Virginia Tech School of Education Alumni Welcome Back 2021 Newsletter
Monday, October 4, 2021
ALUMNI SPOTLIGHT
Angelica Witcher promoted to Assistant Dean of Student Vitality at Virginia Tech Carilion School of Medicine
SOE alumna, Dr. Angelica Witcher, has been named assistant dean for student vitality at the Virginia Tech Carilion School of Medicine. As assistant dean, she will continue to serve in her current role as administrative director of student affairs. Witcher’s progressive leadership journey in the medical school started when the school opened its doors in August 2010.
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After graduating from the School of Education in '75, Mary “Lynn” Schnurr internalized the philosophy of Ut Prosim (That I May Serve). This summer, she was inducted into the Military Intelligence Hall of Fame, an elite group of 279 military intelligence professionals.
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Twenty years of cultivating leaders and scientists
August 23, 2021
Throughout the past two decades, thousands of students, along with thousands of stories, have emerged from the Virginia Governor’s School for Agriculture, a month-long enrichment program for high-schoolers hosted each year by Virginia Tech’s faculty, staff, and students.
This year, it turned 20!
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August 23, 2021
Throughout the past two decades, thousands of students, along with thousands of stories, have emerged from the Virginia Governor’s School for Agriculture, a month-long enrichment program for high-schoolers hosted each year by Virginia Tech’s faculty, staff, and students.
This year, it turned 20!
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SOE NEWS DIGEST
Grant to immerse students in entrepreneurship education studies in Zambia
August 30, 2021
Understanding the needs of global entrepreneurs at the local level is usually constrained by the cost of travel and language and culture differences. Further complications arise from the interrelated nature of these sectors and how entrepreneurship is taught. This is what Dr. Joseph Mukuni (pictured) and Dr. William Price seek to address with their program, “Globalization Business Skills, Diversity Awareness, and Entrepreneurship Workforce Development in Zambia.”
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August 30, 2021
Understanding the needs of global entrepreneurs at the local level is usually constrained by the cost of travel and language and culture differences. Further complications arise from the interrelated nature of these sectors and how entrepreneurship is taught. This is what Dr. Joseph Mukuni (pictured) and Dr. William Price seek to address with their program, “Globalization Business Skills, Diversity Awareness, and Entrepreneurship Workforce Development in Zambia.”
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Broadening access to undergraduate STEM research for underrepresented students in unprecedented times
August 31, 2021
The consequences of COVID-19 threaten to erase progress made in the recruitment and support of underserved students in STEM. Dr. Tonisha Lane (pictured) and Dr. Ian Shoemaker have been awarded a $50,000 grant from the Spencer Foundation to study the development of science identity among underrepresented students engaging in undergraduate research remotely during this time.
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August 31, 2021
The consequences of COVID-19 threaten to erase progress made in the recruitment and support of underserved students in STEM. Dr. Tonisha Lane (pictured) and Dr. Ian Shoemaker have been awarded a $50,000 grant from the Spencer Foundation to study the development of science identity among underrepresented students engaging in undergraduate research remotely during this time.
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Commonwealth Cyber Initiative funds seven projects to curb the spread of misinformation campaigns
August 3, 2021
The impact of disinformation and misinformation in social media impacts us all. Dr. David Hicks (pictured) and Dr. Aaron Brantly, Co-Principal Investigators, lead one of seven transdisciplinary projects awarded grants to explore the role of cybersecurity in curbing its spread.
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August 3, 2021
The impact of disinformation and misinformation in social media impacts us all. Dr. David Hicks (pictured) and Dr. Aaron Brantly, Co-Principal Investigators, lead one of seven transdisciplinary projects awarded grants to explore the role of cybersecurity in curbing its spread.
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AWARDS & OUTREACH
Dr. Amy Azano was recently appointed co-editor of The Rural Educator, the official journal of the National Rural Education Association (NREA). She had previously served as the "Promising Practices" editor for the journal, where she published "From the Editor: An Inspired Approach to Promising Practices."
