College of Education
Previous issues of Monday Report are at http://www.emich.edu/coe/monday. Send items and comments to vpolite@emich.edu.
FROM THE DESK OF THE DEAN
Welcome to the start of another academic year within the College of Education. As with all beginnings, this year promises to be replete with opportunities to grow and learn from one another.
We have the unparalleled challenge of opening the College this academic year against a backdrop of the worst natural disaster to ever impact this nation. Please know that I join our faculty, students, and staff extending heartfelt expressions of hope to those who have been impacted by the Hurricane Katrina disaster in Alabama, Louisiana, and Mississippi.
History will, no doubt, record not only the devastation of Hurricane Katrina but also how well and how quickly the American public responded to the challenges and needs of its fellow countrymen—the time to respond is now! Eastern Michigan University’s College of Education, under the leadership of Dr. Patricia Williams-Boyd, Dr. Jackie Tracy, Ms. Susan Rink and colleagues, has initiated “Project Backpack” to help provide school supplies to hurricane victims as they arrive at schools in other states during their period of transition. The College of Education has collected backpacks filled with school supplies to be delivered to East Baton Rouge Parish Schools during the week of September 18, 2005. Specific supply lists can be obtained by sending an email to projectbackpack@emich.edu or calling 734.487.7120, ext. 2737. Monetary donations also are welcomed. Checks should be made payable to the EMU Foundation with “Project Backpack” in the memo field. Gifts are tax deductible. Special acknowledgement is extended to volunteer team that will deliver the supplies to Baton Rouge including Dr. Nancy Copeland, Dr. Pat Williams-Boyd, Dr. Cristina Jose-Kampfner, Dr. Pamela Smith, and Dr. Ethan Lowenstein and all those persons who contributed to critically important effort including faculty, students, and staff from the Department of Leadership and Counseling, Special Education, and Teacher Education and other offices associated with the College of Education.
I extend special congratulations to each faculty who earned tenure and/or promotion Spring 2005. Their ‘due diligence’ in the areas of teaching, research and service brings notoriety to their respective departments, the College and the University, and themselves.
Vernon C. Polite, Dean
FACULTY NOTES
We offer a warm welcome to those newly hired faculty who are joining the College for the in tenure track positions. The COE is excited about the gifts that you bring to our learning community.
Dr. Brigid Beaubien Department of Teacher Education
Dr. Perry Francis Department of Leadership and Counseling
Dr. Kathleen Hric Department of Special Education
Dr. Kyung Hee Kim Department of Teacher Education
Dr. Myung Koh Department of Special Education
Dr. Gary Marx Department of Leadership and Counseling
Dr. Bette Shelborn Department of Teacher Education
Dr. Pamela Smith Department of Teacher Education
Congratulations to those colleagues listed below who earned continuous tenure. Consideration for tenure means that the faculty member has demonstrated sufficient success in the three areas of teaching, scholarship and service to warrant a belief that such behaviors will continue and improve to a higher order in the future. In essence, the faculty member has demonstrated a record in the three areas that warrants the University’s faith that he/she will continue to contribute
to the well-being of the College of Education and Eastern Michigan University in the future.
Dr. Wendy Burke
Dr. Margo Dichtelmiller
Dr. Deborah Harmon
Dr. Jon Margerum-Leys
Dr. Nelson Maylone
Dr. Mary Rearick
Dr. Eboni Zamani-Gallaher
Dr. Ella Burton
Dr. Ronald Williamson
Warmest congratulations are extended to those colleagues upon their promotion within the College of Education:
Dr. Wendy Burke to Associate Professor, Department of Teacher Education
Areas of teaching: undergraduate and graduate courses in Curriculum and Instruction.
Areas of research: professional development, teacher education, novice teachers, mentoring and induction, teacher communities, and currently school-university partnerships.“My greatest accomplishments so far while on faculty at the COE/EMU has been to become a contributing member of a caring, committed community of teacher educators, maintain a happy and nurturing marriage, and have given birth to Robert and Megan, our two delightful and appropriately overindulged children.”
Dr. Ella Burton to Associate Professor, Department of Leadership and Counseling
Area of Teaching: K - 12 Masters Degree program; coordinates the Specialist Degree Program and teach the Field Based Research class.
Area of Research: 1. diversity; issues as they relate to organizational change and culture; 2. leadership issues as they relate to organizational and personal change in developing school administrators.“I place the highest value and my greatest accomplishment on my teaching and I use research from the field of Educational Leadership as well as my own research to inform my teaching and learning.”
Dr. Margo Dichtelmiller to Associate Professor, Department of Teacher Education
Area of teaching: Early Childhood and Educational Psychology.
