Alumni News & Events

Invoking a Legend

A Drive to Rename TC’s Center on Chinese Education for Tao Xingzhi

IN AGREEMENT (From left): China- America Friendship Association Executive Chairman Yunfei ‘‘Frank” Xiao; Ting ‘‘Crystal” Zhou, the Association's Secre- tary General; and
TC President Susan Fuhrman — IN AGREEMENT (From left): China- America Friendship Association Executive Chairman Yunfei ‘‘Frank” Xiao; Ting ‘‘Crystal” Zhou, the Association's Secre- tary General; and TC President Susan Fuhrman

In 1915, young Tao Sing Wen came to TC to study with John Dewey, Paul Monroe and William Heard Kilpatrick. He returned to China, changed his name to Tao Xingzhi, which means “doing, then knowing” — a direct reference to Dewey’s philosophy — and led the modernization of China’s school system.

Tao was perhaps the greatest of “the 42,” an extraordinary group of Chinese educators who were TC alumni. Now the China-America Friendship Association has launched a $3 million fundraising drive to rename TC’s Center on Chinese Education — founded and directed by education economist Mun Tsang — as the Tao Xingzhi Center on Chinese Education.

Of course, the TC-China story has been ongoing. TC faculty members have helped reshape art and music education in China; advised the government on educating China’s diverse minorities; and created cultural and academic exchanges between the two countries. And in 1993, Tsang mounted a project in Yunnan Province that helped convince the Chinese government to fund public education for more than 25 million rural children.

To ensure the continuation of the Center after Tsang’s retirement, Cheng Davis, Special Adviser on China to

TC President Susan Fuhrman, arranged for a delegation led by Yunfei “Frank” Xiao, Executive Chairman of the China-America Friendship Association, to visit TC. Among the guests: Tao’s granddaughter, Tao Zheng (herself a teacher).

At an agreement signing in August, Fuhrman pronounced “a new chapter in one of the world’s most fruitful education partnerships.” Xiao saluted TC for not only educating Tao Xingzhi but also helping to bring his ideas to the wider world. “Tao knew that we needed a more literate population to enter the industrial era,” he said. “He made schools the center of society.”

Tsang, too, expressed his gratitude.

“I’m particularly happy about this new agreement, not because I regard the Center as my legacy, but because I see it as an asset to both TC and China,” he said. “I believe it’s essential that the Center’s work continue — and now I know that it will.”

— Joe Levine

Another Page From the Tao Xingzhi Story

Teaming Up to Raise China's Literacy Rate

Tao Xingzhi accompanied the great TC international scholar Paul Monroe on a series of educational surveys in the Chinese cities of Beijing, Tianjin and Shanghai in 1921. Among the findings by the two men was the revelation that the rate of urban illiteracy in China exceeded 70 percent. As a result of that discovery, Tao Xingzhi decided to devote much of his thought and energy to the mass literacy movement.

A College Sampler

A Taste of TC in Seoul

In August, TC’s Office of Alumni Relations and the TC Alumni Association in Korea welcomed Teachers College’s newest South Korean students — part of Enrollment Services ‘‘Taste of TC” series. In Seoul are: Hal Abeles, Professor of Music & Music Education; Mary Hafeli, Professor of Art & Art Education; and Sin Cha Hong (M.Ed. ’72) a leading South Korean performance artist.

An Artistic Legacy

Big Gigs For TC Artists Martin, O’Keeffe and Thomas

This fall, New York City’s Guggenheim Museum mounted a retrospective of more than 100 works by the late TC alumna Agnes Martin (M.A. ’52; at left), one of the great painters of the Abstract Expressionist period. Meanwhile, works by two other late alumni, Georgia O'Keeffe and Alma Thomas (M.A. ’34), were showing, respectively, at the Tate Modern in London and the Studio Museum of Harlem. In late October, TC’s Office of Alumni Relations hosted a Curator’s Tour of the Thomas exhibition, followed by a Reception. A special alumni tour of the Martin exhibit was planned for mid-December. TC also claims artists Ad Reinhardt, William Daley, Charles Alston and Raphael Montañez Ortiz as alumni.

Back to Our Roots

Taking TC to the Berkshires

At right, Mitchell Thompson (M.A. '96) with Dann Kenefick

With TC launching a new arts education program in creative technologies and an- nouncing the return of dance education to its offerings, it was only fitting that this summer the College hosted a celebration of its commitment to music at the famed Tanglewood Music Center in the Berkshires.

