COLLEGE Of EduCatiOnand human sErviCEsBuilding a Healthier,

Better Educated and

More Just Society

innOvatiOn

LEadErship

rEsEarCh

COmmunity COLLabOratiOn

thE visiOn WE sharE

is a hub of creativity, innovation and excellence. Our faculty, staff and students collaborate

with communities to develop solutions to problems, model and invent innovative practices and

pedagogies, engage in and publish cutting-edge research, and make an impact in and across

our disciplines and professional communities.

The College serves as a leader in supporting the intellectual, social, physical and psychological

well-being of individuals throughout the lifespan, focusing our collective energies on supporting

strengths and fostering individual, family and community resilience and development.

The College prepares socially just, culturally responsive professionals who promote individual

and community health, well-being and success.

Integrity and democratic practice characterize the work of College faculty, staff and students.

We challenge ourselves to enact the principles and practices we espouse through continuous

reflection and self-evaluation.

The College has a strong international, national and local reputation for the quality of its

programs, its faculty, its staff and its graduates, and for preparing individuals who promote a

healthier, better educated and more just society.

thE COLLEGE Of EduCatiOn and human sErviCEs

International Communities

In collaboration with faculty colleagues in the College of Science and Mathematics (CSAM) and the Office of the Provost, College of Education and Human Services (CEHS) faculty were invited to present initiatives in Pre-K-12 science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) education at the STEM World 2014 Conference in the Dominican Republic. Dr. Leonel Fernández, former president of the Dominican Republic and founder of the nonprofit organization Fundación Global Democracia y Desarrollo, hosted the conference. Nearly 200 Dominican educators and policy makers, including the Ministry of Higher Education and Ministry of Science and Technology, converged to learn about STEM education and explore the possibilities for partnerships for teacher education between Montclair State and the Dominican Republic. CEHS representatives included Dr. Jennifer Robinson, executive director of the Center of Pedagogy, Dr. Sumi Hagiwara, Department of Early Childhood, Elementary and Literacy Education, and Dr. Doug Larkin, Department of Secondary and Special Education. These representatives collaborated with faculty from CSAM including Dr. Jackie Willis and Dr. Mika Munakata to highlight STEM initiatives at Montclair State that aim for excellence in teaching and innovative learning experiences for children across the Pre-K-12 spectrum. This partnership includes the preparation and professional development of teachers in STEM fields, which may include graduate-level work and intensive summer workshops on inquiry-based curricula for current teachers.

The State and Region

The Center for Autism and Early Childhood Mental Health provides professional development, education, clinical services and research around the issues of autism, infant and childhood development and mental health. The Center is anchored in a developmental approach to meet the needs of infants, children, adolescents and their families, and is supported by education, research and clinical applications. The Center offers graduate certificate programs, professional development and research initiatives, and serves as a community clinic for children with autism and early childhood mental health issues and their families.

Under the leadership of its director, Dr. Gerard Costa, the Center has become a strong voice for autism and early childhood mental health issues in the state and region. The Center serves as the New Jersey Autism Center of Excellence Coordinating Center, overseeing and offering support, providing networking opportunities and promoting collaboration for and with nine clinical research sites throughout the state. Funded by a grant from the New Jersey Department of Health and Senior Services’ Governor’s Council for Medical Research and Treatment of Autism and in partnership with the Center for Research and Evaluation on Education and Human Services and the departments of Computer Science and Mathematical Sciences, the Coordinating Center serves as a hub for sites to share and expand their research capacities and knowledge.

The Center has received a number of charitable gifts to support its work. Jim and Trish Detura and the Nicholson Foundation provide support to enhance services on prenatal, perinatal and maternal child health. The program provides childbirth education classes at the Center and presents workshops throughout Essex County, creating community partnerships to inform policy and practice changes in the areas of breastfeeding support and “Baby Friendly” hospitals. Gifts from Karen and Dann Florek (of Law and Order) established the Infant and Pediatric Massage and the Significance of Touch in Child Development programs that provide workshops and services for children, families and caregivers through the Center’s Community Presence and Partnership Programming. The Center also offers an array of professional development and training programs for the community, including curriculum for Montclair State’s Child Welfare Training Partnership. A leader in developing a national curriculum framework in infant and early childhood mental health, the Center provides infant mental health professional development to a wide range of infant and early childhood staff in the 10 counties most affected by Superstorm Sandy. This program allows 500 statewide staff members to be eligible for the newly established New Jersey Association for Infant Mental Health Endorsement.

Our faCuLty, staff and studEnts COLLabOratE With COmmunitiEs tO dEvELOp sOLutiOns tO prObLEmsThe College is dedicated to supporting and engaging in service and scholarship that address the consequential issues faced by local, national and global communities. Our faculty and staff prepare students as professionals who emerge with the requisite knowledge and skills to be excellent practitioners within communities, and who are committed to the pursuit of social justice. We enact these principles through an ongoing commitment to local, national and international collaborations that allow us to partner with communities to develop innovative solutions to problems and to focus our collective energies to promote individual and community health, well-being and success.

