(November, 2003) -- For the next year, Dr. Kathryn Schiller, Assistant Professor in the Dept. of Educational Administration & Policy Studies (EAPS) will be working intensively on preparing new education and school context components for a major, nationally representative, longitudinal study of adolescents during the 1990s. Dr. Schiller and other core members of the interdisciplinary team will be spending the next year at the Population Research Center at the University of Texas at Austin working on the Adolescent Health and Academic Achievement (AHAA) supplement for the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent Health (Add Health).

AHAA and Add Health will contain unique and timely information for examining how curriculum, opportunities for learning, informal social processes, and context of learning shape students' academic progress and transition to adulthood. Add Health is based on a large nationally representative study of adolescents in grades 7-12 in the 1994-1995 school year in approximately 80 high schools and their major feeder schools. This data set features rich measures of family life and households, peers, neighborhoods, and non-academic aspects of school context, as well as detailed information about adolescents' health status, knowledge, and health and risk behaviors. As part of the just completed third wave of data collection, National Institute of Child Health and Human Development (NICHD) and National Science Foundation (NSF) provided funds for AHAA to collect and code high school transcripts for approximately 19,000 members of the original Add Health sample as well as survey administrators of the 1,300 schools from which they graduated. In addition to detailed information on students' educational experiences during high school, AHAA will provide data on schools' formal academic structures apparent from students' high school transcripts, the curriculum and pedagogy of their mathematics and science courses reflected in the textbooks used, and on the broader district and community contexts based on information from the Common Core of Data, Private School Survey, and Census among other data sources. The first set of measures produced for AHAA to be released to the research community in Spring 2004.

The funding agencies recognized the need for high-quality data that can be used by researchers from a variety of disciplines to answer a broad range of questions about adolescent development, health inequalities, and the transition to adulthood. Substantial investments have been made in curricular reforms in the last decade to increase an entire generation's human capital in science and mathematics and their ability to use technology, solve problems, and understand and consume scientific research. Indicators from national studies like the National Assessment of Educational Progress and international studies such as the Third International Mathematics and Science Study suggest that these investments are not paying off. Efforts to correct this problem are hindered by a lack of data and research that informs the mechanisms contributing to this failure of our high school system. Current indicators of science and mathematics teaching and learning measure curriculum and assess students' knowledge, but this research neglects the social context of learning and of students' lives, and differences among population subgroups within schools. This has made it impossible to fully interpret the recent disappointing performance of high schools students or to respond to problems in curriculum, assessment, and classroom and school practices.

Analyses of AHAA holds potential for deepening our understanding of how curriculum, opportunities for learning, informal social processes and context of learning shape high school students' academic achievement to potentially promote equity in both access and outcomes. The marriage of curriculum content measures with transcript records provides an unprecedented opportunity for in-depth investigation of course taking patterns and curricular exposure over time for a nationally representative sample of high school students. The study directly targets the question of how recent reforms in mathematics and science curriculum affect students' academic progress and human development through both formal and informal processes. For example, it is possible to assess how science education is related to everyday lives of the U.S. 's diverse population by examining how exposure to science in high school is related to health choices and behaviors.

More information on Add Health can be found at http://www.cpc.unc.edu/addhealth/home.html and and at http://www.prc.utexas.edu/projects/muller_ahaa.html for AHAA.

(September, 2003) -- This year marks an important transition in teacher education at the University at Albany . This fall we admitted the last cohort of students into our long established Basic Classroom Teaching Program, and this spring we will admit the first cohort into our new teacher preparation program, leading to a Masters of Science in Secondary Education. Fulfilling new guidelines from the New York State Education Department, the new program will lead to initial (instead of provisional) certification, as well as to a masters degree.

These changes are the latest in a long and distinguished history of initial teacher preparation at the University, dating back to 1844. Since that time, our graduates have gone on to shape the educational systems of New York , the Northeast region, and the nation. That tradition continues in our current programs, administered by the Department of Educational Theory and Practice through its Academy for Initial Teacher Preparation.

The new masters program seeks to educate exemplary teachers with deep knowledge of their subject matter and a commitment to reflective practice. Coursework is linked to fieldwork in diverse middle and high school sites, where students begin a lifelong process of professional development and reflective inquiry. The program also has a heightened emphasis on the integration of technology into teaching and learning, the importance of reading, writing, and language skills across subject areas, and methods of teaching exceptional students in inclusive settings. Reflecting a commitment to collaboration and an ethic of caring in a democratic society, the graduates from our new program will become the next generation of educational leaders.

