Professional Reflections SUMMER 2021
The official magazine of the College of Education and Human Development.
CONTENTS TABLE OF
First-Year Faces TESOL professor and graduate students utilize recorders for at-home ESL learning
Urban Teacher Residency Program WMU and urban school districts create new pipeline for teacher shortage with nearly $5 million grant.
Raising the Bar Gymnast and dietetics recent grad hoping to take on new challenges in the military.
NFL story TESOL professor and graduate students utilize recorders for at-home ESL learning
So That All May Learn TESOL professor and graduate students utilize recorders for at-home ESL learning.
COVID Chronicles Learn how CEHD students, faculty and staff got creative and remained resilient during COVID-19.
Award Recipients Read about the 2021 CEHD Faculty, staff and student award recipients for teaching, research, etc.
TBD TESOL professor and graduate students utilize recorders for at-home ESL learning
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Urban Teacher Residency Program WMU and urban school districts create new pipeline for teacher shortage with nearly $5 million grant.
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Raising the Bar Gymnast and dietetics recent grad hoping to take on new challenges in the military.
14 So That All May Learn
TESOL professor and graduate students utilize recorders for at-home ESL learning.
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COVID Chronicles Learn how CEHD students, faculty and staff got creative and remained resilient during COVID-19.
SEE WHERE WE’RE
ranked CEHD RANKED NO. 3 IN THE STATE OF MICHIGAN BY U.S. NEWS AND WORLD REPORT In the newly released U.S. News and World Report 2022 rankings, the College of Education and Human Development at Western Michigan University has been ranked in the top 100 public institutions and No. 3 in the state of Michigan for graduate schools in education. usnews.com/best-graduate-schools/top-education-schools
CEHD RANKED NO. 52 IN BEST ONLINE MASTER’S IN EDUCATION PROGRAMS U.S. News and World Report also ranked WMU No. 52 for best online master’s in education programs of all colleges and universities reviewed and No. 2 in the state of Michigan.
This magazine is a publication of Western Michigan University’s College of Education and Human Development in Kalamazoo, Michigan. Editor and Designer Nicole Leffler, Marketing Specialist College of Education and Human Development Editors Caryn Davidson, Graduate Assistant Evaluation, Measurement and Research Val Horwath, Manager of Recruitment and Outreach, College of Education and Human Development Tyler Sonnenberg-Ward, Web Content Specialist, College of Education and Human Development Photography Tyler Sonnenberg-Ward, Web Content Specialist, College of Education and Human Development Courtesy photos provided by: MLive, Getty Images, WMU News
usnews.com/education/online-education/education
CEHD RANKED NO. 47 IN BEST COLLEGES FOR BACHELOR PROGRAMS IN EARLY EDUCATION Discover Early Childhood EDU ranked WMU No. 47 best colleges for bachelor programs in early education of all colleges and universities reviewed and No. 3 in the state of Michigan. discoverearlychildhoodedu.org/degrees/bachelors/best-schools/
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A message from the Dean Dear CEHD Friends, Welcome to 2021 Edition of Professional Reflections, an official magazine of the College of Education and Human Development (CEHD) at Western Michigan University (WMU). First of all, I am so pleased to share this existing news with you. In the newly released U.S. News and World Report 2022 rankings, WMU has been ranked again as one of the top 100 public schools of education and No. 3 in the state of Michigan for graduate schools in education. This immediate past year is a special year for us. The pandemic has posted tremendous challenges to our normal operations. However, the perseverance, resiliency and adaptability exhibited by our faculty, staff and students during this unprecedented time have gotten us to where we are today. They have risen to the challenges and continued to fulfill their job duties and responsibilities with high quality under this extraordinary time. I am grateful for the contributions and hard work of our faculty and staff in serving our students and ensure that they still have every opportunity to learn and grow. In this edition, you will have the opportunity to learn about how our faculty, staff and students got creative and remained resilient to teach, to learn and to render services during COVID-19. In addition, you will have the opportunity to learn about how our faculty in Teaching. Learning and Educational Studies collaborated with two urban school districts (i.e., Kalamazoo Public Schools and Benton Harbor Public Schools) to create a new pipeline for teacher shortage with a grant (nearly $5 million) receiving from the US Department of Education. Furthermore, you will have the opportunity to learn about how our TESOL professor and graduate students utilized recorders for at-home ESL learning. One of the most enjoyable things for me to do as a dean is to share the accomplishments of our faculty, staff and students. In this Edition, you will see how excellent our faculty and staff are in furthering diversity and global engagement, demonstrating exceptional creativity, enthusiasm, and passion
