College of Education Newsletter

Warm Winter Wishes,

I was recently rewatching a TED Talk by Chimamanda Ngozi Adochi entitled The Danger of a Single Story. In her TED Talk, Chimamanda describes how, while growing up in Nigeria, she wrote stories about children with blue eyes who ate apples and drank ginger beer despite living in a community where children had brown eyes and ate mangos. Her life was filled with story books about British children and she wrote stories related to what she read, not what she lived. In the talk she comments about "how impressionable and vulnerable we are in the face of a story." This made me think about how we all live our lives based on single stories. For instance, I know the proper way to make gravy based on how my mother and grandmother made gravy and the stories told in my family about warm breakfasts that included gravy before long days of hard work. That single paradigm may have robbed me of the opportunity of enjoying different kinds of gravy or appreciating other breakfasts. This might sound trivial, but I believe this TED talk cautions us to be aware of the influence of a single story and how that might limit our view of others and situations, especially when that view comes from one single culture. I'd invite us all to reflect on our unconscious biases based on single stories.

If you have a moment, this TED Talk is well worth the 20 minutes you'll spend watching.

Dean Vicki Groves-Scott

Dr. Melissa Galloway is currently an Online Adjunct Instructor for University of the People and founder of E3 Consulting, LLC. Prior to these roles, Melissa served as a building principal with Columbia (Missouri) Public Schools.

Before transitioning to Columbia, she was a building principal and assistant principal with Broken Arrow Public Schools in Broken Arrow, Oklahoma. As a principal of Westwood and Creekwood Elementary Schools in Broken Arrow, both schools were Great Expectations (GE) Model Schools. Melissa has served on advisory panels setting standards for teacher assessments in Louisiana and Missouri. After joining her sister, UCA alumna (1992) Dr. Melinda Smith, at the University of Central Arkansas, Melissa graduated with her bachelor’s and master’s degrees and spent over 20 years as an educator in Arkansas, Louisiana, Oklahoma and Missouri. During her stint as an elementary special education teacher in Louisiana, Melissa obtained her certification in Administration and Supervision with an emphasis in Elementary and Secondary Principalship. Melissa holds a Doctor of Philosophy in Educational Leadership with an emphasis in Teaching, Learning, and Development from Trident University International. Melissa believes that all students can learn when supplied a climate of mutual respect and continues her work as a 2021 EdReports Klawe Fellow to bring awareness of the importance of providing access to High Quality Instructional Materials (HQIM) for all students.

In addition to being an advocate for students, teachers, and education, she is the wife of UCA alumnus (1995) Byron, mother of three adult children-Byron, Jr., Brandi and Mahogany and grandmother of 3-year-old Micah. Melissa also has a grand dog, Shark. Melissa served in the United States Army Reserve and is a Desert Storm veteran. She is also a member of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Incorporated (Lambda Upsilon-Spring 1994) and The Links, Incorporate. As a life-long learner, Melissa is excited and honored to serve on the Dean's Advisory Council at her beloved Alma Mater! Go Bears!

The Special Education students from Mrs. Alicia Brown's (Elementary, Literacy, and Special Education) and Mrs. Dee Dee Cain's (Elementary, Literacy, and Special Education) Intern I Block participated in the annual Student Council for Exceptional Children (SCEC) Angel Tree shoe drive. The purpose of the Angel Tree is to provide shoes and socks for students that go to Anne Watson Elementary in Bigelow. The interns decorate the Angel Tree in the ELSE suite, make the ornaments with sizes, and distribute the information to the College of Education. In the spirit of Christmas, an ornament is selected, shoes and socks are bought and wrapped, and given to the counselor so that she can get them to those in need.

Science Wednesday was started in 2013 by the UCA Society of Physics Students. According to their webpage, "Science Wednesday is a panel event that seeks to bring experts from varying areas of academia together to discuss the topic of the month. The event is informal, and public discussion and questions are highly encouraged."

For more information about Science Wednesday, and to view their Spring schedule, please go to https://sites.google.com/a/uca.edu/science-wednesday/home.

Dr. Louis Nadelson, Chair of the Department of Leadership Studies, will participate in Science Wednesday on January 26 with his session titled, "The Science of Leadership."

Registration for the upcoming Arkansas Society for Technology in Education (ArkSTE) conference is now open. The conference will be held Saturday, February 19, on the UCA campus. Discount rates are available for pre-service educators.

For more information about ArkSTE please visit https://www.arkste.com.

Dr. Patty Kohler, Department of Elementary, Literacy, and Special Education, recently had an article published in the International Journal of Research on Service-Learning and Community Engagement. Dr. Kohler's collaborators were Yolanda Ornelas , Jennifer Saxton , Dr. Anita Sego , and Dr. Lesley Graybeal, all with UCA.

Their article entitled, "Who’s Out There?” Modeling Innovation in Juvenile Justice Through a Campus-Community Partnership" can be accessed by going to https://ijrslce.scholasticahq.com/article/31302-who-s-out-there-modeling-innovation-in-juvenile-justice-through-a-campus-community-partnership.

Drs. Louis Nadelson, Valerie Couture, and Odunola Oyeniyi, all with the Department of Leadership Studies, recently published an article in the World Journal of Education.

You can get more information about their article, "The Effect of Building Closures Due to COVID 19 on the Perceptions and Practices of School Counselors," by going to https://www.sciedupress.com/journal/index.php/wje/article/view/21266

Drs. Louis Nadelson, Department of Leadership Studies, Kevin Powell, Department of Leadership Studies, Erin Shaw, Department of Leadership Studies, Amy Thompson, Department of Elementary, Literacy, and Special Education, and Jeff Whittingham, Department of Teaching and Learning, recently had an article published in the Higher Education Studies journal. Other collaborators on the article were: Dr. Amy Baldwin, Dr. Amanda Martin, Dr. Keith Pachlhofer, and Dr. Ron Novy, all with UCA Student Transitions.

Their article, "Do I Really Have to Teach Them to Read and Write? Education Equity Mindset and Teaching Literacy across the College Curriculum," can be accessed by going to https://ccsenet.org/journal/index.php/hes/article/view/0/46477.

Dr. Susan Perry (Department of Elementary, Literacy, and Special Education) recently had an article published in The Reader which is the journal for the Arkansas Literacy Association.

Dr. Perry's article is entitled, "Open Minds Create Opportunities" and can be accessed at http://alaliteracy.org/resources/Documents/The%20Reader/2021_Winter_The%20Reader_Arkanas%20Literacy%20Association.pdf.

Dr. Amy Thompson (Department of Elementary, Literacy, and Special Education) recently had an article published in The Reader which is the journal for the Arkansas Literacy Association.

Dr. Thompson's article is entitled, "Inferring: The Joke’s on You" and can be accessed at http://alaliteracy.org/resources/Documents/The%20Reader/2021_Winter_The%20Reader_Arkanas%20Literacy%20Association.pdf.

Apple Teacher program is a self-paced, free program for educators. The program is designed for teachers using Apple technology in education. As you progress through the courses, you'll learn new skills and collect badges on your path to earning Apple Teacher, Apple Teacher Portfolio, and Apple Teacher Swift Playgrounds recognition.

https://www.apple.com/education/k12/

Missed an issue? You can view past issues of the COE Newsletter by going to https://uca.edu/education/coenewsletter/.