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COLLabOratE With COmmunitiEs

dr. mEEna mahadEvan and Dr. Ndidi Amutah, Department of Health and Nutrition Sciences, direct THANKS: Turning HIV/AIDS into New Knowledge for Sisters. The City of Paterson Department of Health and Human Services funded this health promotion project for HIV-positive ethnic minority women at a harm reduction agency in Paterson. Dr. Amutah is also working with the Hyacinth AIDS Foundation of New Jersey, located in Newark, on Project DASH (Center for Disease Control’s Division of Adolescent and School Health), a research study that focuses on HIV prevention in adolescents of color.

dr. anGELa shEELy-mOOrE, Department of Counseling and Educational Leadership, works with key stakeholders of Carteret Elementary School of the Bloomfield Public School District to develop a sustainable program to facilitate student success through increased parental involvement. This partnership is part of the National Network for Partnership Schools (NNPS) at Johns Hopkins University. Membership in NNPS provides the Montclair State – Carteret partnership support to implement and evaluate a sustainable program using Dr. Joyce Epstein’s research-based framework of parental involvement.

dr. danné davis, Department of Early Childhood, Elementary and Literacy Education, partners with the Bradford Elementary School in Montclair to supplement student learning. As part of her course, Social Studies and the Arts in Elementary Classrooms, fifth graders from Bradford join university students several times throughout each semester to participate in learning centers addressing anti-bullying. Dr. Davis’ undergraduate students plan and facilitate these sessions. This collaboration fosters learning opportunities that are relevant and meaningful for Montclair State University and Bradford students.

Local Communities

Paterson, the third largest city in New Jersey, is also one of the most densely populated regions in the country. With more than a quarter (27.1 percent) of its residents living below the poverty line, the combined structural barriers of poverty and population density have placed this economically disadvantaged community at heightened risk for many intractable problems, such as a high prevalence of substance abuse, escalating HIV infection rates and a proliferation of gangs, crime and violence. Addressing this concern and targeting at-risk racial and ethnic minority adolescents in Paterson’s 1st Ward, the Paterson Coalition Against Substance Abuse (P-CASA) project is developing the infrastructure of an anti-drug coalition. Funded by the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration and directed by Dr. Robert Reid and Dr. Pauline Garcia-Reid of the Department of Family and

Child Studies, this project represents a collaborative effort between Montclair State University and a diverse group of community stakeholders. P-CASA employs evidence-based environmental prevention strategies to increase community collaboration and reduce substance use among youth aged 12-17 – important goals of the Drug Free Communities Grant Program. Using social marketing and other social norms campaigns, P-CASA works closely with various community sectors including youth, parents, civic groups, faith-based organizations, schools, social service agencies, law enforcement and media outlets to reverse social norms that promote alcohol and drug use, reduce youth access to alcohol and tobacco products and support policies that will improve the regulation and oversight of alcohol- and tobacco-selling establishments.

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A Center of STEM Teacher Education

Montclair State University fosters innovation in science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) teacher education. The College offers a series of academic programs to further the University’s initiatives to address opportunities in this important field. These programs were developed by faculty throughout the College in partnership with faculty members in the College of Science and Mathematics (CSAM), and include teacher education programs at the graduate and undergraduate levels.

Secondary Education

Directed by Dr. Tanya Maloney and created with the support of CEHS faculty members Dr. Mayida Zaal, Dr. Douglas Larkin and Dr. Jennifer Robinson in collaboration with CSAM faculty members, Montclair State University initiated the Woodrow Wilson New Jersey Teaching Fellowship Residency program for the preparation of urban math and science teachers. Building upon the University’s strong reputation for its Montclair State University-Newark Urban Teacher Residency, the Residency partners with urban school districts to recruit and prepare outstanding teachers with a passion for urban education, a deep commitment and dedication to the Newark and Orange communities and a relentless focus on high levels of student engagement and achievement. The Residency focuses on meaningful assessment of student learning, ongoing reflection and inquiry regarding the improvement of student learning and teaching, strong support and mentorship as teacher education candidates move from a year-long internship to employment in partnering districts, professional

development for mentor teachers, and incorporation of the best program components and practices used across University programs. The Newark Public Schools, Orange Public Schools and the University partner for effective teacher preparation by sharing facilities, co-leading teaching experiences and coursework and identifying and strengthening models of excellence. Representatives from both school districts co-designed the curriculum, which ensures that all candidates receive rigorous preparation.

A cutting-edge teacher education program that prepares middle and secondary math and science teachers through three interconnected strands of teacher preparation, the MAT Inclusive iSTEM program focuses on rigorous content area preparation in math or science, evidence-based inclusive practices and integrative STEM education in preparing new math and science teachers who have dual certification for working with students with disabilities. Graduates of this program complete 48 credits to earn a Master of Arts in Teaching, NJ Initial Teaching Certification in math or science, and NJ Teacher of Students with Disabilities Certification. Grounded in inquiry-based, peer-led and problem-based learning, iSTEM teaching and learning strategies are designed and implemented to promote all students’ achievement in STEM fields. Supported by a $1.4 million grant from the U.S. Department of Education and directed by Dr. Jennifer Goeke of the Secondary and Special Education department, iSTEM is distinct in that it prepares STEM educators for inclusive settings – that is, classrooms where students of all abilities and challenges learn together.