BCT
Last Cohort Group fall 2002-fall 2003
Leads to provisional certification
· Thirty-six (36) credit hour course of study
· Structure: 1.5 academic years (fall, spring, fall)
· Content domains include: Natural sciences (earth science, biology, chemistry and physics), mathematics, social studies, English, and foreign language (Spanish, French, German, Russian, Italian and Latin)
· Admission criteria: No exams required (e.g., GRE, Praxis)

MSSE
Program Begins June 2003
Leads to initial certification
· Forty-two (42) credit hour course of study
· Structure: 1.0 academic year, plus two summer(s)
· Content domains include: Natural sciences (earth science, biology, chemistry and physics), mathematics, social studies, English, and foreign language (Spanish, French only)
· Amended required courses include: Action Research, Characteristics of and Methods for Teaching Exceptional Secondary Students in Inclusive Settings, Literacy and Technology, and Measurement in Education
· Field experiences: Occurs over two semester duration (part-time and full-time assignments) · Field Experiences: Occurs over duration of program (includes a pre-practicum component and two full-time assignments, each with seminar support)
· Admission requires competitive scores on the Praxis I Examination

(September, 2003) -- Beginning in September 2003, Dr. Kevin Quinn from the Division of Special Education in the Department of Educational and Counseling Psychology will partner with the City School District of Albany on an embedded professional development initiative. Dr. Quinn will work with two teachers in School 20, Ms. Erin Tuffy and Ms. Kim Gallagher, to plan, implement, and evaluate the effectiveness of a program for students with problems learning and behaving appropriately in school. Also participating will be graduate student interns from the Division's teacher preparation program.

One major goal of the project is to better bridge the acknowledged gap between University-based teacher preparation and site-based applications and demonstrations of competency --- the so-called gap between what we know and what we do. To do so, Dr. Quinn will be working closely with Ms. Tuffy and Ms. Gallagher in both planning and delivering services to their students and in negotiating the relationship between the graduate students' preparation needs and the School 20 students' service needs. His role will not be that of consultant, but rather that of partner and fully involved stakeholder. The relationships among stakeholders will be genuinely collaborative, with each contributing his or her respective expertise.

Other School of Education faculty, including Bruce Saddler from Special Education, Amanda Nickerson from School Psychology, and Cheryl Dozier from Reading have expressed an interest in joining the partnership to lend their respective expertise in the pursuit of evidence-based best practice for both professional preparation and student services. Also, the University's School of Social Welfare will assign a graduate student in social work to the project.

A second, longer-term goal, is to pursue inter-professional development opportunities that bring together teams of interdisciplinary pre-service professionals in University classrooms and applied internships as part of their respective professional preparation. The intent of such preparation is to ensure graduates of each discrete program have the skills they need to work effectively with graduates from other discrete programs. Anyone interested in possibly joining this effort can contact Dr. Quinn at (518) 442-5074.

( May 29, 2003 ) -- The University at Albany has named Susan Phillips, Ph.D., the Dean of the School of Education . Phillips has served as interim dean since March 2002. She has been associated with UAlbany for the past two decades as a professor, program director and department chair. Prior to serving as interim dean, she led the accreditation agency of the American Psychological Association, and served as chair of UAlbany's Department of Educational and Counseling Psychology.

Philllips' research has focused on decision making and career development and her articles have been published in such publications as the Journal of Counseling Psychology and the Handbook of Counseling Psychology. She is a licensed psychologist, a Fellow of the American Psychological Association and has served as a consulting psychologist for the Roman Catholic Diocese of Albany. She currently serves on the executive boards of the Greater Capital Region Teacher Center, the Hudson Mohawk Regional School Support Center and the Capital Area School Development Association.

In 1995, she received UAlbany's Award for Excellence in Teaching and the State University of New York Chancellor's Award for Excellence in Teaching, and, in 1998, she was named Distinguished Psychologist by the Psychological Association of Northeastern New York. She earned her bachelor's degree in human biology from Stanford University and her Ph.D. in counseling psychology from Columbia University 's Teachers

College. She resides in Voorheesville , N.Y. UAlbany's School of Education engages the full range of analysis, research, practice and innovation to foster enhanced earning and human development for diverse individuals and groups, in and out of the classroom, and across the life span. Its graduate programs prepare teachers, as well as a broad array of professionals for schools, classrooms and communities. Established in 1844 and designated a center of the State University of New York in 1962, the University at Albany 's broad mission of excellence in undergraduate and graduate education, research and public service engages 17,000 diverse students in eight degree-granting schools and colleges. The University has launched a $500 million fundraising campaign, the most ambitious in its history, with the goal of placing it among the nation's top 30 public research universities by the end of the decade. For more information about this nationally ranked University, visit www.albany.edu.

