Smagorinsky

Three faculty members, an alumna and a graduate student from the University of Georgia College of Education were nationally recognized for their work by the American Educational Research Association (AERA) at its annual meeting in San Francisco April 26-May 1.

Peter Smagorinsky, Distinguished Research Professor of English Education, was selected as the 2013 Outstanding Reviewer for Review of Education Research, the AERA journal, and as an Outstanding Reviewer for 2013 by the editors of the American Educational Research Journal - Teaching, Learning, and Human Development. Smagorinsky was named an AERA Fellow in 2010.

Tobin

Bradshaw

Joseph Tobin, the Elizabeth Garrard Hall Professor in Early Childhood Education, received the 2013 Mentoring Award from the AERA Division G. Tobin was named an AERA Fellow in 2010.

Laine Bradshaw, an assistant professor of educational psychology, has been awarded the 2013 Outstanding Dissertation Award for the Cognition and Assessment Special Interest Group. Her dissertation, which she completed as a UGA doctoral student, was titled “Combining Item Response Theory and Diagnostic Classification Models: A Psychometric Model for Scaling Ability and Diagnosing Misconceptions.”

Jacobson

Van Cleave

Erik Jacobson, a doctoral candidate in mathematics education, won a prestigious $20,000 dissertation grant from the Grants Board of AERA. His dissertation was titled “Professional Experience and the Development of Mathematical Proficiency for Teaching.”

Jessica Van Cleave, who earned a B.A. in English, M.Ed. in English Education and a Ph.D. in language and literacy education from UGA, won the 2013 Outstanding Dissertation Award from the Qualitative Research Special Interest Group. Her dissertation was titled “Scientifically Based Research in Education as a Regime of Truth: An Analysis Using Foucault’s Genealogy and Governmentality.” She is currently an assistant professor of education and director of assessment at Mars Hill College in North Carolina.

Fecho

Aderhold Distinguished Professor
Robert Fecho, a professor and head of the department of language and literacy education, received the college’s highest honor when he was named the Aderhold Distinguished Professor for exemplary contributions in teaching, research and service.

Fecho, an internationally recognized expert on adolescent literacy, founded and co-directs the Red Clay Writing Project with colleague JoBeth Allen. Begun in 2003, Red Clay has created a cadre of over 180 area teachers committed to teaching writing and promoting social justice.

The Aderhold Distinguished Professor holds the title for one academic year and receives discretionary funds for one year, a one-time cash award, or a combination of the two. Only professors with five years or more on the UGA faculty are eligible.

Neuharth-Pritchett

Ira Aaron Award for Teaching Excellence
Stacey Neuharth-Pritchett, a professor in the department of educational psychology, received the Ira E. Aaron Award for Teaching Excellence and Collegiality. Only full-time tenured faculty members are eligible for this award. The awardee receives an instructional grant.

Thompson

Carl Glickman Faculty Fellow
Katherine Thompson, a clinical associate professor in the department of educational theory and practice, received the Carl Glickman Faculty Fellow Award, which recognizes distinguished accomplishments and potential for future contributions of faculty in fulfilling the mission of the university through teaching, research and service. Awardees receive a cash award and a grant for professional development.

Cahnmann-Taylor

Russell H. Yeany, Jr., Research Award
Melisa Cahnmann-Taylor, a professor in the department of language and literacy education, received the Russell H. Yeany, Jr., Research Award, which recognizes a tenure-track faculty member’s outstanding cumulative research. It includes a cash award and a grant for professional development.

Oliver

Faculty Diversity Award
Jenny Penney Oliver, a senior academic professional in the department of counseling and human development services, received the Faculty Diversity Award.  This award recognizes faculty members whose research, teaching and/or service promotes a more diverse local, university and/or global community.  It includes a cash award.

The award has recently been renamed the Jenny Penny Oliver Diversity Award in honor of her commitment and record of accomplishment in creating and facilitating partnerships to bridge diversity in Georgia and beyond.

Harman

D. Keith Osborn Award for Teaching Excellence
Ruth Harman, an assistant professor in the department of language and literacy education, and Stephanie Jones, an associate professor in the department of educational theory and practice, received the Faculty Senate D. Keith Osborn Award for Teaching Excellence. Awardees receive an instructional grant.

Butchart

Distinguished Research Professor
Ronald Butchart, professor and head of the department of educational theory and practice, has been named a UGA Distinguished Research Professor. The title is awarded to faculty who are internationally recognized for their original contributions to knowledge and whose work promises to foster continued creativity in their discipline.

Awardees receive a one-time permanent increase in base salary of $7,000 in addition to a $5,000 account each year for a 5-year period to be used in any appropriate way to support scholarship and a framed certificate. Butchart was recognized at the UGA Research Foundation’s 34th annual Research Awards Banquet on April 18.

