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The College of Education’s legacy

October 7, 2014 Nehemiah Salo

The college’s legacy is education and training of school administrators.

While there are many top notch and influential programs in the College of Education, the K-12 Educational Leadership program stands out as the college’s legacy, particularly superintendent training. For decades, the program has reached every corner of the state, and most, if not all, school districts. It has done this as graduates of the Educational Leadership program take on administrative roles in these districts. In addition, many of our graduates have filled important administrative, policy, and political positions throughout the state.

The current Superintendent of Public Instruction, Randy Dorn, is one of our graduates. In short, the Educational Leadership program has – and continues to be – a program that influences policy and practice. As a consequence, many know the College of Education through one of the Educational Leadership degrees or certification offerings.

Each year students graduate with school principal or superintendent certificates or fulfill requirements for the Ed.D. in Educational Leadership, and eventually find their way into principal, superintendent or other educational leadership positions in Washington State. While competition for these students is fierce, the College of Education continues to train many of the principals and superintendents in the state. And the reason is clear: The practical and theoretical aspects of the program are second to none. Students make a conscious choice to enroll in the college’s programs even though competing programs in the state might have a shorter time requirement, work commitment, and/or cost less. Students see the college’s programs as gateways to a professional career as a K-12 administrator, particularly in Washington State, because of the high quality preparation provided.

Reyes and Sturm — Susana Reyes and Paul Sturm are both graduates of WSU’s Ed.D. program.

In May, a total of 31 principal certificates and 19 superintendent certificates were earned across the WSU Spokane, Vancouver, and Tri-Cities campuses. I am pleased with these individuals for their commitment to K-12 education and their willingness to fulfill leadership roles. I am honored that they chose WSU for their education and training. Further, I am proud of the Educational Leadership faculty who work tirelessly to provide the best educational experience possible for students, as well as the students and faculty who produce scholarship that positively impacts our state’s K-12 students, schools, and school districts.

The Educational Leadership program plays a vital role in developing community relations and connections. Our program faculty engage in outreach, research, and teaching that link our college to communities throughout the state. For example, faculty in the program maintain connections with local schools through teacher professional development and leadership preparation. The college also has links through research. We have grants and programs related to fuller integration of STEM education in local school settings.

EdLeadership — Ed Leadership faculty Gordon Gates and Gail Furman.

The statewide doctoral program (Ed.D.) generates practitioner-oriented research to meet the needs of school districts and college and universities. Links between theory and practice are central to the research of faculty and graduate students. Faculty work hard to generate research that is relevant, timely, and applicable to meet the needs of the most pressing problems facing educational leaders throughout the state, region, and country. These faculty have nationally recognized research in the areas of leadership for social justice, transformative leadership, STEM education, and building reflective practitioners.

A prominent feature of the program is faculty with unprecedented practical experience grounded in meeting the needs of schools in Washington. Gay Selby and Teena MacDonald for example, are veteran educators and administrators in Washington. Along with an experienced cadre of adjunct faculty, students receive tools tested in the real world of schools, making our graduates highly sought after by schools and districts.

The college is vested in maintaining a premier Educational Leadership program. The aforementioned faculty are tangible evidence of this. In addition, the college will continue to look for strategic partnerships; obtain local, state, and national roles that will allow influence; garner resources to properly support the Educational Leadership program; and work to maintain visibility and prominence in Washington State as the college continues its legacy of producing educational leaders.

More information on our Educational Leadership program can be found at education.wsu.edu/edleadership.

Many reasons to be thankful

November 27, 2013 Nehemiah Salo

As we approach the Thanksgiving holiday, it is a time of reflection for me as I think about the many good people and initiatives in the College of Education. I want to take a few moments here to identify some of the things that I am thankful for as the dean of the college. I wish I had space to identify all individuals, programs, and initiatives. The following will, however, provide a few specifics about our college that make this place special, and for me, proud to serve as dean.

I think the thing I am thankful for, first and foremost, is the people in the college, both faculty and staff. We have people who have just started in the college, and those who have worked here for more than 30 years. Some have worked here and left for a bit and then returned. Regardless of the job classification, the general tenor among employees is upbeat and they approach their work with a can-do attitude. As a consequence, I think we can accomplish anything we set our minds to.

I want to make special mention regarding our staff. These professionals provide the support faculty and administrators need to do their work. Our college could not succeed without these individuals. These unsung employees work hard to meet increasingly higher expectations on a campus that is moving fast. I want to thank each and every staff member on all four campuses, for the work they do to make the college a great place to work, study, and build a career.

The legacy of the college is the educational leadership program. The college trains the majority of the superintendents in Washington. Thus, I am thankful for a top-notch educational leadership program. The academic faculty, and the faculty that have left the K-12 administrative ranks to enter higher education, are the heart and soul of the program. Their tireless efforts in providing the best possible experience for students studying to become administrators keeps WSU and the college in the forefront of K-12 work in the state.

I am also thankful for our development team. In fact, I think it is fair to say that we have a “cracker jack” development team. These folks are continually on the road making contact with potential donors. They are continually working to maintain links to previous donors. And they’re constantly strategizing on ways to position the college to receive the kind of development support we need to be successful now and in the years to come. As a relatively new team with an upwardly revised expectation for growth, they are on target to meet their revenue goal for the first year. Well done and keep up the great work.

I think a program we will begin to hear a good deal about in the coming years is kinesiology. With a key faculty hire this last year, a search for another faculty member under way this year, support from President Floyd, and plans to develop a master’s program, kinesiology is positioning itself to become a solid choice for many students interested in this field. In short, I am thankful for a program that has momentum and is working to reach higher.

I think the above provides a bit of what I am thankful for in the college, why I enjoy working in the college, and why I am positive about the college’s future. In the coming weeks and months I will highlight other programs, people, and initiatives that make this a wonderful college. In the meantime, I want to wish everyone a Happy Thanksgiving and trust that this holiday will be a special one for you and yours.