UW-Madison School of Education Online News - January 2009

Welcome to the UW–Madison School of Education Online News, a monthly update on School and campus news and resources. 

Underwood Named Interim Provost, Gamoran Interim Dean

Kudos to School of Education Dean Julie Underwood, who has been tapped by Chancellor Carolyn “Biddy” Martin to serve as interim provost for UW–Madison. As chief academic officer, the provost helps steer long-term academic direction through close collaboration with the deans of UW-Madison's 12 schools and colleges. Underwood moved to her new office in Bascom Hall last week.  And congratulations to Adam Gamoran, the School’s associate dean for research and director of the Wisconsin Center for Education Research, who has been named interim dean for the School of Education. Read more.

Researchers Launch Landmark Study of Financial Aid

Sara Goldrick-Rab and Douglas N. Harris, assistant professors of educational policy studies, are co-directing a groundbreaking study of the long-term effects of financial aid on college students. Participants include nearly 6,000 Wisconsin residents receiving a federal Pell grant while enrolled at each of the 42 public colleges statewide. Many are also grantees of the Fund for Wisconsin Scholars (FFWS), a foundation established by UW-Madison alumni John and Tashia Morgridge.
Get the details.

Time to Register for the School’s Online Master’s Degree

For K-12 educators who’d like to pursue a high quality master’s degree, but can’t give up their day jobs to do so, here’s a great option!  MSPE (Master of Science for Professional Educators) is a 24-credit, two-year program that offers 90 percent of its courses online.  This innovative degree program is administered by the Department of Educational Psychology, which was ranked #1 in the nation by U.S. News & World Report last April.  Enrollment is limited; the MSPE website contains complete registration information. Check out the website.

Study Looks at Influences on Principals’ Practices

Faced with competing demands and responsibilities, most school principals must allocate their time in fairly thin slices.  A recent study by education professor Eric Camburn and colleagues at the Wisconsin Center for Education Research examined principals’ priorities and practices.  It revealed three kinds of principals – student leaders, instructional leaders, and eclectic leaders – and showed that the most effective leaders match their practices to their own environments.
Read more.

Grappling with Issues in Higher Education

Researchers affiliated with WISCAPE (Wisconsin Center for the Advancement of Post-secondary Education) have studied some of the most pressing issues facing today’s universities: access and equity, the fiscal impact of a college degree, and state support for higher education, to name but a few.  Their research reports, policy briefs and working papers, along with other media from WISCAPE forums, are available online.  The Center’s website also provides numerous links to higher education resources.
Visit the WISCAPE website.

Course Introduces UW Students to Dance/Movement Therapy
Dance/movement therapy – the focus of the Dance Program’s new certificate program for non-dance majors – uses creative and everyday movement to help individuals learn more about themselves and their interactions with others.  The classes, taught by licensed dance/movement therapist Rena Kornblum, also address how movement can be used in fields that deal with violence prevention, behavior management and social skill development.
Read more.

Careers Conference: Jan. 26-28

More than 1,000 educators and career development practitioners from across the United States and abroad are expected to attend the 23rd annual Careers Conference, sponsored by the Center on Education and Work.  At this year’s gathering, held at the Madison Concourse Hotel, experts and practitioners will lead more than 150 sessions that showcase the important role of career development during times of economic uncertainty. Online registration is available.
Get the details.

School’s Artists and Alumni Featured in Community-wide Arts Enterprise Symposium: Jan. 30 – Feb. 1

Is it possible to “make it” as an artist in today’s society?  Art Department alumni J.J. Sedelmaier, Brenda Baker and Brian Raffel will share their professional experiences during the UW-Madison Arts Enterprise Symposium, which runs from Friday, Jan. 30 through Sunday, Feb. 1.  Also featured at the event will be art professors Aris Georgiades and Gail Simpson, dance professors Li Chiao-Ping and Jin-Wen Yu, and Arts Institute outreach specialist Kate Hewson.  Sessions will be held at the UW-Madison Pyle Center.
Read more.

Campus: 2008 Photographers’ Choice

The faculty, staff and students together form a community at the University of Wisconsin-Madison that is like no other. University Communications photographers capture the energy and diversity of our dynamic campus, as well as the quiet moments treasured by all, in this multimedia slide show.
Check it out.

Kudos to Education Faculty and Staff

• Alberta Gloria (professor, Counseling Psychology) has received two awards for her work with students: the McNair Scholars Program Outstanding Mentor Award and the TRIO Student Services Program’s Dr. Brenda Pfaehler Award of Excellence.
• Jerlando Jackson (assoc. professor, Educational Leadership & Policy Analysis and WISCAPE faculty affiliate) has been named editor of the Association for the Study of Higher Education (ASHE) Reader Series.
• Joseph Koykkar (professor and music director/composer for the Dance Program) has been chosen as a 2008-09 ASCAPLUS Award recipient by the American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers.
• Beth Larson (assoc. professor, Occupational Therapy) has received a Vilas Life Cycle Professorship Award from the Women in Science and Engineering Leadership Institute.
• Amy Stambach (assoc. professor, Educational Policy Studies) has been named Director of Global Studies, a program of the UW–Madison International Institute.
• The work of Fred Stonehouse (asst. professor, Art) is featured in a new book on contemporary artists, The Upset: Young Contemporary Art.

Update Your Records

Have you moved or changed your name? You can easily update that information via the alumni page on the School’s website.  And we’ll make sure that your University records are changed as well as ours. 
Update your records

Next Issue

The next issue of the School of Education Online News will be delivered in February 2009.

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