Johnson

Thompson

Service-Learning Teaching Excellence Award
Corey Johnson, an associate professor in the department of counseling and human development services, and Katherine Thompson, a clinical associate professor in the department of educational theory and practice, received UGA’s Service-Learning Teaching Excellence Award which recognizes UGA faculty for excellence in developing, implementing, and sustaining academic service-learning opportunities for UGA students in domestic and/or international settings. This award, established in 2011, carries a $2,500 faculty development award.

Brown-Crowell

Outstanding Teaching Award
Cathleen Brown-Crowell, an associate professor in the department of kinesiology, received the UGA Outstanding Teaching Award during the Faculty Recognition Banquet on April 15.

Weatherford

College of Education Outstanding Undergraduate Academic Advisor
Kate Weatherford, an academic advisor II in the department of educational theory and practice, was named the college’s Outstanding Undergraduate Academic Advisor. The awardee receives a cash award.

Cohen

College of Education Outstanding Honors Student
Stephanie Cohen, of the department of communication sciences and special education, received the Outstanding Honors Student in the College of Education Award. The award includes a membership to a professional organization or a journal subscription. Cohen was honored at the Honors Program Graduation Banquet on April 17.

Thomas Baker (R), assistant professor of sport management receives 2013 Young Professional Award

University of Georgia College of Education faculty member Thomas A. Baker has received the 2013 Young Professional Award from the Sport & Recreation Law Association (SRLA).

Baker, an assistant professor in the sport management and policy program in the department of kinesiology, was a commercial litigator before earning his Ph.D. and joining the UGA faculty in 2007.

He conducts research in sport management that focuses on the application of the law to sport. Within that focus, he specializes in how commercial laws influence and affect sport marketing. Additionally, he conducts risk management research focused on both preventing sexual abuse in youth sports and terrorism management at sports facilities.

Baker received doctorate in sport management from the University of Florida where he was a Dr. Charles W. LaPradd Ph.D. Fellow, earned the Clifford A. Boyd Graduate Scholarship Award and the Norma M. Leavitt Scholarship. He earned his J.D. from Loyola University School of Law in New Orleans.

Thompson

Kathy Thompson, a clinical associate professor in the University of Georgia’s College of Education, has received the 2013 Gulf-South Summit Award for Outstanding Practitioner Contributions to Service-Learning in Higher Education.

Service-Learning is a teaching and learning strategy that integrates meaningful community service with instruction and reflection to enrich the learning experience, teach civic responsibility and strengthen communities. Through service-learning, young people—from kindergarteners to college students—use what they learn in the classroom to solve real-life problems.

Over the past eight years, Thompson has incorporated service-learning into the middle-school education program through four courses at the graduate and undergraduate level, including her “Theory and Practice of Service-Learning in P-12 Settings” class. She is also the service-learning coordinator for the COE’s Office of School Engagement and a professor-in-residence for Hilsman Middle School’s professional development school collaboration with Clarke County Schools. In addition, she is the lead faculty member for the UGA Office of Service-Learning’s P-12 initiatives, which include providing professional development to teachers interested in service-learning.

Thompson has served on the Georgia Department of Education’s Learn & Serve Advisory Board, as a grant reviewer for Georgia Learn & Serve, and has led service-learning leadership institutes for Georgia Learn & Serve Title I schools.

Thompson has received more than $70,000 in grant support over the past decade as co-principal investigator for research and outreach relating to service-learning. She also serves as the principal investigator and program officer for the state in the Improving Teacher Quality program, a multi-million dollar initiative funded by the United States Department of Education.

The award was presented at the summit’s annual meeting on Feb. 28 in Louisville, Ky.

Bierema

University of Georgia College of Education professor Laura Bierema has received the 2013 Outstanding Scholar Award from the Academy of Human Resources Development (AHRD) for her pioneering feminist research in the field.

Bierema, a professor in the department of lifelong education, administration, and policy, is lauded as one of the first scholars to do feminist research in the field of Human Resources Development (HRD) and exploring women’s development in organizations from that perspective. She has also led the development of critical HRD—a perspective that challenges dominant management practice and urges organizations to be sustainable and socially responsible.

Bierema has made substantial contributions to the profession of HRD through both research-related service and building research-related infrastructures. Her work is widely cited in both HRD and adult education—with 27 scholarly journal articles, 29 book chapters, an authored book, a co-authored book, an edited book,  a co-edited book and another book in press.

As the vice president of research for AHRD, she conducted a comprehensive study of research and publications within the field through the AHRD Journal Task Force. She runs a research preconference before the annual AHRD conference, serves as a symposia discussant and mentors both students and faculty. Further, she is heavily involved in editorial service, providing support to journal editors through her AHRD role and as an editorial board member and reviewer.