Dr. Barbara Lockee, and alums Drs. Aaron Bond and Charles Hodges, in collaboration with Dr. Stephanie Moore and Dr. Torrey Trust, published the article "The Difference Between Emergency Remote Teaching and Online Learning" in the March 2020 edition of Educause Review, and was awarded the APEX 2021 Award for Publication Excellence.
Dr. Tameka Oliphant Grimes has been awarded the 2021 SACES Outstanding Pre-Tenure Award. This award recognizes individual educators from the SACES region who impact our profession in extensive ways.
UPCOMING EVENTS
Nominate a SOE Faculty Member for the Alumni Award for Research Excellence
Established by the Alumni Association in 1975 for the purpose of promoting research, the Office for Research and Innovation requests nominations for the Alumni Award for Research Excellence.
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Established by the Alumni Association in 1975 for the purpose of promoting research, the Office for Research and Innovation requests nominations for the Alumni Award for Research Excellence.
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UPON REFLECTION
Dr. Chase Catalano, Professor of Education, shares his reflection on 20 years of "safe space" education. Diversity education interventions — whether they focus on LGBTQ+, racial, or multiple marginalized social identities — have the potential to enhance student, staff, and faculty feelings of belonging for some, if not many. At the same time, there can be unintentional, negative consequences for others.
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RESEARCH & PUBLICATION HIGHLIGHTSBradley Bowen and Jesse “Jay” Wilkins published “First Mathematics Course in College and Graduating in Engineering: Dispelling the Myth That Beginning in Higher-level Mathematics Courses Is Always a Good Thing,” Journal of Engineering Education 110.3 (2021): 616–35, with alumna Brooke Mullins.
Fei Gu and Jesse “Jay” Wilkins published “Standard Error Estimates for Rotates Estimates of Canonical Correlation Analysis: An Implementation of the Infinitesimal Jackknife Method,” Behaviormetrika 48 (2021): 143–68, with Hao Wu and Yiu-Fai Yung.
Brett Jones and Jesse “Jay” Wilkins published “Students’ Class Perceptions and Ratings of Instruction: Variability Across Undergraduate Mathematics Courses,” Frontiers in Psychology 12:576282 (June 10, 2021), with alumna Lee Rakes.
Donna Fortune (previously Fogelsong), published “Using Virtual Book Clubs to Elevate Discussion and Diverse Voices,” Handbook of Research on Teaching Diverse Youth Literature to Pre-Service Professionals, ed. Danielle E. Hartsfield (Hershey, Pennsylvania: IGI Global, 2021), pp. 318–38, with Paige Horst et al.
John Gratto published Inside the Schoolhouse: What Great Principals Know and Do (Lanham, Maryland: Rowman and Littlefield, 2021).
Brett Jones published “Engaging Second Language Learners Using the MUSIC Model of Motivation,” Frontiers in Psychology 11:1204 (June 5, 2020); “Designing for and Assessing Students’ Motivation in Mathematics Classes,” Illinois Mathematics Teacher 65.1 (2020) with alumnae Tiffany LaCroix and Brooke Mullins; and “Faculty’s Attitudes and Perceptions Related to Applying Motivational Principles to Their Teaching: A Mixed Methods Study,” BMC Medical Education 21 (2021), article 188, with Abigail Grover Snook and alumna Asta B. Schram.
Tonisha Lane published “Cultivating Graduate STEM Pathways: How Alliance-Based STEM Enrichment Programs Broker Opportunity for Students of Color,” Frontiers in Education 6:667976 (July 28, 2021), with Ariana L. Garcia and Blanca E. Rincón.
Barbara Lockee published “Next Generation Mobile Learning: Leveraging Message Design Considerations for Learning and Accessibility,” International Academic Forum Journal of Education 9.4 (2021): 123–44, with alumna Eunice Ofori.
Carol Mullen “From Miseducation to Education in the Global Canadian Indigenous Context,” Literacy Information and Computer Education Journal 12.1 (2021): 3486–90.