for teaching at the undergraduate and/or graduate level(s), engage(s) in innovative scholarship which impacts the discipline, establishing or strengthening meaningful ties between WMU and community partners, making outstanding contributions in support of faculty, staff, students, administrators and all those served by the college. In this Edition, you will also see three Rising Star Award recipients who are CEHD student and have demonstrated outstanding potential in scholarship, teaching, and/or professional leadership. Once you have a chance to review the magazine, I hope that you are impressed with what our faculty and staff have done to help our college to achieve its vision of being the premier choice for a diverse community of education and human development learners. Thank you. Best Wishes, Ming Li, Ed.D. Dean
NEARLY $5 MILLION GRANT
Urban Teacher Residency WMU AND SCHOOL DISTRICTS CREATE NEW PIPELINE TO FILL TEACHER SHORTAGE
Even before COVID-19, school districts nationwide were battling a teacher shortage. A report by the Economic Policy Institute found that while demand for instructors is increasing at K-12 schools, the number of qualified teachers available is on a sharp decline, and the gap is even more pronounced when certification is taken into account. A new partnership between Western Michigan University, Kalamazoo Public Schools and Benton Harbor Area Schools will develop a new pipeline to fill the dire need for quality instructors. Dr. Regena Fails Nelson, chair of WMU’s Department of Teaching, Learning and Educational Studies in the College of Education and Human Development, secured a $4.9 million U.S. Department of Education grant to spearhead the Urban Teacher Residency Program. The product of nearly two years of planning, this program will pay for candidates within the districts—like paraprofessionals, bus drivers, food service staff and custodians—to earn their teacher certification while they work, mitigating some of the barriers that impede qualified candidates from pursuing a career. “Our undergraduate model is a typical four-year degree and you’re getting
We need to think creatively about people who want to come back to this who are in schools already in some capacity. Dr. Regena Nelson, WMU
your certification,” Nelson says. “For traditional students who are coming out of high school, it’s a great model. But we recognize that with a teacher shortage, that pipeline will not fill all the openings that we’re going to have for teachers in the next five to 10 years. So, we need to think creatively about people who want to come back to this who are in schools already in some capacity. How can we fast-track them to getting certification?” Boosting access to certification is more important than ever with the pandemic accelerating teacher retirements in many areas and leading to deep budget cuts as districts work to stay financially afloat. “It will be a tremendous opportunity not just for WMU, but KPS and Benton Harbor, to train teachers to work in our urban environments,” says Sheila Dorsey-Smith, assistant superintendent for human resources at Kalamazoo Public Schools. “We want to lift up our community by lifting up individuals with a heart for children and a passion for teaching to become part of the change we are trying to make in Kalamazoo Public Schools.” The program will use a teacher residency model that includes a yearlong clinical experience with the required coursework for certification. Residents will receive intensive
coaching and feedback in their cohorts as they apply what they’re learning in the classroom to their coursework. The goal is to produce at least 90 certified teachers who will be placed in full-time teaching positions within three years. The grant also required WMU, KPS and BHAS to provide matching funds to ensure the program is sustainable on its own. If it’s successful, this could serve as a model for school districts across the country. “In other professions, interns or apprentices are paid to solidify their place in their chosen profession. In education, it is quite the opposite; we pay to learn the profession,” says Dorsey-Smith. “This program, though grant-funded, may be the way of the future as we look to grow teacher ranks—especially in urban environments.” The first cohort is expected to begin in July 2021.