Bierema joined the UGA faculty from Michigan State University as an assistant professor of adult education in 2000. During her career at UGA, she has been recognized for her work with several awards, including the COE’s Russell H. Yeany, Jr. Research Award (2012), Highly Commended Award at the Literati Network Awards (2009), and the AHRD’s Cutting Edge Award for Outstanding Conference Papers in 2007, 2004, 2002 and 1997.  Bierema (Ed.D. ’94) earned her doctorate in adult education from UGA.

Bierema follows a long line of UGA leadership in the field. Andrea Mary Ellinger (Ph.D. ’97), now a professor at the University of Texas at Tyler, received the 2012 HRD Outstanding Scholar Award.  Baiyin Yang (Ph.D. ’96), the COSCO Chair Professor and chair of department of leadership and organization management, Tsinghua University, China, received the 2007 HRD Outstanding Scholar Award. Karen Watkins, a professor in the COE’s department of lifelong education, administration, and policy, received the 1998 HRD Outstanding Scholar Award.

Corey W. Johnson, an associate professor in counseling and human development services, and Katherine F. Thompson, a clinical associate professor in elementary and social studies education, received UGA’s 2013 Service-Learning Teaching Excellence Award.

Katherine Thompson and Corey Johnson

Established in 2011 by the Office of Service-Learning, a public service and outreach unit, the award recognizes faculty for excellence in developing, implementing and sustaining academic service-learning opportunities for students in domestic or international settings.

Johnson developed a unified education curriculum focused on service-learning for students in the recreation and leisure studies program. The curriculum, which he and his colleagues have taught annually for the past seven years, joins four separate undergraduate and graduate courses in an integrated event design program. Throughout a semester, students develop, coordinate and reflect upon special events that benefit nonprofit organizations in the local community as well as enhance their professional skills.

Last spring, Johnson’s students worked with nine agencies, raising more than $12,000 and contributing more than 4,000 hours of service. He also has created a new service-learning course “The Slow Food Movement,” which officially launched last spring.

Over the past eight years, Thompson has incorporated service-learning into the middle-school education program through four courses at the graduate and undergraduate level, including her “Theory and Practice of Service-Learning in P-12 Settings” class. She also serves as the service-learning coordinator for COE’s Office of School Engagement and as professor-in-residence for Hilsman Middle School’s professional development school collaboration. She is the lead faculty member for the Office of Service-Learning’s P-12 initiatives, helping provide development to teachers interested in service-learning.

Singh

Anneliese Singh, an associate professor in the department of counseling and human development services at the University Of Georgia College Of Education, has been appointed associate editor of the international section of The Journal of Counseling and Development.

A peer-reviewed academic publication of the American Counseling Association (ACA), The Journal of Counseling & Development publishes empirical research in areas such as counseling activities, career development and vocational psychology, and diversity and underrepresented populations in relation to counseling activities. Her appointment is for three years.

Singh is currently serving as president of the Southern Association of Counselor Education and Supervision through June 2013. She will serve as past-president through June 2014.

She received the Outstanding Teaching Award for the College of Education at the university’s Honors Day in 2012 and the American Psychological Association’s (APA) Division 44 2012 Distinguished Contribution to Minority Issues award. She also received the Group Work Practice Award – Early Career from the Association of Specialists in Group Work, a division of the ACA in 2011.

Singh conducts participatory research and interventions in middle school aimed at reducing anti-lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer (LGBTQ) bullying and violence.

She joined the UGA faculty in 2007. She received her Ph.D. in counseling psychology from Georgia State University.

Luft

A research institute for two dozen selected doctoral students in science education will be co-directed by Julie A. Luft, the University of Georgia Athletic Association Professor in Mathematics and Science Education, in Washington, D.C., next summer. Domestic and international students will apply to attend this prestigious institute.

The 2013 Sandra K. Abell Institute for Doctoral Students is a five-day program that provides a select group of science education doctoral students with opportunities to discuss their current research, work in small groups on issues related to their research, write research proposals for an international conference, and hear established scholars discuss their work.

During the Institute, students will hone their research skills, as well as build a network of scholars that will support their intellectual pursuits. This network will also guide the selected students throughout their professional lives as science education researchers.

The focus of this year’s institute will be, “Connecting Research to Policy and Practice.” Luft will be joined by Angie Calabrese Barton of Michigan State University as co-director of the institute. The department of mathematics and science education at UGA, the CREATE for STEM Institute at MSU, the American Association for the Advancement of Science and the National Association for Research in Science Teaching (NARST) are co-hosts of the event.

“Hosting the Sandra K. Abell Institute for Doctoral Students is a great honor for the University of Georgia’s Department of Mathematics and Science Education,” said Luft. “It speaks to the program’s commitment to graduate student education, and UGA’s longstanding presence in the science education community.

