students at Seattle University, most particular, those in the College of Education, many opportunities to have hands-on experiences putting theory into practice. LEARN MORE
Thirty-seven teachers from South Korea spent four weeks at Seattle University this summer. These elementary and secondary teachers were learning instructional pedagogy from an American point of view and polishing their skills as teachers of English as a second language. Dr. Jian Yang, program director for the SU Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages (TESOL), and Associate Dean, Dr. SusanEllen Bacon, designed the program with faculty at Keimyung University Foreign Language Institute Division of International Education in Daegu, Korea.
“We are thrilled to have had the opportunity to be a part of their development and growth as teachers,” says Dr. Bacon. “Seattle is a perfect city for an international learning experience, and we would like to bring similar groups to our campus in the future.”
The four-week immersion course at SU is the culmination of a three-month course for the teachers. They lived in residence halls on campus, attended classes (many of which were taught by SU TESOL alumni), and participated in off-campus activities such as a Duck Tour of Seattle and a visit to nearby Northwest School. This is the first program of its kind hosted by the College of Education. For more information about the TESOL program, please contact Dr. Yang at 206-296-2682.
Dr. Amy Rose has been named the William Allen Endowed Chair and Distinguished Professor, a position sponsored by the Boeing Company. Now a retired professor of Adult and Higher Education at Northern Illinois University, Dr. Rose will serve in her current role throughout the 2012-13 academic year. Dr. Rose is a nationally recognized academic who has contributed extensively to the field of adult education. She will share her expertise as a guest lecturer in classrooms as well as participate in faculty and community presentations where she will share her research. She will provide campus faculty advice on effective practices in teaching adult learners. Dr. Rose will also continue her research exploring the experience of adult refugee and immigrant learners and plans to host a national webinar during the spring term.
Nicaragua Service Experience offered for Alumni
Dr. Mary Amanda Graham and Dr. Kristi Lee are inviting any counseling alumni to participate in a seven-day global service learning experience. Participants will have direct experience working with families and individuals in rural Nicaragua. The group will host community workshops with local social service organizations and institutions, meet with community members and visit local educational facilities. The deadline for application is December 7. For more information, contact Dr. Mary Amanda Graham or call 253-820-9709.
Members of the 36th cohort of the Educational Leadership Doctoral Program (EDLR) began coursework this summer. The revised program has attracted leaders from across a variety of occupations: Carolyn Poterek, Evangelical Covenant Minister, Dan Nwaelele, King County’s Health and Safety Administrator and Cessa Heard-Johnson, Dean of Diversity, Retention, & Student Leadership at South Seattle Community College are just a few of the 14 leaders in the program.
“We are thrilled to have leaders from a variety of industries,” says Laurie Stevahn, program director. “The students tell us that surrounding themselves with thought leaders from a variety of industries is one of the most enriching learning components of the program.”
Applications for Cohort 37, which begins in Summer 2013, are being accepted through April 1. Priority deadline is December 15, 2012. LEARN MORE
The second Urgency and School Change Conference will be held on campus from March 20-22, 2013. This is a unique, small conference for K-8 educators ready to invest in change in the district, school, and classroom, in literacy instruction, teaching and learning, leading and coaching. Participants will have an opportunity to work with Regie Routman, an internationally respected educator and author with more than 40 years of experience teaching, coaching and leading in diverse schools across the United States and Canada.
At this conference, Regie and her colleagues will focus on ways to:
- Implement the Common Core State Standards in a way that puts students first
- Apply highly effective literacy and leadership practices
- Raise and sustain literacy achievement across the curriculum
- Decrease the number of students who need intervention
- Develop a school culture that is collaborative, trusting, and professionally vibrant
- Establish ongoing professional learning communities that build shared beliefs; view, discuss, and apply “best” reading and writing practices
Plan your school’s next steps with targeted help from Regie and her talented colleagues. School teams are encouraged to attend, and registration is limited. LEARN MORE
Dr. Carol Weaver,
who founded the Adult Education and Training Program (AEDT) more than
23 years ago, will be retiring this fall. The AEDT program is hosting a
celebration of her career as well as launching a new focus for the
program: Workforce to Workplace, on Friday, November 16. Photos of the event will be posted soon on the College of Education website.
Dr. Bethany Plett has joined the Master in Teaching (MIT) program where she will bring her vast expertise in English Language Instruction to a variety of programs in the College of Education. Dr. Plett has most recently been an online ELL instructor and a high school ELL teacher for Highline School District’s Academy of Citizenship and Empowerment. She has also provided instructional coaching to science and social studies teachers to create curriculum for sheltered English immersion content area classes. Dr. Plett has co-authored several publications and has presented nationally on English language testing and ELL programs in high schools. She received her MA in TESOL at Seattle Pacific University and her Ph.D in Educational Curriculum and Instruction at Texas A&M with a focus on the Inclusion of English Language Learners in Conversation Small Schools.
The Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages (TESOL) program welcomes Dr. Jeom Ja Yeo. Dr. Yeo received her Ph.D. at the University of Washington where she has been an instructor in the ELL endorsement and TESOL program for pre-service and in-service teachers. She has also been teaching in Seattle University’s TESOL program as an adjunct professor for the past two years to which she brought her expertise in pedagogical content knowledge in EFL/ESL/ELF education. Dr. Yeo has been involved in many educational research projects. Recently she participated in a large-scale, statewide research study on Asian American and Pacific Islander student achievement gaps in Washington State. She also conducted a case study on Filipino immigrant ELL learners' school adaptation and identity construction. Her research interests are situated in the fields of second language learning and teaching with special attention to transnational identity construction and language socialization.
Gail Goulet joins the Adult Education and Training faculty. Gail has been teaching at Western Washington University in the Education and Community Leadership Division. She is a doctoral candidate in Adult, Higher and Continuing Education at the University of Glasgow, Scotland. Gail has been president and CEO of the Career Connections Training Centre, Inc. and Data Connect Information Service in Surrey, British Columbia. She has written about and presented on a wide variety of research topics around adult education around the world, including: developing curriculum for police officers and firefighters, service learning, adult literacy education in Scotland, the impact of community based learning and adult education response to disaster.
Based on more than two decades of experience as a special education teacher and behavioral specialist, Dr. Bridget Walker (MIT) and her colleague, Dr. Douglas Cheney from the University of Washington, have published a guidebook and assessment tool to help schools become more effective learning environments. The manual provides a set of action-oriented items and strategies to enhance Positive Behavior Interventions and Supports (PBIS) and provides educators with the process for having effective team conversations while monitoring their PBIS implementation. The manual is the first of its kind to match strategies with a team assessment to help improve instructional approaches for students’ social behavior. READ MORE
Dr. Katherine Schlick Noe’s young adult novel, Something to Hold (Clarion Books), is a 2012 Washington State Book Award winner! The book, based on her own childhood experiences living on Indian Reservations in Washington and Oregon, was published in December 2011. Dr. Schlick Noe is the program director for Literacy for Special Needs. READ MORE
Student News
Cassandra Rodriguez, a student in the Master in Teaching Program and a Martinez Fellow, inspired an audience of more than 700 at the 29th Annual Seattle University Gala on November 3 when she shared her gratitude for the scholarships which have afforded her an SU education. The gala raised more than $652,000 for student scholarships.
Rodriguez shared her family’s hard work ethic that helped them overcome the struggles associated with immigrating from Mexico. Despite their hard work, the family did not have the resources to send their daughter to Seattle University as an undergraduate.
“When I received my acceptance letter, it contained a scholarship package. This single sheet of paper was proof that people believed in me. The hopes and dreams of my family were made real by the support of generous people who believe in the value of access to education.”
She worked in community schools as an undergrad in the Bachelors for Humanities in Teaching program and saw a need for high quality teachers who have passion to prepare students not just for graduation but for life. She knew then that she had been called to be a high school math teacher, and she knew she wanted to continue her preparation at through the College of Education at Seattle University.
“My Masters in Teaching program is preparing me to be an intentional teacher, and as a Martinez fellow, I am provided the resources to succeed as a teacher of color.”
The Martinez Foundation, established by Edgar and Holli Martinez, provides need-based diversity scholarships and support programs to empower students from underrepresented populations to not only pursue higher education for their own benefit, but also positively impact the students and communities they serve.
Rodriguez wants to teach math to at-risk youth. “I will infuse life skills into math’s critical thinking exercises. To me, the way you respond to math reflects your preparedness to engage in life’s challenges. In math class, students learn the reward of perseverance while being given a safe space to practice the life skill of breaking down a seemingly impossible problem into a series of navigable smaller problems.”
Her call to serve those who are underserved made Seattle University a perfect fit for her.
“My time at Seattle U has allowed me so many opportunities to challenge who I am and how I want to give back to my community. I quickly came to see that my ultimate challenge was not determining how I would benefit from my own education, but how my education would benefit those I serve.”
Upcoming Events
March 20-22 Urgency and Change Conference
Share Your News
Do you have a story idea, noteworthy achievement or news you'd like to share with the College of Education? Please email Paula Hermann!