DIVERSIFYNG THE CLASSROOM In addition to helping districts grow their talent from within, the Urban Teacher Residency Program is also committed to diversifying the classroom by ensuring at least 20% of program participants are from racially diverse backgrounds. 7 | Urban Teacher Residency
“It is inherent that young people have the opportunity to be taught by people who look like them. It is a huge self-esteem booster to be taught by someone who knows and understands your culture,” says Dorsey-Smith, acknowledging that it’s common for many students to progress from kindergarten through 12th grade with just one or two teachers of color. In Kalamazoo Public Schools, for example, 38% of the student population is African American, compared to only 13% of teachers. “All students benefit from having teachers of color, not just students of color. Education is richer when diverse backgrounds are represented and respected,” Dorsey-Smith adds. There’s value to the lived experience that comes with diversity, says Nelson. “It can be harmful to children if the teachers don’t understand what certain behaviors mean, how certain families communicate, what certain families value and why, and how it is all related to valuing education. This cultural knowledge is what we bring as educators of color to the field.” In her own experience working at Northglade Montessori Magnet School in Kalamazoo years ago, Nelson remembers an interaction with two boys who saw her walking down the hall.
All students benefit from having teachers of color, not just students of color. Education is richer when diverse backgrounds are represented and respected. Sheila Dorsey-Smith, KPS
“One little boy said, ‘You know who she is? She’s the principal of Western Michigan University.’ An African American woman was principal at Northglade, and they looked at me and my role and thought, ‘She must be a principal, too.’ And that just meant a lot to me that they were understanding these leadership roles in our society and who was in the leadership roles,” she says. “When young people see (others who look like them or share their culture) in positions of power and authority, it gives them the courage to try to achieve that position,” Dorsey-Smith says. “When a child sees mostly minorities in support positions, that too sends a message that maybe they are not enough for the professional position. That is one of the messages we are trying to dispel.”
Rasing the Bar GYMNAST AND DIETETICS RECENT GRAD HOPING TO TAKE ON NEW CHALLENGES IN MILITARY
10 | Raising the Bar
Gymnastics takes discipline. Athletes spend countless hours in the gym building strength and perfecting routines. That’s been Stacie Harrison’s life for more than a decade.
Task Force—an organization comprised of Western coaches, athletic department staff and student-athletes with the goal of advocating for inclusion, racial equity and social justice.
“I feel like gymnasts are a different breed, because we strive for perfection all the time,” she says.
“I helped organize a walk against social injustice. Seeing all the athletes from different sports teams come out to support and walk along campus sidewalks was very impactful for me, because we’re better off united than we are separated,” Harrison says. “It was a huge message to show the community…we support each other, we are united, and we’re better and stronger together. And that we have a voice.”
Now, as she prepares to graduate, the student-athlete is looking forward to her next challenge—as a soldier.
I got my degree in a career that I want to pursue, and I’m just going to be excited for the next chapter. She hopes to build on her bachelor’s degree in dietetics by entering the U.S. Military-Baylor Graduate Program in Nutrition, which will put her on track to earn a master’s degree while serving in the Army. The structure of a military career is nothing new for Harrison. Her father, a retired soldier, served in the U.S. Army for more than 20 years. “(Joining the military) is something I’ve always wanted to do,” she says.