Noting that TC offered the country’s first graduate-level courses in jazz, President Susan Fuhrman called Tanglewood a “fitting venue to celebrate TC’s legacy of innovation and excellence in the arts.” Alumni, faculty, donors, friends, parents and trustees connected (and reconnected) with one another and basked in the New England sun while Music & Music Education doctoral student JuliaWest spoke about scholarship support: “It would not have been possible for me to experience the supportive and creative community of learners at TC had it not been for the generosity of people who care.”

Many in attendance had also recently visited the spectacular home and gardens of TC Board Co-Chair Jack Hyland and architect Larry Wente, about an hour to the south in Millerton, New York. There, Fuhrman cited TC’s “roots” in the Kitchen Garden Association in the early 1880s. Pictured here: At right, Mitchell Thompson (M.A. '96) with Dann Kenefick.

[ Alumni Focus ]

Why and How to Retain Teachers of Color

Travis J. Bristol has emerged as a national expert

Two years ago, Travis J. Bristol began championing a simple but powerful idea: The nation must retain, as well as hire, more black, male teachers. In studying Boston Public Schools, Bristol (Ph.D. ’14) learned why these educators often quit: responsibility for “difficult” students; administrative surveillance and micro-management; lack of curricular flexibility. Working with the Boston Teacher Residency program, he piloted what’s now Boston’s Male Educators of Color Executive Coaching Program to help them thrive socio-emotionally and improve their practice. Now Bristol — assisted by Marcelle Mentor (Ph.D. ’16) — is Principal Investigator for NYC Men Teach, a three-year program to recruit, support and retain 1,000 male teachers of color. Senior teachers of color mentor new teachers to better connect with students and families. In The Washington Post, Bristol has urged teacher certification programs to recognize candidate demographics and reduce credentialing costs. As Assistant Professor at Boston University’s School of Education, he challenges the “hyper-masculinity and heteronormative structures that harm students and compromise an inclusive teaching space.” He cautions: “Policies to diversify the teacher workforce should inform a system-wide approach to increase expectations and resources for adult and student learning.”

— Siddhartha Mitter

Taking “Curriculum” from Theory to Practice

Esther Yoon is turning what experts know into tools to help children learn

Esther Yoon did well in math, but it never came easily. “That’s why I’m interested in learning,” says Yoon (Ph.D. ’15). “How do you go from not knowing how to do something to knowing it?” Yoon majored in education; taught grade school in Palo Alto, California; co-founded a LEGO summer camp; and developed curriculum for McGraw-Hill. But Teachers College, where she studied with psychologist Herb Ginsburg, an expert on young children’s math learning, gave her deeper answers. “Herb pushes you to connect the theory and practice of how kids develop math skills,” she says.

Supported by Arthur Zankel and Cleveland Dodge Foundation Fellowships, Yoon helped develop MathemAntics, Ginsburg’s learning software for kids, and test it at the Teachers College Community School. Her takeaway: Good technology brings math alive. “I understand ‘curriculum’ as any kind of instructional tool, except for textbooks, which are more or less obsolete in the elementary classroom. No one should say ‘Open to textbook page 35’ anymore. ”TC gave Yoon an exceptional base to conduct research and develop educational materials. She sees her current job, producing educational content for apps and TV at the Hispanic Information and Telecommunications Network (HITN), a national public media group with a television network that targets the U.S. Latino market, as a great way to bring theory into practice. “Sometimes people think theory is impractical, but to me, it opens up possibilities,” says Yoon, who also teaches math education courses at Fairleigh Dickinson University. “Thinking only about instructional practice and procedures is confining because it’s linear in nature —and learning is not linear.”

— Joe Levine

Helping Cancer Patients Go the Distance

Ellen’s Run has changed lives – including its founder’s

Julie Ratner (Ed.D. '96, M.A. '92) always planned to work in higher education, even after her sister, Ellen Hermanson, succumbed to breast cancer. Then, just as she was completing her doctorate at Teachers College, Ratner began planning a run in Ellen’s memory. The first Ellen’s Run was held in August 1996, raising more than $62,000 for support services for cancer patients and giving rise to The Ellen Hermanson Foundation. Soon, Ratner left a job at Marymount Manhattan College to serve as the Foundation’s Executive Director and Chair. “It just took over my life,” she says. Today Ellen’s Run draws more than 1,000 runners annually, while the Foundation has awarded more than $3.5 million in grants. Most of the focus is on providing patient services in the Hamptons, which has a disproportionately high number of breast cancer cases and, contrary to popular perception, is not just a vacation playground for the wealthy.

