Congratulations to Our First Graduates – School Psychology (’21

New faculty

DEBORAH O’BRIEN

DENNIS SISCO-TAYLOR

ERIC PITMAN JENNA RABE

Four new faculty joined the School of Education in 2021. They are highly qualified, knowledgeable and energetic, and bring innovative ideas to our school and students. They answered these questions. 1. Why did you choose Gonzaga and how do you plan to incorporate the Gonzaga mission into your work? 2. Do you have any tough ways to engage your students with hope? 3. What did you hope to be when you grew up?

Deborah O’Brien, Ed.D.

Assistant Professor, Educational Leadership 1. Gonzaga and the School of Education provide a place for me to connect my years of work in the field of education to an organization that is committed to developing the whole person. The opportunity to infuse Gonzaga’s mission into leadership programs means the leaders we educate today may in turn lead our K-12 world with this same set of values.

2. Although it can be uncomfortable, leading with inquiry helps our learners to develop provocative questions and dig deep for the answer concerning educating all students. Tough questions create environments where people build the capacity to listen for understanding, and the patience to allow answers to develop collaboratively instead of within a hierarchy. 3. I always hoped to be a teacher!

Dennis Sisco-Taylor, Ph.D.

Assistant Professor, School Psychology 1. I came to Gonzaga for the opportunity to be a part of the relatively new school psychology program. Taking part in developing a new training program in school psychology and helping train the school psychologists of the future is a tremendous honor for me.

2. I integrate real-world examples in my lessons where students are asked to identify potential solutions for the real-life problems’ children face in schools. I also challenge students to identify the positives in situations that seem overtly negative. 3. I wanted to be a sports journalist. I was always keeping track of sports news and statistics and would always find myself in lively sports debates.

Eric Pitman, M.S.

Lecturer, Kinesiology and Sport Management 1. I applied to Gonzaga with ambitions of a full-time lecturer career and to eventually guide undergraduate research. I incorporate the Jesuit/Humanistic values by reminding students that we are here to improve quality of life and provide social justice. 2. The students expect to learn technical content, but also apply the lessons to improve quality of life for themselves and others. Moreover, I engage hope this semester for student success.

3. When I was a kid I wanted to be a constable. Graduating with my bachelors, I wanted to be a full-time trainer with a townhouse rental on the beach. Finishing graduate school, my focus shifted to a lecturer and I am proud to be a full-time faculty member.

Jenna Rabe, M.A.

Lecturer, Special Education 1. My background in training and teaching Applied

Behavioral Analyst (ABA) clinicians created a passion for teaching, but also for ethics. I was inspired by

Gonzaga’s mission and the focus on service across campus. I always had a strong sense of social justice and believed in advocacy. 2. Working in applied behavior analysis or with any vulnerable population can be stressful. Hope is a very powerful motivator. Sometimes the work we do can feel impossible or never ending. We work within imperfect systems amongst humanity. However, hope helps us find a common ground and pushes us to continue working towards that goal. Humor is my favorite medicine! 3. When I was young I wanted to be a comedian or lawyer.