“Traditionally, STEM subjects have been viewed as the highest-prestige subject areas. As a result, students with disabilities have been denied access to high-quality STEM teaching and learning in the belief that they lack the knowledge and skills to succeed,” says Dr. Goeke. The immediate goal of this program is to recruit, prepare and retain teachers who are interested in teaching STEM subjects in a more integrative, collaborative and inclusive way. iSTEM aims to transform the way teachers and students think about the STEM subject areas and to encourage students with disabilities to see themselves as future engineers, architects, scientists, innovators, builders and creators.

Our faCuLty, staff and studEnts mOdEL and invEnt innOvativE praCtiCEs and pEdaGOGiEsCollege faculty and staff take tremendous pride in developing practitioners who engage in critical reflection, inquiry, critical thinking and lifelong learning, and who promote learning and growth for all, with respect for social, cultural, economic and individual differences. Together, we create academic programs that are innovative and reflect the knowledge, skills and professional dispositions that allow our graduates to be successful in building a healthier, better educated and more just society.

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innOvativEpraCtiCEs and pEdaGOGiEs

Governor Christie with Woodrow Wilson Teaching Fellows

Transforming teacher education and teacher development through doctoral study

The first of its kind in the region and one of only a few in the nation, the EdD program in Teacher Education and Teacher Development builds on Montclair State University’s nationally recognized expertise in teacher education practices and faculty research regarding how teachers learn and develop professionally throughout their careers. A research-based understanding of how teachers develop and their various learning needs throughout their careers informs program content and design. Graduates of the Teacher Development program are well-equipped to prepare, support and mentor teachers.

Diversity in backgrounds and perspectives plays a critical role in admission to the program and serves as a significant theme throughout the academic program of study. Students examine culturally responsive teaching – a critical area of learning for all teachers who work with today’s diverse student population. Ongoing support and mentoring for teachers is also addressed as part of the academic program.

“With the shift from an industrial to an information-based economy, schools are now required to do much more than in the past. Today’s teachers are expected to get all students, not just some, to meet higher academic standards than ever before. To attain this goal, teachers need professional support throughout their careers. The preparation they receive in preservice programs – while essential – is not enough,” says Dr. Ana Maria Villegas, the program director and professor in the Secondary and Special Education department, a coauthor of Preparing Culturally Responsive Teachers (2002) along with CEHS associate dean Dr. Tamara Lucas.

As school districts have recognized the critical need to support ongoing teacher learning and are creating positions to oversee induction programs for novice teachers and to design and implement innovative professional development for experienced teachers. Graduates of the EdD in Teacher Education and Teacher Development program are equipped to fill these types of positions in schools and districts, along with a broad spectrum of teacher educator roles in colleges and universities, state agencies, professional development organizations and foundations. The first program graduate, Kathryn Strom was hired as a research associate at WestEd, a research and development organization located in San Francisco, where she conducts research and professional development for teachers across the United States as part of the Quality Teaching for English Leaners program.

The Robert Noyce Teacher Scholarship Program (NTSP) is

dedicated to recruiting, preparing and supporting new science teachers

for New Jersey’s high-need K-12 school districts. Funded by the National

Science Foundation and developed and directed by Dr. Douglas Larkin of Secondary and Special Education and Dr. Sandra Adams of Biology

and Molecular Biology, NTSP involves financial support for two years of

undergraduate teacher preparation, a series of professional experiences

designed to support high-quality science teaching, and intensive and well-

supervised school-based field experiences. The program involves strong

partnerships with several schools, where educators collaborate to prepare

new teachers who are not only knowlegeable of the content they will teach

but about the contexts in which they will work.

Wipro, a leading global IT company, awarded a five-year grant to a

team of five Montclair State University faculty members to implement

the Wipro Science Education Fellowship (SEF) leadership training

program for K-12 science teachers. Over the next five years, more than

60 teachers from high-need schools in the Clifton, Montclair, Kearney,

Orange and Paramus school districts will participate in the Wipro SEF

program. SEF supports emerging teacher leadership by focusing on

reflective practice, inquiry-based pedagogies, classroom research

and leadership activities. Participating veteran teachers are prepared

as leaders in math and science who develop and support district and

school efforts to retain highly qualified new teachers, serving in positions

that impact positive change within their schools, their districts and

beyond. Principal Investigator Dr. Mika Munakata of the College of

Science and Mathematics (CSAM), Co-PIs Dr. Monica Taylor and Dr. Emily Klein of Secondary and Special Education and Dr. Jackie Willis

of CSAM direct SEF.