“There’s a great need on Eastern Long Island for the services we provide, and we are determined to keep the money in the community,” Ratner says. Built in 2009, the Ellen Hermanson Breast Center at Southampton Hospital combines the “rigor and technology of a teaching hospital with the warmth of a support group,” Ratner says, and cannot turn away anyone in need. A full-time outreach coordinator helps newly diagnosed patients navigate their options. “When my sister was diagnosed, she was largely left to figure out her options and treatment. Someone to walk you through that information, especially at such an emotional time, is important.” Ratner is a member of TC’s Grace Dodge Society and Campaign Committee. She credits the College for her success in achieving the Foundation’s goals. “TC gave me the ability to analyze problems and made me better at connecting with people and leading teams,” she says. “It provided a lens for how I see the world. I could not be who I am today without that experience.”

— Amanda Lang

Providing a Safe Space for Seeking Truth

St. Thomas Aquinas College President Margaret Fitzpatrick champions values-based education based on questioning

Margaret Fitzpatrick (Ed.D. '86)

At orientation, I tell students it’s their social and ethical responsibility to create positive change, because of the world’s 6.3 billion people, they’re among the privileged few gaining a college education,” says Margaret Fitzpatrick, President of St. Thomas Aquinas College (STAC) in New York’s Rockland County. It’s a message that resonates with a broader audience. “I’m seeing a real revi-val of interest in schools like ours,” says Fitzpatrick (Ed.D. ’86), who has led STAC for 22 years. “Parents want their young adults to be in values-centered institutions. Major corporations want employees who can bring ethical backbone to their decision-making. Non-religious institutions do that preparation, too, but we name it more clearly.”

Growing up in Wellesley, Massachusetts, Fitzpatrick attended schools run by the Sisters of Charity, who believe in “reaching out to the most vulnerable members of society and raising them up through education.” She became a Sister herself and earned a master’s degree in religious studies at Fordham University. After serving as campus minister at Queensborough Community College, she wrote her Teachers College doctoral

thesis on the centrality of social justice in the founding missions of American universities. “Even then I knew that what really transforms students’ lives is thinking about society as well as about themselves.” She’s since led creation of STAC’s Global Center for Ethics and Social Responsibility and created an Environmental Institute for rising high school seniors and college freshman. Meanwhile, all of STAC’s nearly 3,000 students — roughly a third of whom are first-generation college attendees — perform community service. The college has won many honors for its good works, but for Fitzpatrick, the questioning is what defines a STAC education. “St. Thomas said we must enlighten the mind through truth. That means asking, what is truth in this time and place? People develop different answers. So we provide a safe space to discover truth — for students of all faiths and of no faith at all.”

— Joe Levine

A Principal Goes to Washington

Alicia Pérez-Katz develops a new appreciation for federal policy

Principal Alicia Pérez-Katz couldn’t secure clearance to attend last spring’s White House Science Fair, where her Baruch College Campus High School students presented President Obama with an invention for cleaning New York City’s subway tracks. Yet Pérez-Katz (M.Ed. ’98) hardly felt excluded. On leave as a full-time Principal Ambassador Fellow at the U.S. Department of Education, she was holding workshops for educators nationwide, bringing principals to Washington, reviewing the Education Secretary’s guidance and speeches, and voting on departmental policy.

“Federal policy is not the day-to-day a principal faces,” Pérez-Katz says, but adds that with the 2015 signing of the new Every Student Succeeds Act and confirmation of new Secretary John King (Ed.D. ’08), “I really saw the trickle-down. The time is ripe for principals to advocate and use the bully pulpit as a means to make real change in schools.” In April, Pérez-Katz convened Mississippi’s first Educator Equity Lab, prompted by a federal requirement that states ensure poor and minority students aren’t disproportionately taught by unqualified teachers. Back at Baruch, she’s even more aware of federal policy. “The new focus is on the fact that principals are no longer administrators, they’re instructional leaders,” she says. “But it’s not like the administrative work went away.” Her own principles are unchanged: “We continue to focus on good teaching.”

— Siddhartha Mitter

[CORRECTION:]

In the Spring 2016 issue, on page 55, our story, “A Century and Counting,” incorrectly stated Maryalice Mazzara’s title and professional affiliation. In her current role as Director of Educational Programs for SUNY’s Office of Global Affairs, Dr. Mazzara (Ed.D. ’84) is the Founding Director of the JFEW SUNY International Relations and Global Affairs Program and the American Director of SUNY’s Confucius Insititute for Business. TC Today regrets the error.

[ In Memoriam ]

Teaching For Change

Patricia Cranton

Patricia Cranton, a longtime Adjunct Professor in TC’s program in Adult Learning & Leadership, passed away in August at age 67.

Cranton co-edited The Handbook of Transformative Learning (Jossey-Bass 2012) and in June published the third edition of her book Understanding and Promoting Transformative Learning (Stylus). Her online TC courses, “Transformative Learning and Imagination” and “Authenticity in Teaching and Learning” were perennial favorites.