(April, 2003) -- The Council of Women’s Groups presented this year’s Bread and Roses Awards to Susan Palmer , Carson Carr, Jr., and Initiatives For Women. The Bread and Roses Award is given every year by the University at Albany Council of Women’s Groups to individuals - staff, faculty, administrators, students and organizations - who have made extraordinary contributions on behalf of gender equity to enhance the quality of life for women at the University at Albany .

The name of the award recalls a slogan coined at the beginning of the century by union women. Striking for shorter workdays and vacation benefits, as well as for a decent workplace and higher wages, these women called not only for “bread” - adequate pay - but also for “roses” - a better quality of life. Palmer is the energetic, creative, supportive and dedicated extended learning coordinator in the School of Education . Although gender-blind in meeting her professional responsibilities, she has concentrated her University service on enhancing the status of women.

She served as co-chair of the Women’s Concerns Committee (1995-1997) and has been a sexual harassment adviser since 1996. She was an invaluable member of the Initiatives For Women (IFW) Selection Committee and is a member of the IFW Steering Committee, as well as an IFW-Avon Scholar “Big Sister.” Palmer earned an M.L.S. from the University at Albany and a bachelor’s degree in economics from Smith College .

Carson Carr, Jr., Ed.D., associate vice president for Academic Affairs and director of the Educational Opportunities Program, came to the University at Albany in September 1985. In the ensuing 18 years, he has served as associate dean of Academic Affairs, adjunct professor in the School of Education and Africana Studies, and assistant vice president for Academic Affairs while advocating for and mentoring disadvantaged students. His strength, encouragement, and guidance have also benefited his female colleagues, many of whom have earned post-graduate degrees. Carr has a bachelor’s degree in mathematics from West Chester University ; a master’s degree in counseling from Seton Hall University ; and a doctorate in educational administration from Syracuse University .

Initiatives For Women (IFW) was created to benefit women students, faculty, and staff by providing resources to advance their educational and professional goals. This all-volunteer organization, chaired by Kathy Turek, has raised and distributed over $130,000 through competitive awards to more than 250 individuals and programs since 1993.

The Spring Celebration April 9 included remarks from Roslyn Jefferson, co-chair of the Council of Women’s Groups, and Alison Ciesielski Olin, co-chair of the Women’s Concerns Committee; Maritza Martinez, co-chair of the Women’s Concerns Committee; Judith Saidel and Anna Z. Radkowski-Lee, who presented the Bread and Roses Awards to this year’s recipients; Bina Srinivasan of the Gujarat Forum for Women’s Studies; and closing remarks from Carol Anne Germain, past co-chair of the Council of Women’s Groups and the driving force behind this year’s celebration.

The event’s planners offer special thanks to Linda Reeves at the University Libraries for her patience, time, and expertise on the program guide and the Women’s Connection given to everyone attending the celebration.

(January, 2003) -- The Department of Educational Administration and Policy Studies will open up the opportunity for doctoral studies to individuals in the Mid-Hudson Valley , through a special, innovative program organized in co-operation with the SUNY College at New Paltz. Students admitted to the special program will form a cohort, and follow as a group a common set of mostly required courses. Video teleconferencing in equipped classrooms in Albany and New Paltz will permit regularly scheduled evening classes to convene with students in both locations. For professionals in the mid-Hudson region, the program offers the possibility to follow a good part of their doctoral course work in New Paltz. Students in the cohort also will come to Albany to take additional course work as needed to complete their individual study programs, to participate in special seminars, workshops, and conferences, and to meet with faculty and fellow students.

Admissions standards, required courses and credit hours, qualifying and comprehensive examinations and so forth remain as in the currently approved doctoral program in educational administration and policy studies. Those admitted to the cohort will have professional experience in the field and closely related master's degrees (or near-equivalents in graduate study). Admission is competitive.

Coursework for the cohort will begin in summer 2003, if a sufficient number of well-qualified applicants are admitted and enroll. Students admitted to the special program could expect to complete doctoral studies in 2007.

This will be the second cohort launched in co-operation with New Paltz. The first group commenced studies in 2000, and are on track to complete their doctoral work in 2004.

Those interested in applying for admission to this special program are asked to contact Dr. Kathleen Kraus, Dean, Continuing and Professional Education, SUNY College at New Paltz on (845) 257 2906 or Krausk@newpaltz.edu, or Dr. Jan Hammond, Chair, Department of Educational Administration, SUNY College at New Paltz, on (845) 257-2810 or JDH7777@aol.com. Application materials may be downloaded from the University at Albany 's web site, at www.albany.edu/admiss/grad.index.html. The application deadline established for this program is March 1, 2003 . Admissions decisions will be taken by April 15, 2003 . Those admitted will also be informed of determinations on advanced standing or transfer credit