AACTE Members Showcase Initiatives to Advance Social Justice, Diversity

By Amanda Lester

A major forum at last month’s AACTE Annual Meeting highlighted actions under way to diversify the teaching workforce and advance social justice at universities across the country. Titled “Meeting the Needs of All Learners: Advancing Social Justice and Diversity in Teacher Preparation,” the forum featured panelists from four Association initiatives working toward these objectives: the AACTE Black and Hispanic/Latino Male Teacher Initiative Networked Improvement Community (NIC), the Diversified Teaching Workforce: Recruitment and Retention AACTE Topical Action Group, the AACTE Holmes Program, and the AACTE Committee on Global Diversity.

The forum was moderated by Sharon Leathers of William Paterson University (NJ) and included the following panelists, each of whom is a member of one or more of the four initiatives: Lora Bailey of New Mexico Highlands University, Traci Baxley of Florida Atlantic University, Jacob Easley of Eastern Connecticut University, Conra Gist of the University of Arkansas, Fayetteville, and Reyes Quezada of the University of San Diego (CA).

Texas Holmes Cadets Present Research at AACTE Annual Meeting

By Rebecca Gutierrez

Did you notice a fresh burst of energy at AACTE’s Annual Meeting this year? Then you might have been lucky enough to interact with the high school students from the South Texas Independent School District (STISD) who attended as participants in the AACTE Holmes Program.

Register Now for AACTE Washington Week

By Christine Tambini

Registration is now open for AACTE’s Washington Week, a set of advocacy-focused events held annually in the nation’s capital. This year’s Washington Week will be held June 4-7 at the Renaissance Arlington Capital View in Arlington, Virginia, and on Capitol Hill. The week includes the following signature events:

Conic Named Scholar of the Month for March

By Adrianne Taylor

Congratulations to March Holmes Scholar of the Month Frank Conic!

Conic is a doctoral candidate in higher education administration at the University of Florida (UF), where his research and professional concentration is focused on developmental mathematics education, policy, and reform. His other research interests include the achievement gap for minority students and the “school-to-prison” pipeline.

Conic, who has been a Holmes Scholar since 2011, exemplifies the tenets of scholarship, research, leadership, and mentoring both in his studies and professionally. He is a graduate assistant for the UF/Santa Fe College Faculty Development Project, serving as an adjunct instructor in the mathematics department at Santa Fe College. He is also assistant program director for the Community College Futures Assembly, an independent policy forum in the Institute of Higher Education at UF. Additionally, Conic serves as a mathematics coach for the National Achievers Society at the Santa Fe College Center of Excellence, a multifaceted program to motivate elementary and secondary students to prepare for and ultimately enter college.

Best Practices for Teacher Diversity Highlighted at AACTE Institute

By Conra D. Gist and Tim Mahoney

On March 1, the AACTE Diversified Teaching Workforce Institute convened more than 150 teacher educators, aspiring teachers, school leaders, and deans from across the nation to address one of the most pressing issues in educator preparation today: increasing the racial/ethnic diversity of the teacher pipeline.

The event was organized by leaders of the Diversified Teaching Workforce (DTW) Topical Action Group (TAG), with assistance from AACTE’s Department of Member Engagement and Support. Members of the DTW TAG were joined at this inaugural institute by participants from the AACTE Holmes Program, the Black & Hispanic/Latino Male Teachers Initiative Networked Improvement Community, and dozens of others from the broader education community. (See the PDF program for the schedule of sessions, panelists, and other information.)

Holmes Students, Alumni Share in Rich Annual Meeting

By Dana Dunwoody and Tim Finklea

This month, more than 80 participants in the AACTE Holmes Program convened with coordinators and alumni for our annual preconference event at the AACTE Annual Meeting. The 2-day program (see the agenda) led by members of the 2016-2017 Holmes Scholars Council, the National Association of Holmes Scholars Alumni (NAHSA), and AACTE provided a rich variety of integrative and thought-provoking sessions and interactions.

Preconference Institute to Spotlight Efforts to Increase Teacher Diversity

By Conra D. Gist and Tim Mahoney

Are you coming to Tampa for the AACTE Annual Meeting, and looking for activities March 1? Please consider joining a free daylong institute exploring a variety of efforts to diversify the teaching workforce, organized by the AACTE Diversified Teaching Workforce topical action group. We’ll be in the Grand Ballroom Salon E of the Tampa Marriott Waterside starting at 8:00 a.m.

The Diversified Teaching Workforce (DTW) Institute will convene a group of national leaders at colleges and universities across the United States to spotlight and explore innovative efforts for addressing racial/ethnic teacher diversity across five key areas: recruitment and retention, teacher preparation, mentorship, induction and professional development, and advocacy. Recognizing the need to create spaces within professional networks to discuss and unpack the challenges and possibilities for increasing teacher diversity, the institute offers presentations on current research, opportunities to plan in working groups, and panel sessions focused on best practices from teacher preparation and teacher diversity pipeline leaders.