Cranton supervised more than 100 doctoral dissertations. A wilderness enthusiast, she was also a skilled nature photographer. A Canadian native, she was named to the Order of Canada this year.

Earth Matters

Warren E. Yasso

Warren E. Yasso, former Chairman of what was then TC’s Department of Mathematics & Science Education, died in early September at the age of 85. Yasso earned both his master’s and doctoral degrees at Columbia University and taught at Teachers College from 1966 to 1998, with an emphasis on oceanography, environmental issues, the shoreline of the New York Bight and science pedagogy. He co-authored Matter: An Earth Science and Earth Science Activities: A Guide to Effective Elementary School Science Teaching, and was a contributor to Sedimentology, Science Activities and other publications. Yasso “contributed much to the development of earth sciences teachers,” said O. Roger Anderson, TC Professor of Natural Sciences.

A Sporting Life

Hally Beth Poindexter

Hally Beth Poindexter (Ed.D. ’57), Professor Emerita and former Chair of the Kinesiology Department at Rice University (her undergraduate alma mater), died in July at 89. She helped establish women’s inter-collegiate athletics there, volunteering to organize and coach the school’s first women’s sports teams.

Poindexter initially taught at Teachers College and consulted for Teachers for East Africa, TC’s program that preceded the Peace Corps. She served as a District Adviser for Central and Northern Japan Girl Scouts and Director of the USA Women’s Delegation to the Tokyo Olympic World Youth Camp, in conjunction with the 1964 Olympic Games. Her books include Physical Activities for College Women (W.B. Saunders Co. 1964, with Maryhelen Vannier) and Coaching Competitive Team Sports for Girls and Women (W.B. Saunders Co. 1973). She was an early proponent of preventive health through good nutrition, regular exercise, stress management and substance abuse prevention.

Poindexter received the 2012 TAHPERD Pathfinder Award for excellence and leadership in her field. She was a Rice Laureate and Athletics Hall of Fame Honoree. The National Association for Kinesiology in Higher Education annually bestows a Hally Beth Poindexter Young Scholar Award.

GREAT ADAPTATIONS

Morton Schindel

A children's animator who honored the text

Morton Schindel (M.A. ’47), who made animated films of children’s stories by Robert McCloskey, Maurice Sendak, Tomie dePaola, Isaac Bashevis Singer and Ezra Jack Keats, died in August at 98.

Schindel founded his film company, Weston Woods (later part of Scholastic), to “bring kids back to the book.” He initially filmed static book illustrations, simulating movement through lighting techniques and manipulation of background elements.

Weston Woods aired its many films and recordings through libraries, schools and, eventually, children’s television. Parts were voiced by actors such as John Lithgow, Sarah Jessica Parker, James Earl Jones, Mary Beth Hurt, Meryl Streep and the musical satirist Peter Schickele (P.D.Q. Bach).

Early films by Schindel, who studied media at Teachers College, helped the U.S. State Department promote the post-World War II rebuilding of Europe. His honors included the 1996 Andrew Carnegie Medal for Excellence in Children’s Video and the 1994 Teachers College Distinguished Alumni Award.

Class Notes

Arts & Humanities

APPLIED LINGUISTICS

Mirta Martes-Rivera (M.A. ’87) published English Language Teaching: A Political Factor in Puerto Rico? (Xlibris 2015), a brief historical overview of language teaching and policies in Puerto Rico’s public schools.

ART & ART EDUCATION

Fine Arts alumna Suzanne Reese Horvitz (Ed.D. ’77) has been a practicing artist and teacher around the globe. In May 2016, Legends Gallery in Philadelphia presented "Deep Waters,” an exhibition featuring her work.

In February, TC faculty member Sean Justice (Ed.D.C.T. ’15) visited ’Iolani School in Hawaii for Ignite Innovation 2016, a professional development conference for K-12 educa-tors to encourage and foster student innovation.

HISTORY & EDUCATION

Rabbi Zev (William) Eleff (M.A. ’11) has been named to the fifth annual “Double Chai in the Chi: 36 Under 36” list of young Jewish movers and shakers in Chicago.

MUSIC & MUSIC EDUCATION

Rhea Francani (M.A. ’15) is making her mark in the country music industry with her single, “Shotgun Baby,” which debuted this summer.

Patrick Freer (Ed.D. ’03) was inducted into Westminster’s Music Education Hall of Fame. Freer is a Professor of Music at Georgia State University. He has guest-conducted or presented in 36 states and 16 countries, presented at six national conventions of the American Choral Directors Association and seven national conferences of the National Association for Music Education.

