15 Sep2020
By Katrina Norfleet
Last week, scholars of color convened for the AACTE Holmes Policy Institute, a three-day training under this year’s theme, “Moving towards Equity through Advocacy and Policy.” The virtual conference, the first of the AACTE 2020 Washington Week events, offered students the opportunity to connect with peers, build their networks and engage in lively discussions on current trends. The advocacy and policy training focused on how the intersection of policy, education, and research can affect positive change for students of color.
Day 1 kicked off with AACTE Dean in Residence Leslie Fenwick leading a session on civil rights in education and AACTE consultant Jane West presenting a policy briefing. Day 2 centered on presentations by guest speakers—faculty, national organization professionals, and congressional staffers—who covered topics such as efforts to dismantle the school-to-prison pipeline and community-based participatory research to achieve social justice. The final day of training began with social reform advocates Jael Kerandi and Amanda Wilkerson, and moderator Ann Charity Hudley sharing their experiences and guidance on how scholars of color can mobilize for change.
08 Sep2020
By Katrina Norfleet
Now that technology is playing a larger role than ever before in teaching and learning, the COVID-19 Education Coalition has curated a list of resources on keeping technology systems safe, protecting student data, and promoting healthy digital decision-making in the newly released A Learning System for Privacy, Security and Digital Citizenship Infrastructure.
As a member of the COVID-19 Education Coalition, AACTE invites members to access this informational resource. It was created to do the following: understand the relationship between privacy and security as well as have models of effective practices in safeguarding student data; understand the roles, responsibilities, and rights of students in virtual learning environments; and understand the numerous stakeholders playing a role in student “data stewardship” and “digital citizenship” (i.e., teachers, administrators, parents, vendors, and the students themselves) and how their role is critical for both short- and long-term success.
28 Aug2020
By Katrina Norfleet
The Graduate School of Education (GSOE) at Touro University California (TUC) is hosting a series of informative and courageous conversations about what it means for education to live diversity in 2020 and beyond. The Diversity Now Webinar Series covers a variety of subjects designed to stimulate thinking and action. Join experts from GSOE for weekly panel discussions facilitated by Ijeoma Ononuju, coordinator of the Equity, Diversity & Inclusive Education program, through September 30, 2020.
The series launched in July with the webinar, Building a Pipeline for Black Male Teacher Success – A Local Response, and can be viewed as a recorded session. The August webinars, also recorded for on-demand viewing, cover the following topics:
Register for the next webinar:
03 Aug2020
By Katrina Norfleet
As part of a three-part Answering the Call to Action: Culturally Affirming Webinar Series, member institution Howard University College of Education will present its third session: “How Educators can use their Sphere of Influence to Decolonize the Classroom” on Wednesday, August 5, 2:00 – 3:30 p.m.
In addition to an overview on decolonization, the webinar offers three breakout sessions, which registrants will select in advance:
- Break Out Session 1: Anti-racist Education Through People’s History (A mini-lesson)
Deborah Menkart, Teaching for Change
- Break Out Session 2: Conducting Equity Audits
Karmen Rouland, MAEC
- Break Out Session 3: Building a coalition through Black Lives Matter Week of Action in Schools
Denisha Jones, Sarah Lawrence College
The Answering the Call to Action series also included Session 1: “Using Your Leadership in Being the Change That You Want to See,” designed for Educational Leaders and session 2: “Strengthening Mental Health Outcomes by Decolonizing Practices,” designed for School Psychologists and School Counselors.
16 Jul2020
By Katrina Norfleet
To support school leaders, teachers, students, and their families in coping with the changes brought by COVID-19, the Educating All Learners Alliance have worked with national experts and their 50-plus alliance partners, including AACTE, to develop a design process around nine critical questions to consider in reopening and recovery planning for fall 2020.
The equityatthecore.org microsite shares resources from partner organizations, hosts a discussion forum and outlines a design process to ensure that students with disabilities are not only a paragraph in the planning process but are at the center of the discussion about educating all learners to prioritize equity and inclusion.
AACTE members are encouraged to visit the site and explore this resource for administrators, teachers, and school communities. AACTE is proud to be a part of this uncommon alliance of organizations working with each other to support the recovery and reopening process.