SKILLS FOR SUCCESS Harrison learned the impact of good nutrition as a young athlete. “I found out early what I put into my body really impacted my performance,” she says. Her passion to share that knowledge has only grown since enrolling at Western. “I’ve always wanted to help people and educate them on the importance of nutrition and their health.” She also had a chance to pursue a cause she’s passionate about as an inaugural member of the WMU Athletics Diversity
Harrison characterizes her four years at Western as a time for tremendous growth, learning from mistakes and charging through challenges. The diversity of experiences and opportunities to put her passion to work make graduating bittersweet. “I’m not defined as one thing—not just a student, not just an athlete,” Harrison says. “I have many roles and other characteristics that make me Stacie Harrison, and all my experiences here at Western helped mold me into that person. And I will be forever grateful for that.”
Blazing a trail Anything in life worth having does not come easy, and how you spend and balance your time is indicative of your success as it serves as a reflection to how hungry you are in pursuit of your goals. Jessica Larmony, alumna
When P.J. Fleck brought Jessica Larmony (’15, M.A. sports management) to Western Michigan University with him in 2013, the Caribbean born East Coaster wasn’t quite sure what to think of heading to the Midwest, but she quickly settled in and started making a name for herself. Today, she is the scouting operations manager for the Detroit Lions and continues to blaze a trail through a male-dominated industry for women and People of Color. Larmony was hired by Fleck as director of internal football operations and later became the director of football operations, a role which entailed dealing with not only the players but also community outreach, game day operations and the business side of things. At the time, she was one of only three women with the position at the Division I level. While working for the Broncos football team, she met Kathy Beauregard, the Athletic Director at WMU. “Kathy served as a mentor to me during my time at Western. She encouraged me to pursue my masters
and didn’t take no for an answer, stressing the importance that the opportunity could yield regardless of if I continued to pursue a career in the sports industry or not,” Larmony said. Having a female support her in a traditionally male space encouraged her to pursue her dreams and overcome the adversity she faced. In her masters program, Larmony found more support in professor Dr. James Lewis. His mother had been a Dean at Rutgers University in the 1970’s (incidentally, the same school Larmony attended for her undergraduate degree and the place where she got her start working in football) and he helped Larmony see a bigger picture her perspective at the time didn’t allow. She also learned how to manage her time, a skill that has been essential to her success! “I was working full time and simultaneously balancing my coursework. Learning to balance a rigorous worklife with school was challenging. Anything in life worth having does not come easy, and how you spend and balance your time is indicative of your success as it
13 | Blazing a Trail
serves as a reflection to how hungry you are in pursuit of your goals,” said Larmony.
Representation matters. I’m a woman of color, and if I can open up spaces and champion for other women and for other People of Color, that’s important to me. Jessica Larmony, alumna
And she is hungry! In 2016, she was hired as the Lion’s community relations coordinator, a role she kept for two seasons before moving into her current role as scouting operations manager in 2018. In her current role, she provides direct support to the Lions general manager and executive staff and handles logistics and operations for onboarding new players coming from the collegiate level. During the season, she fills roster hole and during the offseason, she helps the team prepare for the NFL Draft. She aspires to someday serve in a senior executive role in a front office and enjoys opening up space along the way. “Representation matters. I’m a woman of color, and if I can open up spaces and champion for other women and for other People of Color, that’s important to me,” Larmony said. “I’ve been blessed to have many opportunities and to have people champion for me. So, it is not only my honor, but also my duty to help do that for other women and People of Color that come after me.” Dr. Lewis loves telling her story to his current students, female and male alike, and there’s no doubt Larmony serves as an excellent role model for what is possible in today’s world. Her advice for current students? “Network. It sounds cliché, however it’s such an important element of the business. Relationships coupled with hard work are paramount to success. Additionally, be willing to navigate outside of your comfort zone, the sports industry is fast paced, so finding ways to set yourself apart, attain new skillsets and try on new roles will help in the long run.” Jessica Larmony, the sky’s the limit and we can’t wait to see what you do next!
first year
faces
kids’ lives,” LaDuke says. “I’ve loved working with kids for a really long time, but I think mainly what pushed me to go into (education) was to spark change.”
“I always want to fight for a reformed education system, because I believe what’s being taught and how the system is being run is failing our kids,” she says.