Early Childhood and Elementary Education

Created by Dr. Sumi Hagiwara of Early Childhood, Elementary and

Literacy Education epiSTEMic is a summer program offered by the

Department of Early Childhood, Elementary and Literacy Education for

children in grades K-6 that aims to develop children’s knowledge and

understanding of STEM content. EpiSTEMic enhances student learning

through small-group, project-based instruction that fosters excitement

for learning, persistence with problem solving and creativity to inquire

and explore the world. EpiSTEMic students serve as daily camp

bloggers, photographers and videographers reporting on daily activities

on their epiSTEMic Edmodo site.

The epiSTEMic program provides exciting opportunities for Montclair

State University Early Childhood and Elementary teacher candidates

enrolled in a summer section of their methods class to expand their

clinical experiences by learning from and with children in the camp as

they create interactive science and math learning centers and explore

the integration of digital technologies in the classroom. Advanced

elementary teacher certification candidates intern to develop their skills

with STEM curriculum development, instruction and assessment.

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Dr. Sumi Hagiwara directs the EpiSTEMic Summer Program

Dr. Ana Maria Villegas (r) and Dr. Kathryn Strom (l), graduate of the doctoral program

CuttinG EdGE rEsEarCh

Our faCuLty, staff and studEnts EnGaGE in and pubLish CuttinG-EdGE rEsEarChThe creativity and innovation displayed by our faculty and staff is not limited to their work in teaching, learning and curriculum. Faculty, staff and students throughout the College engage in cutting-edge research in education and human services fields. Here is a limited sample of recent work accomplished by our faculty members.

Dr. Douglas Larkin, Secondary and Special Education

Dr. Larkin’s new book, Deep Knowledge: Learning to Teach Science for Understanding and Equity, was published by Teachers College Press, which notes, “Deep Knowledge is a book about how people’s ideas change as they learn to teach. Using the experiences of six middle and high school student teachers as they learn to teach science in diverse classrooms, Larkin explores how their work changes the way they think about students, society, schools and science itself. Through engaging case stories, Deep Knowledge challenges some commonly held assumptions about learning to teach and tackles problems inherent in many teacher education programs. This book digs deep into the details of teacher learning in a way seldom attempted in teacher education textbooks.”

Dr. Helenrose Fives and Dr. Nicole Barnes (née DiDonato), Educational Foundations

Drs. Fives and Barnes were awarded a research grant from the Spencer Foundation – one of seven proposals nationwide – to examine how teachers use data to inform instruction. The title of their project is “Teachers with expertise in data use: How do they engage in data driven decision making from student performance data to influence instruction?” Using multiple, rigorous qualitative methodologies, they will investigate whether (and under what conditions) fifth-grade English Language Arts and Social Studies teachers with expertise in data use engage in sub-processes and micro-processes to convert classroom student performance data into actionable knowledge for instructional decisions. They will focus on teachers’ use of recorded student performance data from formative assessments gathered at the classroom level that are deliberate and are designed to discern and improve students’ learning.

Dr. Monica Taylor, Secondary and Special Education

Dr. Taylor has coedited a new book with Dr. Lesley Coia (Agnes Scott College) titled, Gender, Feminism, and Queer Theory in the Self-Study of Teacher Education Practices, which explores the implications of gender, feminism and queer theory on the self-study of teacher education practices. In this innovative volume, Drs. Taylor and Coia invite both

novice and veteran teacher educators to critically examine their own pedagogy and reflect upon how gender roles and sexual identifications influence their preparation of preservice teachers.

Dr. Alina Reznitskaya, Educational Foundations

Dr. Reznitskaya studies Dialogic Teaching, a pedagogical approach that capitalizes on the power of talk to further students’ ability to construct and comprehend arguments. In a typical classroom, teachers talk and students listen, and when students speak, they are required to recall the thoughts of others. However in public discourse, individuals continuously reflect on and revise what they may have thought themselves to make sense of the world – a goal of much classroom discourse that is not frequently realized. Dr. Reznitskaya’s research addresses the disparity between the educational ideal and the reality of typical classroom practices. To support her research, Dr. Reznitskaya received funding from the U.S. Department of Education Institute of Education Sciences for $1.4 million and the Spencer Foundation for $50,000.

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Dr. Alina Reznitskaya

Dr. Ana Maria Villegas, Secondary and Special Education

Dr. Villegas, professor in the Secondary and Special Education department, and Marilyn Cochran-Smith, Boston College, coauthored a chapter for the upcoming edition of the Handbook of Research on Teaching entitled “Research on teacher preparation: Charting the landscape of a sprawling field.” The chapter was written with two students in the Montclair State doctoral program in Teacher Education and Teacher Development – Linda Abrams and Tammy Mills – along with two Boston College doctoral students. The authors analyzed more than 1,500 research journal articles selected through a massive hand- search of major national and international journals in general education and in teacher education specifically and key subject matter and special area journals, as well as targeted computerized searches. Deborah Loewenberg Ball, dean of the School of Education at Michigan State University, serving as the discussant for a symposium on the chapter at the American Educational Research Association conference in April 2014, stated that she expects the chapter to have a significant impact on the field of research in teacher education and in the preparation of future teacher educators.