Area of research: Attitudes of graduate students concerning lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) issues as part of Project Outreach, funded by the Gill Foundation.“Probably my greatest accomplishment at EMU is receiving one of the Curriculum Diversity fellowships. I used this opportunity to redesign ECE 613 Family, School, Community Partnerships to include a major focus on diverse families and strategies for involving all families in the school. One of my goals is for the students to recognize their own cultural influences, to understand more about other cultures, and to gain the confidence to interact more effectively with families different from their own.”
Dr. Eboni Zamani-Gallaher to Associate Professor, Department of Leadership and Counseling
Area of teaching: Community College Leadership; adjustment and transition of under represented collegians, diversity initiatives in Higher Education, and institutional policies impacting work & family balance.
“I have found a great sense of accomplishment in initiating and coordinating a new Graduate Certificate in Community College Leadership; more pleasing however will be participating in the commencement of the first graduates of the CCL Certificate this fall.”
Dr. Deborah Harmon to Associate Professor, Department of Teacher Education
Area of teaching: Curriculum and instruction; urban education; multicultural education; and gifted education.
Area of research: achievement gap; achievement of culturally diverse populations; developing cultural competency within educators; racial identity; multicultural curriculum development and culturally congruent teaching practices; identification and retention of culturally diverse gifted students.“I have Norman Rockwell's picture of Ruby Bridges being escorted to school by US Marshals. By my desk I have a quote by Gloria Ladson-Billings stating, ‘No challenge has been more daunting than that of improving the academic achievement of African American students...’and, on my wall I have graduation pictures and newspaper clippings about successful MARS students. That says it all -- the MARS Program.”
Dr. Alicia Li to Associate Professor, Department of Special Education
Area of teaching: Education of Students with Visual Impairments
Area of research: vision programs for students with visual impairments, including those with multiple disabilities.“I believe my greatest accomplishment has been to successfully train and graduate highly qualified teachers for students with visual impairments.”
Dr. Jon Margerum-Leys to Associate Professor, Department of Teacher Education
Area of teaching: Applications of Technology, Teacher Knowledge, Writing Instruction
Area of research: educational technology, teacher knowledge.“I’m proudest that of the six lead authored publications I've had published or accepted for publication since I've come here, five have been collaborative works. I've written with a range of scholars from the University of Michigan, Detroit Public Schools, and The University of California at Berkeley. It's a pleasure to have scholarly relationships with others in the field.”
Dr. Nelson Maylone to Associate Professor, Department of Teacher Education
Area of teaching: Educational Psychology, esp. classroom level assessment (EDPS 340.)
Area of research: MEAP, assessment, standardized testing.“More than anything, I am pleased that my students rate me highly. They consistently report that my Introduction to Classroom Evaluation and Assessment course is immensely practical and helpful. I am pleased to have written half of a new test prep book (the mathematics section), ‘MTTC: Best Teachers Prep for the Michigan Test for Teacher Certification’ (REA.)”.
Dr. Mary Rearick to Associate Professor, Department of Teacher Education
Area of teaching: Reading Program Area, graduate and undergraduate reading courses.
Areas of research: Reading Teacher Education; Programs and Practices; Teacher Learning and Development; a Framework for understanding action research; reflection, orientations, and purposes of practitioner inquiry and educational action research.“My greatest accomplishment is becoming a member of this creative and critical community. As a member of the Reading Program Area, I am most proud of the practical and scholarly work we have done to improve reading teacher education—at EMU, in local communities, at the State level, and nationally.”
Dr. John Tonkovich to Professor, Department of Special Education
Area of teaching: Speech-Language Pathology, with special interest in neurogenic communication disorders, multicultural issues in the delivery of speech-language pathology services, and gender-related communication differences.
“My greatest accomplishment at EMU has been to foster a sense of responsibility in my students to provide interventions that focus on increasing participation of individuals with neurogenic activity limitations back into society and daily life. In addition, I am proud of the practical advocacy assignments I require in my graduate courses, and that several EMU students have been able to present these projects at state and national professional meetings.”
Dr. Pat Williams-Boyd to Professor, Department of Teacher Education
Area of teaching: Middle School, Full Service Schools, Poverty, Marginalized Population
Areas of research: Teaching, Consulting to several dozen schools plus above.
OTHER FACULTY NEWS
Dr. Suzanne Hobson was elected as Vice Chair to the Michigan Board of Counseling.
This is the licensure board that oversees the licensure of professional counselors in Michigan. Appointment to the board is made only by the Governor and Dr. Hobson was appointed last year. Election of officers is conducted by the Board and Dr. Hobson will serve as the 2005-2006 Vice Chair.