Jessica A. Ingrassellino (Ed.D. ’15, M.Ed. ’09), founder of TeachCode, a nonprofit that uses the Python language to provide video game and computer programming education for students in at-risk areas, was named one of the Top Female Executives, Professionals & Entrepreneurs by Worldwide Branding. The honor recognizes dedication, leadership and excellence in education and curriculum design. A former school teacher and current engineer, Ingrassellino believes that all students deserve access to quality technology instruction.

The second edition of Middle School General Music: The Best Part of Your Day, a text by Elizabeth McAnally (M.A. ’92), was released this spring by Rowman & Littlefield. This new edition is aligned with the National Core Arts Standards.

Mark Tonelli (Ed.D. ’15, M.Ed. ’14) was appointed Assistant Professor of Music at Millikin University in Decatur, Illinois, where he coordinates the Guitar Studies Program.

Annabella (Woonha) Yang (M.Ed. ’10, M.A. ’07) and her husband, Andrew Lee, welcomed a daughter, Heidi, in 2014. Yang was accepted for Fall 2016 to the University of Pennsylvania’s Graduate School of Education in School Leadership + Principal Certification.

PHILOSOPHY & EDUCATION

Kerry Brennan (M.A. ’83) is in his 13th year as Headmaster of Boston’s The Roxbury Latin School, the oldest school in continuous existence in North America. He currently serves as President of the International Boys’ Schools Coalition, an organization of more than 300 schools worldwide dedicated to advancing best practices in support of boys and boys’ education.

RELIGION & EDUCATION

College Summit CEO and Co-Founder Keith Frome (Ed.D. ’94) recently appeared on PBS NewsHour to discuss the power of College Summit’s peer-driven model, a concept that has roots in his Teachers College education.

Biobehavioral Sciences

SPEECH & LANGUAGE PATHOLOGY

Jules Csillag (M.S. ’10) published Differentiated Reading Instruction: Strategies and Technology Tools to Help All Students Improve (Routledge 2016). Csillag learned to merge theory and practice while studying Speech-Language Pathology at TC and working in the College’s Neurocognition of Language Lab. She presented a TC Alumni Career Development Webinar this summer titled “Differentiated Reading and Writing Instruction: Free Tools to Help All Students Improve.” www.tc.edu/alumni/careerwebinars

Paloma Izquierdo-Hernandez (M.S. ’79) received the 2016 Heritage Award at the Latino Alumni Association of Columbia University (LAACU) El Regreso Gala this past spring. Izquierdo-Hernandez is the President and CEO of Urban Health Plan, Inc., a network of federally qualified community health centers in the South Bronx and Queens.

TEACHING OF ENGLISH

Cynthia Moore (M.A. ’07) recently appeared in Town and Country Magazine, sharing her experiences joining the New York Chapter of the Daughters of the American Revolution (DAR) and chairing its literacy committee.

Lauren Jensen (M.A. ’08), a 10th and 12th grade English Language Arts teacher at Glen Cove High School in Glen

Cove, New York, recently received the Milken Educator Award and $25,000.

Jennifer Martin (M.A. ’12) draws on her TC education in writing ELA literacy curriculum; as a member of a flipped classroom team, grades 9-12; as a member of a digital con-tent initiative; as an adviser to Students Against Destructive Decisions; and as an active participant in educational consulting for undergraduate and graduate students through Stratus Prep in New York City.

TEACHING OF SOCIAL STUDIES

Judy Dick (M.Ed. ’10) contributed eight pieces of art for More Shalom Coloring: Bible Mandalas for Contemplation and Calm (Behrman House 2016), an adult coloring book released this fall.

Counseling & Clinical Psychology

CLINICAL PSYCHOLOGY

Jephtha Tausig-Edwards (Ph.D. ’04, M.Phil. ’00, M.S. ’98), a clinical psychologist, was named At-Large Member of the Governance Committee of the Association of Junior Leagues International. The Association is one of the oldest, largest and most effective women’s volunteer groups in the world, encompassing more than 150,000 women in 291 Leagues in four countries.

COUNSELING PSYCHOLOGY

Richard Campagna (M.A. ’92) was called out of “existential retirement” in Iowa City to do a semester of college teaching.

He developed a variety of courses, including “Judicial Realism,” “Applied Optimistic Existentialism,” “The Role of Karaoke and YouTube in Higher Education,” and “Travel To Cuba By U.S. Nationals — A Cultural and Legal History.”

Curriculum & Teaching

CURRICULUM & TEACHING

Donna M. Volpitta (Ed.D. ’05) creates programs to help teach resilience. She published a book called The Resilience Formula: A Guide to Proactive Not Reactive Parenting, and this past February completed “The Resilient Mindset Model,” a simple model to teach peo-ple about the brain and help them make more mindfully resilient choices. “Pathways to Empower,” Volpitta’s curriculum to teach the model, was taught in several locations this spring, and she will offer certification to a limited number of educators.