Desmond Hodge Named Holmes Scholar of the Month

By Adrianne Taylor

Congratulations to February Holmes Scholar of the Month Desmond Hodge!

Hodge is a 4th-year educational leadership doctoral candidate at Florida A&M University (FAMU). He also serves as clinical services coordinator at the FAMU Center for Disability Access and Resources, where he conducts educational evaluations to identify factors that contribute to students’ learning difficulties.

Hodge’s dedication to scholarship is evident within the Holmes Program and his university. His passion for research permeates all aspects of his professional and educational experiences. He embodies the “growth mindset” that frames his research and serves as a source of support and advocacy for K-12 students as well as for undergraduate students at FAMU.

Shalander Samuels Named January Scholar of the Month

By Whitney Watkins

Congratulations to January Holmes Scholar of the Month Shalander Samuels of the University of Central Florida!

With her passion for education, Samuels consistently advocates for student success and achievement, especially in the areas of reading and language arts. Her research interests include reading achievement gaps and teaching motivation methods in Title I schools.

With over 8 years of experience in a formal teaching capacity, Samuels has a reputation for the exciting and motivating atmosphere she created in her middle school classroom. She continues to bring this positivity to her graduate studies, building and maintaining relationships and empowering her colleagues and fellow scholars with unmatched encouragement. Samuels’ dynamic presence and passion indicate that her legacy in the field of education is likely to endure.

Registration Now Available For All AACTE Preconference Events

By Jerrica Thurman

Registration is now open for the preconference events at the AACTE Annual Meeting in Tampa, Florida. All three will be held Wednesday, March 1. Sign up now to secure your spot – space is limited! – at one of the following:

Holmes Scholar Comes Full Circle as Cadets Coordinator

By Alcione Ostorga

The views expressed in this post do not necessarily reflect the views of AACTE. For more information on the AACTE Holmes Program, visit http://aacte.org/programs-and-services/holmes-program.

It is amazing how life is connected in cyclical threads, sometimes leading you down old paths, but showing you completely new views. This recently happened to me as I became a coordinator of a new Holmes Cadets program at the University of Texas Rio Grande Valley. As a former Holmes Scholar, I remember the impact I felt when I was inducted into the program. That was an amazing experience, for it made me realize my potential in leading others to become teachers.

Building a New Holmes Scholars Program at Oral Roberts University

By Kezia Daniels

Carolyn Stubbs, ORU Holmes Scholar

For Oral Roberts University (ORU), joining AACTE’s Holmes Program contributed to an initiative to create a dedicated space within our department for aspiring education leaders. Over the past year, we’ve succeeded in setting up a fledgling program that we hope will flourish and grow as time goes on.

Our Holmes Scholars Program began in September 2015. Its conception and development was very much influenced by the Holmes Program presentation given at the AACTE Annual Meeting in 2015.

Meet Nov. Scholar of the Month Nevin Heard

By Michelle Mitchell and Terrance McNeil

Congratulations to November Holmes Scholar of the Month Nevin Heard!

Heard is a second-year doctoral student in the counselor education program at the University of Central Florida. He is the program coordinator for the Situational Environmental Circumstances Mentorship Research Project, a mentor liaison for the Counselor Education Doctoral Student Organization, and a board member for the Cultural Encounter Committee of the Multicultural Research Center Initiative.Heard is also a founding member and doctoral representative for the Multicultural Partnership of Organizers for Equity and Resilience (M-POWER) in the hopes of creating a newly recognized university organization to support counseling students.

Come Early to Tampa for AACTE Preconference Events

By Kristin McCabe

The AACTE Annual Meeting always presents a full schedule of opportunities for registrants, even before the conference officially begins. The 2017 event in Tampa, Florida, will uphold this tradition with a wide variety of preconference meetings, workshops, and other events on the schedule for March 1.

As always, several affiliate organizations and leadership groups will hold business meetings, including the Florida state chapter, various deans’ organizations, and AACTE’s Board of Directors, standing committees, and topical action groups. (Separate registration may be required for some of these meetings–if in doubt, check with your group!) Special events will also be offered for participants in certain AACTE initiatives, and an assessment–focused workshop is available for anyone to register.

Gafford Named Oct. Holmes Scholar of the Month

By Carlos Richardson

Congratulations to October Holmes Scholar of the Month Cara Gafford!

Gafford is a 4th-year doctoral student at Bowie State University (MD). She is also academy director (vice principal) of the Academy of Information Technology at Friendship Collegiate Academy, a college preparatory high school in Washington, DC.

Her research interests include science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) and student achievement in STEM learning at high-poverty schools.