LaDuke has seen the impact teachers make on their students’ lives, and vice versa, starting with her mother who has served as an early childhood education teacher. While there are numerous moments of triumph in an educator’s life, LaDuke says, there are also moments of struggle. Fighting for more funding,
LaDuke will begin her journey for reform by entering the College of Education and Human Development to become an educator who is committed to teaching for social justice. Throughout the elementary education program, she will learn how to engage students of all backgrounds and increase her knowledge of
to ensure the right people are in crucial positions that are key for a child’s development and speaking out for what she believes in are all goals of hers.
education program, she will learn how to engage students of all backgrounds and increase her knowledge of schools and social systems, both in and out of the classroom. She hopes to not only prime the world’s future leaders, but become an advocate for others tasked with the same duty.
Kristin LaDuke
Changing the world one classroom at a time. That’s the goal for Gull Lake High School and Kalamazoo Area Math and Science Center graduate Kirstin LaDuke. She’s committed to attend Western Michigan University and Lee Honors College as an elementary education major. “Teaching is such an important job … especially at a young age, you really start to make an impact on those
about the
ELEMENTARY EDUCATION PROGRAM The elementary education program is accredited by the Council for the Accreditation of Educator Preparation and leads to Michigan K-8 teacher certification. WMU students have a Students have a unique opportunity to participate in education-focused study abroad programs in China, Ireland, Nepal, New Zealand and
SO THAT ALL MAY
learn. TESOL PROFESSOR UTILIZES RECORDER FOR AT-HOME LEARNING
Starting a new life in a new country with a language you don’t understand is difficult enough as an adult. Making that transition as a child in a pandemic, when a mysterious disease abruptly shuts down what little normalcy you’ve become accustomed to, is beyond challenging. “A lot of schools were unprepared to address online teaching in general, but even more so for English learners,” says Dr. Selena Protacio, associate professor of literacy studies. “I thought about this very vulnerable population and considered, ‘How can we use this opportunity to help teachers assist English learners during this time?’” She spoke with two graduate students in the Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages—TESOL—master’s program to get a better understanding of students’ needs. Laura Frantz and Austin Szafranski both work with children in a rural school district in southwest Michigan who are considered newcomers, meaning they’ve been in the country a year or less and are still building English proficiency. Both said they wished they could read aloud to their students, but connecting
was a challenge because many did not have internet access or computers to facilitate lessons. “I thought, ‘Okay, if you really want to do read-alouds and have input, why don’t we use voice recorders?’ It’s low-tech. It could be more affordable,” and, she says, it could also supplement paper packets that the students and their families would probably have difficulty reading. “This way, they could provide that audio support for students and also have students listening to English.” Protacio applied for a COVID-19 Response Grant through WMU’s Office of Research and Innovation to fund a design-based research study focused on bridging the technology gap between English learners in rural areas and their teachers by utilizing voice recorders to deliver lessons.
GETTING TO WORK Through the grant, Frantz and Szafranski purchased several dozen voice recorders so they could record lessons for their students. They coordinated weekly dropoff and pickup times with families and started seeing the benefits shortly after the program started. Frantz and Szafranski noticed significant increases in homework completion rates among their students once they began delivering voice recorders. “I sent home a little calendar with daily assignments that they were supposed to do in addition to the recordings, and I would ask them to find some sight words in a book and then write them in a sentence,” says Frantz. “And they would come back with a whole sheet of sight words that they wrote. Some of them really took it upon themselves to learn all summer long.” The unintended consequences of the project were even more encouraging. In addition to young students developing their English skills, parents were also building their own comprehension. “It was something that not only the stu-
I thought about this very vulnerable population and considered, ‘How can we use this opportunity to help teachers assist English learners during this time?’ Dr. Selena Protacio, WMU
were excited about, but entire families were excited about,” Protacio says. “It was also a good way to foster improved family-school partnerships.” “I have worked extremely hard trying to build family relationships over the last six years of working here,” says Frantz, who became an important lifeline for families over the course of the project as they were trying to navigate the pandemic and understand the rapid changes in the school system because of COVID-19. “I looked at this as a great opportunity. It’s really hard to build those relationships usually.”