13 Jul2020
By Katrina Norfleet
The education community and parents are invited to join a virtual town hall to talk with health experts about the re-opening of schools in the fall. The event, hosted by a group of national education organizations, will take place Thursday, July 16 from 7:00 – 8:15 p.m. ET.
When COVID-19 began its slow spread across the country, schools in every state shut their doors to help flatten the curve—and they stayed closed for in-person instruction through the rest of the 2019–20 school year. While businesses and other industries are beginning to reopen, it’s clear that the economy relies on our public education system for true recovery.
30 Jun2020
By Katrina Norfleet
In an article that appeared in “The Atlantic,” Pirette McKamey illustrated the many ways anti-racist teachers make black students central to the success of their own teaching. “This is a paradigm shift: Instead of only asking black students who are not doing well in class to start identifying with school, we also ask teachers whose black students are not doing well in their classes to start identifying with those students,” said McKamey.
McKamey is the first black principal of Mission High School in San Francisco, and has taught high-school English and history for 26 years. From 2005 to 2016, she co-founded and co-led the anti-racist teaching committee at Mission High. In the article, she offers a firsthand account of students’ level of success when their academic strengths are overlooked and marginalized by educators who do not respect the intellectual contributions of black students versus those who do.
Read the full article.
15 Jun2020
By Katrina Norfleet
To address this trying time for education in general, and teacher education specifically, the Graduate School of Education at AACTE member institution Touro College will present a virtual discussion with leaders in the profession as they contemplate what comes after sheltering in place for teacher preparation.
AACTE Board member Jacob Easley II, dean of the Touro College’s Graduate School of Education, will moderate the session. Panelists include Judy Beck, president of the Association of Teacher Educators and dean of the School of Education, University of South Carolina; past AACTE Board Chair Wanda Blanche J. Blanchett, Graduate School of Education
Wanda J. Blanchett, former AACTE board chair, Graduate School of Education, Rutgers University; and Rene Antrop-Gonzales, incoming dean and professor, School of Education, SUNY New Paltz.
RSVP to join the webinar, “What’s Next? Teacher Education Post Coronavirus,” on Thursday, June 18, 3:30-4:45 p.m. EST.
26 May2020
By Katrina Norfleet
AACTE congratulates 2020 National Teacher of the Year Tabatha Rosproy and AACTE member institution Fort Hays State University for preparing her for a distinguished teaching career. Rosproy, a 10-year veteran Kansas teacher, is the first early childhood educator to be named National Teacher of the Year by the Council of Chief State School Officers (CCSSO).
Rosproy teaches preschool at Winfield Early Learning Center in Winfield, Kansas, which is housed in a local retirement community and nursing home. Her classroom is an inclusive inter-generational program that provides preschoolers and residents with multiple daily interactions and serves special education and typically developing preschoolers in a full-day setting. As the COVID-19 pandemic forced the closure of school buildings across the country, Rosproy served as a co-chair of the educator task force that helped compile Kansas’s continuous learning guidance.
08 May2020
By Katrina Norfleet
While the coronavirus is prompting cancelation of graduation ceremonies across the nation, AACTE joins the GraduateTogether2020 celebration to honor the more than three million high school seniors in America with the recognition they deserve. AACTE invites members to tune into the one-hour primetime special, GRADUATE TOGETHER: AMERICA HONORS THE HIGH SCHOOL CLASS OF 2020 , on Saturday, May 16—via television, social media, and streaming platforms—to pay tribute to high school seniors, their extraordinary teachers, and their families.
The primetime special, developed by XQ Institute in partnership with The LeBron James Family Foundation and The Entertainment Industry Foundation, is a rally of all Americans around a message of hope and unity.
The partnering organizations are inviting you to get involved and spread the word about about how students, teachers, and families can get involved;
30 Apr2020
By Katrina Norfleet
AACTE joins the National Education Association (NEA) and the National Parent Teacher Association (PTA) in celebrating excellent teachers during National Teacher Appreciation Week, May 4-8, and National Teacher Day, May 5.