Dr. Sue Grossman: The annual theme issue of Childhood Education was guest edited by Sue Grossman, TED, and included articles by TED faculty Pat Williams-Boyd, Wendy Burke and her husband, Chris Burke, Sue Grossman with Michael Bottini, former EMU undergraduate, and Judy Williston, TED emerita and four graduates of the ECE Masters program, Jim Podojil, Christine Meyer, Stephanie Loiselle, and Tanya Thacker.
Dr. James Barott has been named proposal reviewer for AERA, 2006 for the following: Division L: Educational Policy and Politics, Organizational Theory: Special Interest Group, and Confluent Education: Special Interest Group.
Dr. Dibya Choudhuri, Department of Leadership and Counseling, published Metro sexuality the middle class way: Exploring race, class, & gender in Queer Eye for the Straight Guy in Genders, 42.2005 with B. Berila.
Dr. Elizabeth Johnson: Dr. Johnson was interviewed for National Public Radio in Bismarck, North Dakota where she was the keynote speaker and presenter for the Native American Educational Conference entitled, “Yesterday, Today, and Tomorrow’s Leaders.” Dr. Johnson also conducted professional development workshops for staff, students, and parents on the Pima Reservation in Blackwater, Arizona. The workshops centered on pedagogical strategies to reach Native students in crisis as well as how parents can advocate for their children. The school was “Blackwater School,” a recipient of the national award of the most outstanding BIA (Bureau on Indian Affairs) school. Dr. Johnson provided keynote addresses in Lake Fenton Schools, Atherton Public Schools, St. Patrick's School in Brighton, and St. Joseph's School in Howell.
Dr. Bill Price, Department of Leadership and Counseling, conducted a series of workshops for the Bedford Public Schools Board of Education and administrative staff on the financial and legal issues surrounding the conduct of school district bond issues and sinking funds.
Dr. James Barott and doctoral student Jeremiah Shinn, Department of Leadership & Counseling presented a poster session: Access and Excellence: Teaching, Scholarship, and a Successful Tenure and Promotion Process at the annual meeting of the American Educational Research Association, Montreal, Quebec.
Dr. Phil Smith, Assistant Professor in the Department of Special Education, has just had his work “The Big Problem with Change” published in G. Noblit, S. Flores, & E. Murillo, (Eds.) Post critical Ethnography: Reinscribing Critique. Cresskill, NJ: Hampton Press.
STUDENT ACTIVITIES
The following Educational Leadership doctoral students defended their dissertations this summer:
Dr. Ryan Kelley – An Examinationof the Relationship between Teachers’ Perceptions of Servant Leadership Behavior of High School Principals, School Climate, and Student Achievement as Measured by the Michigan Educational Assessment Program Test, Chair: Dr. Ron Willliamson.
Dr. Richard Diebold - Michigan’s Proposal A: A Study of Educational Finance Policy Formation, Chair: Dr. James Barott
Dr. John Selmon – Change and Persistence in an Independent Non-Profit College, Chair: Dr. James Barott
Congratulations to the following educational leadership doctoral students who received full-time doctoral fellowships for the 2005-06 academic year: Shaftone Dunklin, Mary Osborne, Cheryl Price, Tamara Stevenson, and Bob Thomas.
Dr. Virginia Harder and Dr. Deborah Harmon participated in Fusion, the new freshman orientation this year. Dr. Virginia Harder addressed questions from students and parents regarding the supply and demand of teachers and the teacher certification program at EMU. Dr.. Harmon discussed the realities of cultural shock that many students from culturally diverse and economically diverse backgrounds face coming to EMU along with ways that EMU and families can support students. Cheryl Price and Traci Ward (graduate students who work in the Office of Urban Education and Educational Equity) supported an exhibit where students learned about the MARS Programs.
ALUMNI NEWS
Larry Warren, CEO of the University of Michigan Hospitals and Health Centers, has announced his retirement from that position as of October 1. Warren holds his master's degree in educational leadership from EMU. He is on the EMU Foundation Board of Trustees, is a member of the 100 Black Men of Greater Detroit, Inc., and on numerous other boards.
STAFF NOTES
A highlight of the Fall Conference was the justly deserved standing ovation given to the recipients of the Dean’s Award for Outstanding Service. This year the awards were given to four staff persons for their high levels of competence and dedication to serving the needs of the COE. Congratulations!