Dr. Eden Kyse and Rebecca Swann-Jackson, Center for Research and Evaluation on Education and Human Services

Dr. Kyse and Swann-Jackson were awarded a two-year, $250,000 contract with the New Jersey Department of Education (NJDOE) to conduct a rigorous evaluation of the NJDOE’s School Improvement Grant (SIG). This evaluation study will include a comprehensive analysis of the implementation of the SIG program as well as an analysis of the impact of the grant on district and school outcomes.

Dr. Kathryn Herr, Educational Foundations

Dr. Herr published the second edition of her book, The Action Research Dissertation: A Guide for Students and Faculty, with coeditor Gary L. Anderson of New York University. The first edition of this book was a first-of-its-kind reference, distilling the authors’ decades of action research experience into a handy guide for graduate students. The second edition continues to provide an accessible road map that honors the complexity of action research, while providing an overview of how action research is defined, its traditions and history and the rationale for using it. The authors demonstrate that action research is not only appropriate for a dissertation, but also is a deeply rewarding experience for both the researcher and participants.

Dr. Eric Weiner, Early Childhood, Elementary and Literacy Education

Dr. Weiner published Deschooling the Imagination: Critical Thought as Social Practice, which examines what it means to be actively engaged

in developing a critical/creative mindset against the prevailing ideology of our public schools. It also looks at the social/cultural relationship between what and how we learn and our imaginative capacities. Finally, but equally important, it is a book about how teachers can teach in the service of a revived critical/creative imaginary. The book discusses the following questions in more depth: How can educators and those involved and/or invested in public education in the United States learn to think about curriculum, assessment, pedagogy, school structures, knowledge, power, identity, language/literacy, economics, creativity, human ecology and our collective future in a way that escapes the over-determined discourses that inform current attitudes and practices of schooling? What are some of the tactics and strategies that teachers, students, parents, administrators and policymakers can learn and enact in the service of a future that we can barely imagine?

Dr. Dana Heller Levitt, Counseling and Educational Leadership

Dr. Levitt published her latest book, Values and Ethics in Counseling: Real-life Ethical Decision Making, with Routledge and coedited it with Holly J. Hartwig Moorhead from Regent University. Many counselors learn about ethics in graduate school by applying formal, step-by-step, ethical decision-making models that require counselors to be aware of their values and refrain from imposing personal values that might harm clients. However, in the real world, counselors often make split-second ethical decisions based upon personal values. Values and Ethics in Counseling illustrates the ways in which ethical decisions are values – but more than that, it guides counselors through the process of examining their own values and analyzing how these values impact ethical decision-making. Each chapter presents ethical decision-making as a very personal, value-laden process, one that is most effectively illustrated through the real-life stories of counselors at various stages of professional development – from interns to seasoned clinicians. Each story is followed by commentary from the author as well as analysis from the editors to contextualize the material and encourage reflection.

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Dr. Stephanie Silvera, Health and Nutrition Sciences

Dr. Silvera’s research focuses on exploring and elucidating patterns of health behaviors, especially physical activity and dietary behaviors, with the ultimate goal of creating health promotion messages aimed at reducing cancer incidence. She also investigates the underlying causes of health outcome disparities among racial/ethnic groups with respect to cancer outcomes. Dr. Silvera was awarded a National Cancer Institute Mentored Research Scientist Development Award grant for $600,000 to conduct investigations regarding health disparities in New Jersey. Referring to health disparities among racial/ethnic groups, Dr. Silvera has emphasized the importance of understanding the effects of communities and individuals. “If we are going to truly understand why people behave as they do and why we see the distribution of illness and health that we do,” Dr. Silvera says, referring to health disparities among specific racial/ethnic groups.

Taking a look at access to food and health care, Dr. Silvera strives to better understand why some groups are at higher risk than others for the same disease outcomes, particularly when we know that genetics does not fully explain those differences. “There is always a role for personal responsibility in determining our health,” she says. “But, if we assume that everyone has the same access to good health, we cannot truly begin to address the very real and very serious health disparities that we continue to see today.”

Dr. Joseph Oluwole, Counseling and Educational Leadership

Dr. Oluwole conducts research on the legal rights of students and teachers in public schools, including their constitutional and statutory rights. These include the rights to free speech, search and seizure, due process and the new teacher evaluation laws. He also writes on the legal issues, surrounding racial and socioeconomic equity and access in education, Brown v. Board of Education (1954) and Brown v. Board of Education (1955). Finally, he writes on the various legal issues related to charter schools – considering where they are public or private entities, legal responsibilities of charter schools and rights of students and teachers in those schools. He is the co-author of SextEd: Obscenity versus Free Speech in Our Schools, which examines the sexting trend in schools and the legal issues involved.

Education

Dr. Francine Peterman, dean, serves on the advisory board for the Mid-Atlantic Comprehensive Center operated by WestEd, to help state leadership in Delaware, the District of Columbia, Maryland, New Jersey and Pennsylvania advance their education reforms. She also served as a member of the Mid-Career Award Committee for The Teacher Education Division of the American Educational Research Association.