The NEA and National PTA invite you to get involved by thanking a teacher in the following ways:
Thank A Teacher on Social Media
- Simply make a video or take a photo of yourself thanking a teacher who has made a difference in you or your child’s life, or just thank all teachers or supporting our nation’s students each and every day. (You can download this ThankATeacher template to use in your photo.)
- Share your message of appreciation on your favorite social media platform using the hashtag #ThankATeacher
Wear #REDforED on Wednesday, May 6
28 Apr2020
By Katrina Norfleet
The AACTE 72nd Annual Meeting culminated with a Closing Session keynote address by 2019 National Teacher of the Year Rodney Robinson, a Richmond, Virginia, 18-year veteran educator who has developed programs to prevent students from entering the school-to-prison pipeline. Robinson shared how he uses culturally responsive curriculum and the whole child approach to learning in educating vulnerable students.
In talking about inequity, Robinson spoke about two different types: resource inequity and cultural inequity. During a tour of schools in Southwest Virginia, he noted the differences in resources. “It’s mind boggling. We went to some schools with 21st century buildings, state-of-the-art high-speed internet. Kids were using STEM boxes to plant agriculture, kids were using drones to to study space. And then we would go 30 miles down the road and buildings don’t even have AC, no high-speed internet; one school district didn’t even have text books.” He was challenged to advocate for these types of inequities between rural and urban schools.
07 Apr2020
AACTE Responds to COVID-19
By Katrina Norfleet
While everyone across the globe is trying to cope with the public health crisis, college students are especially vulnerable as they are now disconnected from campus communities, resources, and the structured academic year they were anticipating. Learn how faculty can support students with anxiety as they seek answers about what comes next: Will they graduate? As the virus spreads, how long will their health and the health of loved ones be at risk? Will campus reopen in the fall?
The Chronicle of Higher Education has released a compilation of articles on how faculty can help students cope with the stressors associated with navigating the coronavirus pandemic. The 28-page special issue, available for free, includes eight previously published pieces that together serve as a resource tool for adapting to this new scenario:
27 Mar2020
AACTE Responds to COVID-19
By Katrina Norfleet
To assist education institutions in transitioning to temporary remote instructions of classroom-based courses, Quality Matters (QM) has created an “Emergency Remote Instruction (ERI) Checklist.” The three-tiered list includes considerations, tips, and actionable strategies, according to prioritized needs. The QM ERI Checklist is organized into three columns to first provide instructors with recommended actions, then add a brief explanation of the action’s importance and impact, and finally, a column to reference related Specific Review Standards from the QM Higher Education Rubric™, Sixth Edition.
This checklist is a useful tool for individual faculty as a prioritized checklist for remote teaching and as guidance for instructional designers and/or educational technologists who are working with faculty in a rapid development process to temporarily move classroom instruction online.
Below is an abbreviated list of the “Recommended Actions for Instructors.” For access to the complete tool, link to QM Emergency Remote Instruction Checklist.
09 Mar2020
By Katrina Norfleet
William Earl Gardner, a former AACTE president and dean of the College of Education at the University of Minnesota, passed away peacefully at the age of 91 on February 16 in St. Paul, MN. During his AACTE tenure, he greatly influenced the international program efforts and reshaped the National Council for Accreditation of Teacher Education (NCATE), along with his colleague, the late Dale Scannell.
Dr. Gardner earned three degrees from the University of Minnesota: B.S. and M.A. degrees in education and social sciences and a Ph.D. in education and American history. After teaching junior and senior high school social studies, he joined the University of Minnesota’s College of Education faculty, serving as department chair and associate dean before being named dean of the College in 1977. In addition to his leadership role at AACTE, Dr. Gardner was a St. Louis Park School Board member and affiliated with numerous state, national, and international educational organizations. His many publications include scholarly articles, books, textbooks, and a social studies curriculum.
A celebration of life party for Dr. Gardner will be held June 6 at Bradshaw, 2800 Curve Crest Blvd., Stillwater, MN. Memorial contributions may be given to the William E. Gardner Scholarship Fund, University of Minnesota, College of Education and Human Development.