EARLY CHILDHOOD EDUCATION

Josie Mittleman (M.A. ’97) was promoted to Professional Development and Curriculum Specialist for Edcite, a free online platform that enables teachers to create and customize assessments and assignments, providing students with digital practice both in and out of the classroom.

EDUCATION OF THE EMOTIONALLY DISTURBED

Angela White (M.A. ’85) realized at Teachers College that she wanted to work in special education giving students strategies to deal with social and emotional as well as academic challenges. Since retiring from the Ossining Union Free School District, she has worked with the childcare agency Leake & Watts and received the “Pathways to Leadership Scholarship” of the New York State Council of School Superintendents.

ELEMENTARY & CHILDHOOD EDUCATION

Since 2014, Matthew Dillon (M.A. ’86) has spearheaded a Lower Ed Lab at ’Iolani, a private K-12 school in Honolulu.

Beth Levin (M.A. ’91) has written curriculum for Macmillan/McGraw-Hill School Division, Pearson Education, KinderCare Education (formerly Knowledge Universe), Renaissance Learning, Edu-cation.com and other educational publishers.

This past summer, Julia Gelormino (M.A. ’12) was awarded the “Fulfilling the Promise” Teaching Award for elementary educators by Oakland, California Mayor Libby Schaaf at the Oakland Public Education Fund’s Thank an Oakland Teacher event. In her acceptance remarks, Gelormino thanked people she met at Teachers College, including Johanna Berman Brody (M.A. ’11) and Natalie Guandique (M.A. ’12).

GIFTED EDUCATION

William Batcher (Ed.D. ’92, M.A. ’89, M.A. ’63), a retired teacher, led a writers group in Riverhead, New York. Batcher’s poetry has been published in magazines, anthologies and on-line collections and has won several awards. His third book, Imaginings, is available on Amazon.

Carrie Isaacman (M.A. ’15) taught Shakespeare at The Garden School this summer in Jackson Heights, New York.

LITERACY SPECIALIST

Stacey Shubitz (M.A. ’07) recently published Craft Moves: Lesson Sets for Teaching Writing with Mentor Texts (Stenhouse Publishers 2016), a professional development book for educators in grades K–5.

Education Policy & Social Analysis

ECONOMICS & EDUCATION

Yao Zhang (M.Phil. ’14, M.A. ’09), doctoral candidate and the CEO of ROBOTERRA, Inc., was recently recognized as a 2016 Young Global Leader by the World Economic Forum. Zhang received the honor, which celebrates leaders who are pushing boundaries and rethinking the world around them, for her commitment and contribution to robotics education.

EDUCATION POLICY

Irene Cruz (M.A. ’16) has been named an inaugural Summer Scholar at the Postsecondary National Policy Institute (PNPI), founded and led by 2016 TC Distinguished Alumni Award recipient MaryEllen McGuire (Ph.D. ’02).

SOCIOLOGY & EDUCATION

Samson MacJessie-Mbewe (M.A. ’01), former Associate Professor at the University of Malawi, is now Director of Higher Education at Malawi’s Ministry of Education, Science & Technology.

Judy Pryor-Ramirez (M.A. ’05) was appointed Executive Director of the Elma Lewis Center for Civic Engagement, Learning & Research at Emerson College in Boston. She also received the Petticoat Award of the Sadie Nash Leadership Project, a young women’s leadership development organization. Pryor-Ramirez was a summer institute faculty member in 2012 and serves on the organization’s leadership council.

Health & Behavior Studies

APPLIED PHYSIOLOGY

Jill Bauman (M.A. ’90) joined Kripalu Center for Yoga & Health as Vice President of Strategy and Growth last year. Bauman has more than 20 years’ experience driving revenue growth in the fitness, wellness and hospitality industries. Previously, she was the Regional Vice President for YogaWorks in New York City and has held top positions at Reebok Sports Club and properties for ClubCorp.

Amerigo Rossi (Ed.D. ’15) published a letter to the editor in The New York Times responding to a piece about the benefits of exercise. Rossi serves as Assistant Professor of Health and Exercise Science at Long Island University in Brooklyn.

APPLIED PHYSIOLOGY & NUTRITION

Susan Greenberg Weiner (M.S. ’86) received the 2016 Dare to Dream Award from the Diabetes Research Institute Foundation. She is the first registered dietitian-nutritionist and certified diabetes educator to receive the award. Greenberg Weiner has a private practice on Long Island (Susan Weiner Nutrition, PLLC) and is an adviser for a number of diabetes-related organizations including: DiabetesSisters, Marjorie’s Fund and THE BETES. She has written two books on diabetes, The Complete Diabetes Organizer: Your Guide to a Less Stressful and More Manageable Life (Spry 2013) and Diabetes 365: Tips for Living Well (Demos Health 2015).

