May 2024

We celebrate and honor Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders during AAPI Heritage Month. The AAPI community has enriched our School, and we will continue to recognize the wonderful diversity and important contributions of AAPI history, culture, and people in our larger society, this month and always.

Resectfully,

SOE Acting Co-Deans Drs. Corbin M. Campbell and Rodney Hopson

Celebrating Our Spring '24 Graduates

More than 240 spring graduates included inaugural cohorts from two Teacher Pipeline Project programs, City Teaching Alliance (formerly Urban Teachers) and AU Teaching Fellows. News, videos, and photos from SOE's Spring '24 Commencement are available here.

“Diversity means including everyone...In our classroom community, we are all seen.” DC Public Schools first-grade teacher and recent SOE graduate Jesse Lima, MAT ’24, is shaping the next generation of Washington learners. 

The Big Ideas in Education webinar, "The Promise and Impact of Equity, Civil Rights, and Justice" featured panelists Dr. Travis Bristol, Dr. Linda Darling-Hammond, Zaretta Hammond, and moderator Dr. Phelton C. Moss reflecting on the legacy of the Brown v. Board of Education case. 

In this Book Panel webinar - hosted by Senior Professorial Lecturer Dr. kecia hayes - Acting Co-Dean Dr. Corbin M. Campbell, Professor Dr. Vivian Vasquez (pictured), and Adjunct Senior Professorial Lecturer Dr. Altheria Caldera discussed the research processes for their latest book projects.

SOE in the Media

Senior Professorial Lecturers Drs. Antonio L. Ellis and Phelton C. Moss (pictured) co-wrote the Wiley article “Breaking the Silence: Student Affairs’ Role in Black Male Faculty Well-Being at Predominantly White Institutions.” 

Dr. Moss also penned the Hechinger Report op-ed “Black Principals Play a Key Role in Transforming Education. We Need More of Them,” where he discussed the critical role Black principals have played in the development of Black teachers. Additionally, he co-wrote (with EdD student Brianna Nargiso, '25) “5 Truths About Brown V. Board of Education,” an ASCD op-ed declaring that teachers must ensure students’ understanding of the enduring significance of the Brown v. Board of Education case.

EdD student Julie Corbett, '25, was one of the subjects of a The Hour article, "Chalk Talk: A Diverse Group of Norwalkers Are Being Trained to Be Civic Influencers," which detailed a program she designed enabling diverse citizens of Norwalk, CT, to participate in a civics lesson on local government.

Director of Undergraduate Teacher Education and Senior Professorial Lecturer Dr. Ocheze Joseph was quoted in the Education Week article "These Preparation Programs Are Creating a 'Tutor to Teacher' Pipeline," which discusses how tutoring is giving aspirant teachers early experience in teaching.

SOE’s Child Development Associate (CDA) program was featured in a Council for Professional Recognition profile, “The Rewards of Reaching Out.” The spotlight highlighted the Advancing Early Education Collaborative, which created the CDA program to allow Black or Latina women who live or work Washington, DC's Wards 7 or 8 to excel in the field.

SOE in the Community

Research Assistant Professor-in-Residence Dr. Lauren Shea represented SOE as lead researcher and co-principal investigator at the 2024 National Science Foundation ITEST Principal Investigators Meeting, “Innovating Equitable STEM Learning for the Future Technological Workforce,” where she presented her research team's STEM Tales Project.

Senior Professorial Lecturer Dr. Amaarah DeCuir was named Advisor of the Year at American University’s 2024 University and Student Achievement Awards, an inaugural event which honored individuals who contributed to key accomplishments on campus in the last year.

EdD alum Dr. Iris Bond Gill, '24, has been named a New America Fellow. The program invests in thinkers who generate big, bold ideas that have an impact and spark new conversations about the most pressing issues of our day.

Undergraduate Advisor Jody Hagen-Smith was awarded Outstanding Sophomore-Senior Advisor by American University's Dean of Undergraduate Education and Academic Student Services.

SOE Dean Cheryl Holcomb-McCoy was celebrated as a Read to Succeed honoree at “Read to Succeed 2024.” The event honored Reading Partners and their committed community supporters, which includes the AU School of Education.

In June, SOE's Institute for Innovation in Education (IIE) will present four sessions on evidence-based literacy instruction at the District of Columbia Public Schools (DCPS) Early Literacy Institute. The sessions reflect a four-year research-practice partnership IIE has had with DCPS, where they have provided professional development for educators at its 27 elementary schools.

EdD alum Dr. Dia L. Jones, '22, will facilitate a workshop at STEMNoire 2024: Black Women Leading the STEM Renaissance Conference which will provide attendees with tools to build their belongingness capacity in STEM spaces. She will also present research to support increased participation of Black girls and women in STEM at this summer's Black Gaze Symposium.

American University’s Board of Trustees recently appointed former Provost Associate Professor Dr. Brian McGowan to Full Professor at the School of Education.

American University’s Board of Trustees recently appointed former Assistant Professor Dr. Emily Peterson to Associate Professor at the School of Education.

Dr. Phelton Moss was awarded a scholarship to participate in the Aspen Institute Justice and Society Seminar in June. He also gave a speech honoring Black teachers who were formative in his life at the White House during its events celebrating President Biden’s proclamation of National Teacher Appreciation Week.

SOE welcomes new staff members: Residency for Excellence in Teaching and Learning Project Director Jessica Cisneros, City Teaching Alliance Teaching Assistant Kashena Crenshaw, and Pre-Award Grants and Contracts Coordinator Monica Konschnik.

Dr. Eugene Pringle, Senior Professorial Lecturer, delivered the keynote presentation at the Georgetown Day School event Discover HBCU, where he discussed the impact and cultural influences of historically Black colleges and universities.

Adjunct Instructor Dr. Jasmine Rogers conducted the session “Language Comprehension and Linguistically Responsive: Black Language Use in Structured Literacy Lessons” at the DC Office of the State Superintendent of Education’s Spring 2024 OSSE Literacy Conference. EdD alum Dr. Tomiko Ball, ’22, held the session “Disrupting Power Dynamics Within Literacy Instruction: Connections and Comprehension” at the event.

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