Dr. Sumi Hagiwara (Early Childhood, Elementary and Literacy Education) was appointed as a member of the Committee on Preservice Teacher Preparation for the National Science Teachers Association. The Committee works to promote excellence and innovation in science teaching and learning. She is also the chair of the Science Teaching and Learning Special Interest Group of the American Educational Research Association.

Dr. Helenrose Fives (Educational Foundations) is serving as the 2015 program chair for the Learning and Instruction Division of the American Educational Research Association (AERA) – the second-largest division in AERA. In addition to managing the nine subsections of Division C, Dr. Fives also serves on the Program Planning Committee that crosses Divisions and Special Interest Groups (SIGS) to facilitate the development of the overall program and invited sessions.

Dr. Vanessa Domine (Secondary and Special Education) is the vice president of the National Association for Media Literacy Education and coeditor of the Journal of Media and Literacy Education.

Cyrene Crooms, a student in the EdD program in Teacher Education and Teacher Development, was appointed to the Continuous Improvement Commission/Accreditation Council of CAEP, the Council for the Accreditation of Educator Preparation.

Human Services

Dr. Muninder Ahluwalia (Counseling and Educational Leadership) is chair of the American Psychological Association’s Committee on Ethnic Minority Affairs (CEMA).

Dr. Harriet Glosoff (Counseling and Educational Leadership) is a board member of the Association for Spiritual, Ethical and Religious Values in Counseling (ASERVIC), and an editorial board member of three journals: The Professional Counselor: Research and Practice, the Journal of LGBT Issues in Counseling, and The Journal of Counselor Preparation and Supervision.

Dr. Amanda Birnbaum (Health and Nutrition Sciences) is a founding member of the Board of Associate Editors of the Health Behavior and Policy Review journal. This new, bimonthly journal is published by the publisher of American Journal of Health Behavior, one of the leading journals in the health behavior field. She is also the associate editor of the International Journal of Behavioral Nutrition and Physical Activity.

Dr. Lauren Dinour (Health and Nutrition Sciences) was recently elected as treasurer of the Hunger and Environmental Nutrition Dietetic Practice Group of the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics (AND).

Dr. Soyoung Lee (Family and Child Studies) is an editorial board member of the Journal of the Korean Home Economics Association.

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Our faCuLty, staff and studEnts makE an impaCt in and aCrOss Our disCipLinEs and prOfEssiOnaL COmmunitiEsOur faculty members serve as leaders in their academic disciplines and professional organizations, allowing them to make a significant impact in their respective fields.makE an

impaCt

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Dr. Amanda Baden (Counseling and Educational Leadership) is a senior fellow at The Evan B. Donaldson Adoption Institute and a member of the State Board for Psychology for New York.

Dr. Ndidi Amutah (Health and Nutrition Sciences) is president of the Society for Analysis of African-American Public Health Issues (SAAPHI), an affiliate of the American Public Health Association. She is also a member of the Section Council of the Maternal and Child Health Section of the American Public Health Association and a Fellow of the Research Education Institute for Diverse Scholars (REIDS) program.

Dr. Jennifer Urban (Family and Child Studies) is an associate editor of the journal, Child Development, the leading journal in the field of child psychology and a member of the Executive Board of the Society for the Study of Human Development.

Dr. Melissa Alexander’s (Exercise Science and Physical Education) work focuses on improving the experiences of people with disabilities in physical education and sports. Her primary research examines the learning experiences of students with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) in both sports and physical education. Her aim is to gain a better understanding of instructional strategies that can be beneficial to students with ASD. She developed the Social Skills and Sports Program (S3), a program designed to teach people who qualified for the Special Olympics about how to make eye contact, contribute relevant information to a conversation and take turns within the conversation. Funded by a CDC grant through Special Olympics International, S3

combined a variety of pedagogical techniques to teach the participants the target skills. Her most recent book, Meeting the Physical Education Needs of Children with Autism Spectrum Disorder, covers how to teach children with ASD in the physical education setting.

Dr. Jonathan Caspi (Family and Child Studies) examines the relationships between siblings – specifically, he examines developmental processes through a sibling lens – and sibling violence. His book, Sibling Development: Implications for Mental Health Practitioners, was the first to cover an array of sibling issues and sociocultural contexts, as well as provide treatment considerations for family practitioners. His newest book is Sibling Aggression: Assessment and Treatment, which addresses the most prevalent form of interpersonal aggression and child maltreatment.

Dr. Amanda Baden (Counseling and Educational Leadership) conducts research on transracial adoptions. She has focused on several areas in her scholarly work, including identity development of transracial adoptees; the impact of culture and its relinquishment; counseling adult adoptees and birth parents; and the impact of oppression, power and privilege on transracial adoptees. She is the coeditor of The Handbook of Adoption: Implications for Researchers, Practitioners and Families and has served as the cochair of the National Biennial Adoption Conference in New York City.