NARST sponsored the first institute in 2009, which was directed by Sandra K. Abell. Based upon the success of the initial program, NARST committed to sponsor future institutes on a biennial basis. The institute was ultimately named after Abell, in honor of her work with graduate students in NARST.

For more information on the institute, visit:
http://create4stem.msu.edu/abell

Founded in 1908, the UGA College of Education is one of the largest and most diverse institutions of its kind in the nation, offering 14 undergraduate majors and more than 34 graduate programs leading to careers as educators, counselors, psychologists, administrators, researchers, and educational and health-related specialists.

Tanner

University of Georgia College of Education professor C. Kenneth Tanner, an expert on educational facilities design, has been appointed to serve on a national awards panel that recognizes learning environment projects that exhibit innovation and excellence.

Tanner, a faculty member in the department of workforce education, leadership and social foundations, is director of the School Design and Planning Laboratory. His research focuses on the influence of schools’ physical environment on student learning, behavior and attitude and has been cited in national publications.

Tanner was named to the American Institute of Architects’ Committee on Architecture for Education’s 2013 Educational Facilities Design Awards Jury. The awards identify, honor and disseminate projects representing state-of-the-art early childhood learning environments, elementary, middle/junior high and high schools, alternative schools, innovative learning centers, two-year community and technical colleges, schools of higher education, corporate or other specialized training centers; and non-traditional learning environments.

Tanner joins a distinguished panel of jurors representing Taliesin, Frank Lloyd Wright School of Architecture, Scottsdale, Ariz.; SAIC, School of the Art Institute of Chicago; NCA/Architecture, Spokane, Seattle and Denver; and Harley Ellis Devereaux of Chicago, Detroit and Los Angeles.

Tanner received the 2010 Outstanding Paper Award from the Emerald Literati Network for his article titled, “Effects of school design on student outcomes,” which was published in a 2009 special issue of the Journal of Educational Administration. The article compared student achievement with three school design classifications: movement and circulation, day lighting, and views.

A UGA faculty member since 1982, Tanner teaches courses in workforce supervision, organizational behavior, policy, and sustainable school design and planning. In addition, he works as a consultant with architectural firms and school systems in planning and designing schools.

Tanner has written three books and more than 100 articles, papers and chapters related to school planning and design. He received his Ph.D. in educational administration from Florida State University.

Luft

Julie A. Luft, the inaugural Athletic Association Professor of Mathematics and Science Education in the University of Georgia College of Education, has been named the 2012 Outstanding Mentor of the Year by the Association for Science Teacher Education (ASTE).

The award is one of three science education career awards presented by the international organization of educators. It honors ASTE members who support and encourage pre-service and in-service science teachers and new science teacher educators entering the profession.

EunJin Bang, an assistant professor at Iowa State University, organized the nomination of Luft for this award. The nomination letters from colleagues and former students highlighted her commitment in working with new and former graduate students, teachers and science educators. Bang and other colleagues specifically valued the “helping hand” that was provided to them as they began careers, learned to write for publication or learned about grant work.

The Athletic Association Professor of Mathematics and Science Education Professorship was established with an endowment from the UGA Athletic Association as part of the Athletic Professorship Initiative Fund. Luft joined the UGA faculty in January 2012.

Prior to coming to UGA, Luft was a science educator in the School of Life Sciences at Arizona State University. As a science educator, she worked with science faculty on improving undergraduate education, created novel science teacher education programs, and pursued ways to bridge the gap between educational research and classroom practice.

Her current research, funded by the National Science Foundation, focuses on beginning secondary science teachers and the development of their knowledge and instructional practices during their first five years in the classroom. Her work reveals the importance of content knowledge during induction programs and suggests new roles for science educators in higher education. In 2012, research from this project received the Journal of Research in Science Teaching (JRST) Award for the most significant publication of the year.

In addition to her research on beginning science teachers, Luft is an associate editor of the JRST and an American Association for the Advancement of Science Fellow. In 2010, she was named the Outstanding Science Teacher Educator of the Year by ASTE. For the last three years, she has been selected to work with doctoral students at the South African Association for Research in Science, Mathematics, and Technology Education Summer School, and the Sandra K. Abell Summer Research Institute.She has served on the board and as president of ASTE, as a council member for the National Science Teachers Association (NSTA), the director of research of NSTA, a board member of NSTA, the NSTA representative to the NARST board, and has served as an associate editor for the Electronic Journal of Science Education and the School Science and Mathematics journal. She was also the first Scholar-in-Residence at NSTA.

Luft earned her doctorate in science education from the University of Iowa in 1994, and has been a science educator at the University of Arizona, Arizona State University and the University of Texas at Austin.

Luft will receive the award, which is sponsored by Frey Scientific, at the 2013 ASTE International Conference Awards and Business Luncheon on Jan.12, 2013 in Charleston, S.C.