Karen Metz, Teacher Education
Dee Blan, Office of Academic Services
Marina McCormack, Bonisteel Lab
Joan Quinlan, Office of Academic Services
COE staff members Sally Rosales and Rosena Russell, Department of Leadership & Counseling, and Norma Taylor-Bishop, Office of Urban Education & Educational Equity participated in the United Way Day of Caring at the Corner Health Center in Ypsilanti.
FACULTY EMERITUS
Leah Adams, Teacher Education professor emeritus, gave a major address at an international conference in Havana, Cuba in July. She also participated in the Executive Board meetings of the World Organization for Early Childhood Education (OMEP) while in Cuba. She recently chaired and presented in a Symposium on The Effects of Global Migration on Young Children, Their Families and Their Schools at the EECERA Conference in Dublin. The other presenters in the Symposium were from Canada, Greece and United Kingdom.
COLLEGE WIDE NEWS
The Council for Accreditation of Counseling and Related Educational Programs (CACREP), a specialized accrediting body recognized by the Council for Higher Education (CHEA), has granted accreditation to the following programs in the Department of Leadership and Counseling at Eastern Michigan University through 2013: Community Counseling, School Counseling, and College Counseling.
The 15th Annual Doctoral Student Orientation was held on Saturday, September 10, 2005 in the John W. Porter Building. Following the morning sessions doctoral students from all three university doctoral programs; educational leadership, clinical psychology and technology came together for lunch and afternoon programs which included presentations from Keith Stanger, University Librarian; Dr. Steve Pernecky, University Human Subjects Committee; and Graduate School representatives, Dr. Robert Holkeboer and Dr. Deb deLaski-Smith.
A MARS “Get Together” occurred on Wednesday, September 14th, in the Multicultural Center in King Hall. Students discussed the realities and challenges of campus life and how they can be successful. A faculty panel and a student panel lead the discussion.
The Office of Urban Education and Educational Equity is developing a program to assist teachers and administrators called “Supporting Katrina's Children.” This project includes a seminar for teachers informing them about the effects of trauma on students and how they can meet the needs of these students and their families within the context of the classroom. Cultural competency training is included to inform teachers about the cultural and socio-economical differences of students, ways they can infuse the curriculum multi-culturally, and the use culturally congruent instructional practices to meet the needs of their students. Curriculum is currently being developed to help teachers discuss the events related to Hurricane Katrina and will be available to all teachers on the Urban Education website. Faculty from Teacher Education and Educational Leadership are working together to develop this program.
Dr. Ron Fulkert. Our Business Education program (BMMT) is nationally recognized. Congratulations and thank you, Ron.
Dr. Jerry Robbins’ “opinion” piece, “More Male Teachers Needed,” appeared in the September 2, 2005 issue of the Eastern Echo. Dr. Robbins will direct the Ypsilanti Community Band on October 20, 2005 in its “Grand Sousa Concert at 7:30 p.m. in Pease Auditorium. Admission is free and the public is invited.
Dr. Vernon C. Polite was keynote speaker this summer for the American Educational Research Association (AERA/IES) on the topic, “Doing Research: Research and Practice for Emancipator Researchers.” AERA’s Postdoctoral Fellowship Program with funding from the U.S. Department of Education's Institute of Education Sciences (IES). The goals of the program are to: 1. Stimulate research on fundamental educational issues, with priority for the education of poor, urban, or minority students and for mathematics and literacy education; 2. Attract a cadre of talented scholars and enhance their research preparation; 3. Build a network of scholars whose collaborations focus on high priority educational issues; 4. Contribute to basic knowledge, the improvement of practice, and the informing of policy.
IN MEMORIAM
Diana Clark: Well known UAW Local 1975 President passed peacefully on Thursday evening September 15th, surrounded by her loved ones at home. Diana was President of the Clerical Union for fourteen (14) years, Vice President for nine (9) years and one of the major forces behind organizing the clericals on campus. Diana was a library Assistant III and worked in the Library for thirty-five (35) years.
Vitold “Beets” Kaminskis, age 86, died recently. He spent his entire teaching career with the Van Buren schools where he taught physical education and coached varsity basketball and baseball. He retired in 1979 and was named to the MHSAA Coaches Hall of Fame.
Dale Schumacher, who earned two degrees in education from EMU and was vice-principal of Kennedy High School in the Taylor district, died recently of injuries received in a motorcycle accident. He was 56. He taught business education at Truman High School in Taylor earlier in his career.
THEME STATEMENTS
Caring professional educators for a diverse and democratic society. (CPED2S) (Initial program)
Inquiry, advocacy, and leadership in education for diverse and democratic society. (Advanced programs)
Previous Report | EMU College of Education Home Page | Index