Ahmad Rashed Wassif, MD, is a physician from Kabul, Afghanistan, and the first Fulbright Scholar in the Master of Public Health Program. Following his completion of the program, Dr. Wassif was appointed as a Reproductive Health Consultant with the Johns Hopkins Program for International Education on Gynecology and Obstetrics (JHPIEGO), an affiliate of Johns Hopkins University. In this position, he will provide technical support to the Reproductive Health Department of the Ministry of Public Health of Afghanistan in the areas of breast and cervical cancer, and prenatal and post-partum health. A decade ago, a woman died every 27 minutes from pregnancy and childbirth-related causes in Afghanistan, a maternal mortality rate of 1,600 maternal deaths per 100,000 live births. Currently, that rate is 327 maternal deaths per 100,000 live births, a remarkable improvement. Dr. Wassif’s work will contribute to further reducing maternal mortality in Afghanistan. The Master of Public Health and MS in Nutrition and Food Science programs have since added Fulbright Scholars from South Africa and Indonesia, with several more Fulbright Scholars joining the department next year.

thE COLLEGE sErvEs as a LEadEr in fOstErinG individuaL, famiLy and COmmunity dEvELOpmEnt and rEsiLiEnCEThe College has always held a deep commitment to working in collaboration with communities to support children, adults and families. Many of our faculty members conduct research that not only adds to the knowledge in the field, but serves to improve the lives of others.

famiLy andCOmmunity rEsiLiEnCE

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Dr. Melissa Alexander directs the Adaptive Swim Program for students with disabilities

Dr. Bree Picower (Early Childhood, Elementary, and Literacy Education)

works to understand the barriers teachers face in trying to teach

and organize for social justice and work toward social change. In her

recent book, Practice What you Teach: Social Justice Education in the

Classroom and the Streets, she researched three different groups

of educators to explore the challenges of developing and supporting

teachers’ sense of social justice and activism at various stages of their

careers: White, pre-service teachers typically enrolled in most teacher

education programs; new teachers attempting to integrate social justice

into their teaching; and experienced educators who see their teaching

and activism as inextricably linked. She explored each group’s triumphs

and challenges, providing strategies and suggestions for all teachers

along with in-depth analysis. It is her hope that by understanding the

challenges that teachers face in teaching for equity and social justice,

teacher educators can be better positioned to develop the kind of

political analysis that lays the foundation for social justice teaching

and teacher activism.

Through funding from the Schumann Fund for New Jersey, Dr. Picower

developed the Newark-Montclair Urban Teacher Residency (NMUTR)

Anti-Racism Initiative, which allows students and faculty to participate

in the People’s Institute for Survival and Beyond’s Undoing Racism™

training (UR). The NMUTR program is an innovative apprenticeship-

based program of study for individuals with a deep commitment to

urban teaching and social justice. The program prepares teachers to

be successful in urban, low-income communities of color, and part of

that preparation includes supporting teachers in understanding how

systemic racism and other forms of inequality impact the communities

they serve. Through dialogue, reflection, role-playing, strategic planning

and presentations, the UR intensive training challenges participants to

analyze the structures of power and privilege that hinder social equity to

help prepare them to be effective anti-racist educators. The workshop’s

systemic approach stresses learning from history, developing leadership,

maintaining accountability to communities, creating networks, undoing

internalized oppression and understanding the role of organizational

gatekeeping in perpetuating racism.

thE COLLEGE prEparEs sOCiaLLy just, CuLturaLLy rEspOnsivE prOfEssiOnaLs WhO prOmOtE individuaL and COmmunity hEaLth, WELL-bEinG and suCCEss

CuLturaLLy rEspOnsivEprOfEssiOnaLs

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Dr. Bree Picower

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Dr. Zoe Burkholder (Educational Foundations)

Dr. Burkholder’s scholarship examines the social construction of race in the context of education and educational reform in the 20th-century United States. In 2011, Oxford University Press published her book, Color in the Classroom: How American Schools Taught Race, 1900-1954, which was favorably reviewed in American Educational History Journal, History of Education Quarterly, American Historical Review, Journal of American History, and Choice and by the History News Network and in the Education Week Bookmarks blog. Dr. Burkholder has published articles in the prestigious Harvard Educational Review and also in the premier journal in the field of history of education, History of Education Quarterly.

Dr. Burkholder is writing another book, tentatively entitled, Race and Schooling, coauthored by a colleague at the University of Massachusetts-Amherst, to be published as part of a series by the University of Chicago Press. Education Week recognized Dr. Burkholder as a leading educational scholar with a presence in the field. She is working with the New Jersey Commission on Holocaust Education to develop teacher development resources in human rights education.

Dr. Jamaal Matthews (Educational Foundations)

Dr. Matthews received a CAREER award from the National Science Foundation. The five-year award supports his project, “CAREER: How Urban Adolescents Come to Think of Themselves as Mathematicians.” The project takes a social-cognitive approach toward understanding how students construct their math identities during middle and high school within the urban context. Dr. Matthews will examine how teacher socialization messages in urban math classrooms relate to students’ negotiation of math identities and trace how math identities form, transform and consolidate over time, beginning in middle school across the transition into high school. The project will also include a 16-week mentorship program with a curriculum tailored toward addressing the inter and intrapersonal issues that permeate math disengagement among urban adolescents and provides quality relational support with collegiate mentors, implements math-relevant character building exercises grounded in social intervention research and provides basic math support and tutoring.