LESSONS FOR THE FUTURE The initial success of the program has already led to its expansion within the district, with two additional ESL teachers being provided voice recorders through the COVID-19 grant. Protacio, Frantz and Szfranski hope it doesn’t stop there, especially given the hybrid format that their district is using to start off the school year.
“We’re hoping to share this with other teachers so that they can use this as a model, perhaps,” Protacio says, noting that voice recorders could be an important tool for many districts even after the pandemic is over when language and technology barriers remain. “It’s thinking outside the box about, how can we help these kids?” adds Szafranski. “Realizing that sometimes there are simple answers for complex issues.” The new coronavirus created crises and sent every sector into panic mode. It’s important in situations like this, says Frantz, to make sure the most vulnerable don’t get lost in the shuffle. “I know that teachers are overwhelmed right now with everything going on. So, it’s easy to think of the majority or what will work for most of these students. But we need to remember that these are kids’ lives and we can’t just forget about them or put them on the back burner. There are resources and
there are ways that we can advocate for our kids and their family to give them a good, positive experience.” While providing a valuable service to young English learners, Szafranski and Frantz are also gaining valuable professional experience. The grad students’ work with these younger pupils also is a reflection of WMU’s motto: So that all may learn “We have been so blessed to have been given this opportunity to support both our newcomers and their families during this pandemic,” Frantz says. “It has been extremely rewarding to put into practice the skills and ideas that we have learned about in our coursework and see the instant benefits. We are truly thankful for this knowledge and the funding which allowed us the ability to reach all of our students.” Pictured Above: Dr. Selena Protacio
Continuing the tradition of Improving virtual learning environments Learning from home presented a multitude of problems for students during the pandemic. Marcy Peake, director of diversity and community outreach initiatives in the College of Education and Human Development, along with students from the Future Teachers of Color student group, helped solve one of them for students in the Kalamazoo Public Schools by providing privacy screens. The screens, decorated with positive and motivational messaging, helped give students a way to focus, block out other things going on in their environment, or provide a neutral background behind them so they would feel more comfortable turning a camera on during virtual class meetings. Providing a private space for virtual learning helped teachers and students build stronger relationships during a difficult time.
who normally only have the opportunity to sew together when it’s required for a class,” she says. “We were able to do something together that was bigger than us and forget for a moment about the chaos around us,” shared McKay.
Adapting coursework During the pandemic, CEHD successfully continued to fulfill its teaching and learning mission by converting all courses to an online format starting in the spring of 2020. As time went on, courses were offered a variety of ways including socially distanced in-person, outdoor and fully remote courses. The dedication of CEHD professors to adapting coursework ensured students still experienced the same high-quality education they have come to expect.
Sew worth it
The show must go on
When the Kalamazoo County Health and Community Services made an urgent call for hand sewn face masks for hospital workers, Carly McKay, Al Mauriello, and Rose Soma, all fashion design students, stepped up to help out. With the help of a few Chi Omega sorority sisters, the women were able to set up an assembly line of cutting, sewing, and ironing masks and make over 50 masks in two hours during their first session. “This was an awesome chance to bring together design students
The annual Merchandising Opportunities Design Association (MODA) fashion show was canceled during the spring of 2020 due to COVID-19, but the student group worked with the Kalamazoo State Theatre to provide the opportunity to students during the spring of 2021. The show was livestreamed from the State Theatre with a limited number of VIP guests in attendance and provided students with the opportunity to showcase their hard work.
success through COVID-19 Teachers of TikTok
Creative COVID safe celebrations
Two former CEHD graduates and Paw Paw elementary school teachers, Dan Shutes (BS ‘15, elementary education) and Kirsten ????? (BS ‘13, elementary education) went viral on TikTok this year.
