Renée A. Middleton Chosen for 2017 Pomeroy Award
AACTE’s Committee on Professional Preparation and Accountability has selected Renée A. Middleton, professor and dean of the Gladys W. and David H. Patton College of Education at Ohio University, to receive the 2017 AACTE Edward C. Pomeroy Award for Outstanding Contributions to Teacher Education. The award will be presented at the 69th AACTE Annual Meeting Welcoming Session, Thursday, March 2, at the Tampa Convention Center in Tampa, Florida.
Middleton was nominated for the award unanimously by her Ohio peers in the State University Education Deans (SUED) group. “Dr. Middleton is among the finest examples of a change agent and professional in higher education and serves as a role model to other deans across the nation,” writes SUED Chair Erica M. Brownstein in the group’s letter of support. “In addition to her contributions to policy and teacher education, Dean Middleton has made significant contributions in social justice, rural education, and mental health. Dr. Middleton is thoughtful about shifts in P-16 education and provides much-needed insights, connections to research, and a pragmatic perspective.”
Pamela Benoit, Ohio University executive vice president and provost, praises Middleton’s strong commitment to leadership at the university and across the state. “Dean Middleton has made outstanding contributions to the teacher education profession,” Benoit writes, “and I fully support her nomination for this award.”
The selection committee noted that Middleton “provides distinguished service to the educator preparation community at a number of levels and a variety of ways.” This includes service to AACTE (she is on the Board of Directors and currently serves as chair-elect), the National Board for Professional Teaching Standards, the National Network for Educational Renewal, and the Council for Academic Deans from Research Education Institutions. She also has held a variety of positions across the state of Ohio and the region. She helped establish the Southeast Ohio Teacher Development Consortium to unite local institutions implementing clinical teacher preparation and is an active partner in the Coalition of Rural and Appalachian Schools (CORAS).
A supporting letter for Middleton’s nomination from CORAS leadership states, “She has been a driving force in implementation of the clinical model of teacher preparation in Ohio, and as part of her advocacy, Dean Middleton has testified in front of legislative bodies and is a strong voice in state and national educational conversations. [She] has been an excellent partner with our schools and a strong advocate for public school teachers, school leaders, and the entire education profession.”
In addition to leading the Patton College of Education and its many departments, centers, and partnerships, Middleton is a tenured professor of counselor education with 3 decades of teaching experience. Her research interests include racial identity theory, its development, and its association to multicultural counseling competency; disability policy issues; education and workforce diversity; and aging and disability. Middleton came to Ohio University in 2006 from Auburn University (AL), where she also earned her doctorate in rehabilitation administration. Her earlier degrees are from Andrews University (MI) and the University of Tennessee.
The Pomeroy Award, named for longtime AACTE Executive Director Edward C. Pomeroy, recognizes distinguished service either to the educator preparation community or to the development and promotion of outstanding practices in educator preparation at the collegiate, state, or national level.
Nominations for the Pomeroy Award are reviewed by the AACTE Committee on Professional Preparation and Accountability. AACTE issued a press release today announcing all of its 2017 award winners. For more information on AACTE’s awards program, visit http://aacte.org/professional-development-and-events/awards. Applications for next year’s awards open in June.
Tags: AACTE governance, Annual Meeting