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Teacher Education

Montclair State’s teacher education program is featured in a newly-released publication from the National Education Association (NEA), “Teacher Residencies: Redefining Preparation through Partnerships,” (nea.org/home/teacher-residencies.html). The NEA endorses Teacher Residencies and extolls Montclair State for its Montclair State University Nwtwork for Educational Renewal (MSUNER) and its long-standing work in partnership with school districts.

The Newark-Montclair Urban Teacher Residency (NMUTR) was featured in the welcoming session of the 66th Annual Meeting of the American Association of Colleges for Teacher Education (AACTE), March 1, 2014, in Indianapolis (vimeo.com/88646509). The NMUTR was highlighted because of its inclusion in the AACTE Research to Practice Spotlight Series. The video showed during the session featured NMUTR graduate Katie Dowling, second grade teacher, Maple Avenue School, Newark Public Schools, and Dr. Jennifer Robinson, director of the Montclair State University Center of Pedagogy (at 20 minutes 30 seconds into the video). Ms. Dowling specifically mentioned the excellent preparation she received on the theory and practice of balanced literacy instruction from Dr. Tammy Spencer, associate professor in the Early Childhood, Elementary and Literacy department.

Dr. Ana María Villegas (Curriculum and Teaching) was named a Fellow of the American Educational Research Association (AERA).

Dr. Vanessa Domine (Secondary and Special Education) was awarded the Meritorious Service Award by The National Association for Media Literacy Education (NAMLE) in recognition of her years of service on the Board of Directors.

Dr. Danné E. Davis (Early Childhood, Elementary and Literacy Education) is a recipient of the G. Pritchy Smith Multicultural Educator award from the National Association for Multicultural Education. She was also named Faculty/Staff LGBTQ Ally of the Year by Montclair State University’s LGBTQ Center.

Krystal Sanchez (Early Childhood, Elementary and Literacy Education), a student in the Modified Alternate Route Preschool through Grade Three Certification program, received the New Jersey Child Care Association’s Teacher of the Year award.

Gail Perry-Ryder, a doctoral student in the Teacher Education and Teacher Development program, was selected as a RAND Summer Associate to

work under the mentorship of Dr. Gabriella Gonzalez, Social Scientist at RAND Education in Pittsburgh. Ms. Perry-Ryder was selected for this highly competitive program to work with Dr. Gonzalez on an education research project. The RAND Corporation is a widely respected nonprofit institution that helps improve policy and decision-making through high-quality research and analysis.

Health and Nutrition

Dr. Amanda Birnbaum served on the expert panel of the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics to develop the Guide for Effective Nutrition Interventions and Evaluation (GENIE).

Dr. Eva Goldfarb served on an advisory panel that developed National Standards for Teacher Preparation in Sexuality Education. These new standards were officially published in the Journal of School Health in June.

Kristie Fanelli, a graduating dietetics student, received a $2,000 scholarship from the renowned Les Dames D’Escoffier, a women-only organization for leaders in culinary and hospitality fields.

Vita Tambone, a Dietetic Internship graduate student, won the New Jersey Dietetic Association Dietetic Student Initiative Award for 2013. This award is given to a dietetic intern who demonstrates leadership potential, evidenced in an essay written by the student, a letter of recommendation from her program directors and her internship application packet.

Counseling

Dr. Muninder Ahluwalia is a recipient of the American Counseling Association Counselors for Social Justice ‘Ohana Award.

Dr. Amanda Baden is a recipient of the John D. Black Award from the Society of Counseling Psychology, Division 17 of the American Psychological Association. The John D. Black Award for Outstanding Achievement in the Practice of Counseling Psychology is given to stimulate and reward outstanding achievement in the practice of counseling psychology.

Dr. Harriet Glosoff is a Fellow of the American Counseling Association (ACA).

Cyrene Crooms, a student in the EdD program in Teacher Education and Teacher Development, was appointed to the Continuous Improvement Commission/Accreditation Council of the Council for the Accreditation of Educator Preparation.

thE COLLEGE has a strOnG intErnatiOnaL, natiOnaL and LOCaL rEputatiOn fOr thE quaLity Of its prOGrams, its faCuLty, its staff and its GraduatEs

rEputatiOnfOr EXCELLEnCE

Families and Children

Dr. Gerard Costa (Center for Autism and Early Childhood Mental Health) has been named a recipient of the Lucille Weistuch Early Childhood Special Education Award from the New Jersey Division for Early Childhood (NJDEC). Each year, NJDEC presents this award to a member of the Early Childhood Special Education community in New Jersey whose body of work reaches beyond the classroom to significantly impact the lives of many.

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Montclair State University

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Montclair, New Jersey 07043

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