Graduation, like everything else, looked a little different during COVID! Throughout the pandemic, CEHD celebrated each graduation virtually and in the spring of 2021, even held a drive-thru graduation celebration where faculty and staff created posters, held flags and handed out gifts as students and their families drove through Sangren’s parking lot. It just goes to show that you can’t hold back Bronco pride!
Shutes went viral for a video showing how to compassionately handle a student who can’t stay awake in class (don’t assume they’re just being lazy) receiving 12.4 million views to date. He has around 700,000 followers and his videos regularly receive hundreds of thousands of views. He attributes his unique perspective as a male elementary teacher with a strong background in sports and coaching to his success. Frank went viral for her creative classroom behavior management game based on the popular app, Among Us, receiving 8.3 million views to date. Students in her class created character cards and each day she chooses one to be the “imposter.” If the imposter follows the behavior expectations for the day, they are revealed at the end of the day and get to color in a piece of the class rewards chart. If the imposter didn’t follow expectations the class tries again the next day. Both teachers enjoy expanding their reach by sharing advice and positivity with other educators across the world.
Offering free tutoring, mentorship to 6-12 students To provide support to students during virtual learning, the University’s Office of Precollege Programming offered free drop-in virtual tutoring sessions for middle and high school students in the Kalamazoo Public Schools (KPS). Many of the Western students working in the program were CEHD students pursuing degrees in education. KPS students received homework help, mentoring and support to help combat the difficulties of virtual learning and the social isolation of living in quarantine. The program was an instant success and expanded from six to twelve tutors within the first few months. Ryan Hunter, a secondary education major and site coordinator for the tutoring program shared that, “to be able to build relationships and know that you are making a difference in these students’ lives is fulfilling.”-
award
recipients For a full list of award winners and their awards, see page ##.
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Melissa embraces new ideas, listens to understand, and empowers others to aim high.
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Erica is patient, kind, understanding, helpful, respectful, and the best supervisor I have ever had the pleasure of working for.
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Dr. Schuemann is committed to developing future leaders in the profession.
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Dr. Geier’s work serves as a catalyst for others to engage in meaningful dialogue, and most importantly, for them to take action.
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Clare views teaching as a vessel through which students explore the concepts in ways where they become more critically engaged with the world.
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Pam is having a major impact on the lives of our students, and I know they will remember that kindness and support for the rest of their lives.
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Dr. Archer is able to bridge the theory-to-practice divide in his work in international education through the development of curricular innovations and study abroad experiences for students.
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Dr. Roberts is involved in numerous efforts to promote diversity to positively impact the environment of our college, students, educators and others across the country.
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Given the experiences Rena has pursued during her doctoral studies, she is well prepared to have a successful career as a scholar in special education.
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Dr. Isidro’s work has greatly contributed to the expansion of WMU’s presence in the community.
2021 CEHD Faculty, Staff and Student Award Recipients (In order of pictured) Erica Martinez, Staff Excellence Award Melissa Holman, Esprit De Corps Award Dr. Brett Geier, Trailblazer Award Clare Bunton, Undergraduate Rising Star Award Dr. Kahler Schuemann, Part-Time Teaching Excellence Award Pam Sward, Master’s Rising Star Award Dr. Eric Archer, Multicultural Advocate Award for Global Engagement Dr. LaSonja Roberts, Multicultural Advocate Award for Promotion of Diversity Rena VanDerwall, Doctoral Rising Star Award Dr. Elizabeth Isidro, Strengthening Community Connections Award Dr. Ramona Lewis, Mary L. Dawson Teaching Excellence Award
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What makes Dr. Lewis excellent are her versatility in teaching innovative curricula, her focus on cross-disciplinary instruction, her learner-centered teaching strategies, and skill in teaching both undergraduate and graduate students.