APPLIED SCIENCES OF LEARNING & SPECIAL EDUCATION/CURRICULUM & TEACHING

Carrie Snow (Ed.D. ’10, M.A. ’04), author of Creativity and the Autistic Student, uses creativity as a lens to explore the meaningful learning experiences of autistic youth. Snow evaluates and challenges common conceptions about autism and offers a strengths-based demonstration of the many ways that autistic people express creativity and imagination.

HEALTH EDUCATION

Jennifer Weiss (M.A. ’95) recently published Hurts Like A Mother: A Cautionary Alphabet (Doubleday April 2016). The book, a parody of Edward Gorey’s The Gashlycrumb Tinies, focuses on the perils of parenting. www.hurtslikeamother.com

HEARING IMPAIRMENT

Emily (Borgsmiller) Moxey (M.Ed. ’06), a teacher of the deaf and hard of hearing who works at Brown Elementary in the Hazelwood School District, has been named the St. Louis Special School District’s 2016 Teacher of the Year for her dedication to students and her innovative efforts to help them achieve their full potential. Moxey was also selected as one of the district’s 10 Key to the Classroom Award winners in February.

NURSING EDUCATION/ ANTHROPOLOGY & EDUCATION

On May 5th, Ruth Lubic (Ed.D. ’79, M.A. ’61, B.A. ’59) was honored by the Museum of Motherhood and inducted into the Motherhood Hall of Fame. A MacArthur “Genius Grant” recipient, Lubic co-founded the National Association of Childbearing Centers. She is a champion of community-based birthing and considered one of the leaders of American midwifery.

NUTRITION EDUCATION

Jump with Jill, created by Jill Jayne (M.S. ’07), the Rock-star Nutritionist, was nominated in the Children/Youth/ Teens News Feature category by the Michigan Chapter of the National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences and has been performed for over three quarters of a million kids around the world.

NURSING EXECUTIVE

Since graduation, Annemarie McAllister (Ed.D. ’12, M.A. ’08) has published “Inside Track of Doing Historical Research: My Dissertation Story” and “Learning the Historical Method: Step by Step” in Nursing Research Using Historical Methods: Qualitative Designs & Methods in Nursing (Springer 2014), and Nursing History for Contemporary Role Development (Springer, forthcoming).

Human Development

DEVELOPMENTAL PSYCHOLOGY

The Patton Veterans Project, founded by Benjamin Patton (M.A. ’15), uses collaborative filmmaking as a tool to assist veterans and military families coping with Post-Traumatic Stress (PTS). Since January, the project has held several “I Was There” film workshops at U.S. military bases and in Israel for wounded Israeli veterans. Patton says that “data indicates that participating vets experience a significant reduction in PTS symptoms along with other qualitative improvements over the course of the workshop.”

International & Transcultural Studies

ANTHROPOLOGY & EDUCATION

Louis Cristillo (Ph.D. ’04, M.Phil. ’00, M.A. ’99) co-edited “Global Perspectives on Educational Leadership in the Middle East and North Africa: The View from Palestine,” a recent special issue of the online American Journal of Educational Research. Cristillo served as the lead writer for two of the six papers. The publication seeks to address “a huge gap” in the theoretical and empirical literature on educational leadership in the Middle East and North Africa. www.sciepub.com/EDUCATION/content/4/2A

INTERNATIONAL & COMPARATIVE EDUCATION

Cinco Puntos Press released Animal Talk: Mexican Folk Art Animal Sounds, a children’s book by Cynthia Weill (Ed.D. ’11, M.Ed. ’05), in both English and Spanish. Weill dedicated the book to her “dear friend and adviser” Judith Burton, TC Professor of Art & Art Education.

NYU Professor Colette Mazzucelli (M.Ed. ’11) hosted a working breakfast at NYU for the International Visitor Leadership Program, the U.S. State Department’s premier professional exchange pro-gram, comprising four Peer 2 Peer (P2P) finalist teams from Azerbaijan, Belgium, the College of Europe and the Netherlands.

Masha (Mary) Turchinsky (M.Ed. ’12) will assume the Directorship of the Hudson River Museum after 19 years at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in January 2017. Turchinsky is working with current director Michael Botwinick on the design phase of the Museum’s $5.5 million expansion in partnership with the City of Yonkers.

