Dear GSE Friends and Alumni,

What a year for the Graduate School of Education!

While there are many things to celebrate, below I share just a few:

We began the year by welcoming 12 new colleagues to our academic community. These 12 dedicated and committed scholars have indeed hit the ground running.

Another highlight of the year was UB receiving one of the National Science Foundation AI Institute grants. GSE Professor and Associate Dean for Research X. Christine Wang will play a significant role in the institute’s research and outreach.

Xiufeng Liu, professor of learning and instruction, was named a SUNY Distinguished Professor, the highest rank possible within the SUNY system and a reflection of a productive and distinguished career.

The Buffalo Education Equity Task Force, a broad-based university and community advocacy organization, was launched with the hope of marshaling our collective resources to provide datainformed ideas and solutions that serve to eliminate barriers to educational equity. At the same time, the task force aims to identify and create sustained educational opportunities for students and families within the greater Buffalo area.

The UB Teacher Residency Program graduated its fourth cohort. To date, we have graduated 70 residents, 70% of whom are teachers of color. With a new U.S. Department of Education Supporting Effective Educator Development (SEED) grant, we will be able to continue this important work throughout the region.

In this issue of LEARN, we continue to celebrate. Our LIFTS (Leadership Initiative for Tomorrow’s Schools) program turns 30! Our feature story explores how LIFTS came to be, how it differs from other principal preparation programs and where it is headed in the future.

The Literacy Lab, where GSE alumna Heather Jenkins serves as chief executive officer, received a $10 million gift from Mackenzie Scott.

Associate Professor of Information Science Amy VanScoy continues to lead critical and discipline-breaking research with her new Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS) grant, “Identifying Opportunities for Retention of BIPOC Librarians Using Survival Analysis.”

The Center for K-12 Black History and Racial Literacy Education continues to be highly active and engaged in helping teachers include Black history education in their classrooms. In this edition of LEARN, you will meet a rising academic star, PhD student Dawnavyn James.

Please take some time to read through the entire magazine, as it includes many, many other wonderful stories about GSE faculty, students, alumni and staff—and even a few stories written by members of our GSE community!

Warmly,