Mathematics, Science & Technology

COMMUNICATION & EDUCATION

Mary Hawk (M.Ed. ’10, M.A. ’04) credits the work of TC Professor Emeritus Edmund Gordon in Supplementary Education with empowering her to see “the significance of outdoor education and co-curricular experience to enrich the lives of students.” As founding board member and on-water educator for East River C.R.E.W. Inc. (Community Recreation & Education on the Water) for the past 11 seasons, and as the Rowing Club adviser at Borough of Manhattan Community College, Hawk has introduced diverse learners of all ages to New York City’s marine harbor estuary.

COMMUNICATION, MEDIA & LEARNING TECHNOLOGIES DESIGN

Anthony Clemons (M.A. ’15), an M.Ed. student in TC’s program in Interdisciplinary Studies in Education, has been leading a team of curriculum developers in the rewrite of the U.S. Army’s ROTC curriculum. Clemons, who has also developed a new method to quantitatively measure cognitive achievement in curriculum, presented his findings at the 2016 International Conference on Technology in Collegiate Mathematics, held in Atlanta.

Dean Fusto (M.A. ’12) was recently appointed Head of School at Atlanta’s Brandon

Hall School, a co-ed, global day and boarding school whose mission is to “provide a challenging college preparatory experience immersed in technology.” Fusto has also founded a globally re-cognized edulibrary at www.teachlearnlead.org

Kyle Dorian Younger (M.Ed. ’10) is currently pursuing a Doctorate of Education in Higher Education at Seton Hall University.

MATHEMATICS EDUCATION

Matthew Caputo (Ed.D. ’10) recently published his second novel, titled A Finger and a Foot: A Sequel to The Queen and The Monster (Trafford Publish-ing). The book follows the FBI investigation into the abduction of two children and a millenia-old mystery.

SECONDARY SCIENCE EDUCATION

Zora Wolfe (M.A. ’00) co-authored The Feedback Loop: Using Formative Assessment

Data for Science Teaching and Learning (NSTA Press 2016), aimed at in-service and pre-service teachers.

Organization & Leadership

ADULT LEARNING & LEADERSHIP

Isabel Rimanoczy (Ed.D. ’10) published her sixth book, Stop Teaching: Principles and Practices for Responsible Management Education (Business Expert Press 2016). Rimanoczy conducted her TC doctoral research on the learning process of business leaders who champion sustainability initiatives. She has since developed the concept of the “sustainability mindset,” launching a network of academics interested in developing the concept. The network is now a United Nations PRME Working Group, with over 48 members in 22 countries on five continents.

EDUCATIONAL ADMINISTRATION

Tian-Ming Sheu (Ed.D. ’93) was promoted to President of the National Academy for Educational Research in Taiwan. Previously, Sheu was Dean of the College of Education at National Taiwan Normal University and a professor in the Department of Education and the Graduate Institute of Educational Policy and Administration.

Dania Vazquez (Ed.D. ’01) has been named to the Board of Directors of the Nellie Mae Education Foundation, the largest philanthropic organization in New England focused exclusively on education. Vazquez currently serves as the Head-master of Margarita Muñiz Academy in Jamaica Plain.

HIGHER & ADULT EDUCATION

The late Debra Amidon (M.A. ’72), received an Honorary Ph.D. from Bangkok University in Thailand. Amidon, founder and CEO of ENTOVATION International Ltd., was an international author and global motivational speaker. She published eight books, including The Innovation Superhighway, called the “in-novation book of the decade.”

HIGHER & POSTSECONDARY EDUCATION

“Lift Off,” a speech delivered by Donovan Livingston (M.A. ’11) as student speaker for Harvard Graduate School of Education’s 2016 Convocation, has been viewed more than 11 million times and widely shared across multiple news outlets.

ORGANIZATIONAL PSYCHOLOGY

Peter Coleman (Ph.D. ’98, M.Phil. ’97), TC Professor of Psychology & Education and Director of the College’s Morton Deutsch International Center for Cooperation and Conflict Resolution (ICCCR), has re-ceived the 2016 Outstanding Book Award from the International Association of Conflict Management for Making Con-flict Work: Harnessing the Power of Disagreement (Houghton Mifflin Harcourt 2014).

Neelu Kaur (M.A. ’09) has incorporated her passion of Yoga and Ayurveda into her wellness and professional development coaching. She has developed her own line of all-natural, organic and chemical-free oils. These can be used as a replacement for perfume but also have therapeutic properties. neelukaur.com

Sean Murphy (M.A. ’13) helped launch the consumer version of Inside8™ at inside8.com. This consumer website has blogs, eBooks, a forum and other con-tent to help people lead more fulfilling lives.

Published Wednesday, Nov 30, 2016

Alumni News | Teachers College Columbia University

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Class Notes