News

The School of Education’s Project Promise Program has awarded more than 1,300 scholarships in its 25 years serving high-ability K-12 students from families with financial need. With programs offered through Baylor TIP, the students have even more opportunities to reach their educational potential.

Dean Shanna Hagan-Burke shares excitement about the University's strategic plan, Baylor In Deeds, and how it reflects deeply held values within the School of Education — making education affordable, addressing global challenges, strengthening respectful discourse, and exploring the impacts of technology.

School of Education (SOE) graduate Ashlyn Bergethon, BSEd ’24, continued Baylor’s string of student teacher of the year recognitions at the national and state level. Read about her journey and don't miss the WEB EXTRA to read a career update from past recipients and find out where they are teaching now.

School of Education faculty members Dr. Sandi Cooper, Dr. Sarah Mire, and Dr. Tony Talbert were recipients of Baylor University Outstanding Faculty Awards. They were recognized across three different categories — Dr. Cooper for community impact, Dr. Mire for exceptional research, and Dr. Talbert for outstanding teaching.

Influenced by his time as a classroom teacher, Dr. Phil Nichols, associate professor of English education in the Department of Curriculum & Instruction, is nationally recognized for his research exploring the ways technology influences public education. Also read the WEB EXTRA on the Technology Iceberg.

Dr. Mark Brown, who earned an EdD at Baylor in 2022, is the tenth president of Tuskegee University and the first Tuskegee graduate to hold the position. A retired two-star Air Force major general, he was also previously chief operating officer of the U.S. Department of Education Office of Federal Student Aid.

Baylor School of Education welcomed eight new faculty members for the 2024-25 academic year, with a new department chair for Educational Psychology and additions in each of the SOE’s four academic units: Curriculum & Instruction, Educational Leadership, Educational Psychology, and Online Learning.

Baylor School of Education faculty, undergraduate students, graduate students, and alumni have been winning awards! From Baylor honors to national recognitions, their achievements reflect the difference they are making in the realms of teaching, research, and collegiate administration.

It’s always busy in the School of Education, both inside and outside of the classroom. Here are a few pictorial highlights from the School of Education's 2024-25 academic year — featuring academic programs, special events, student achievements, philanthropic projects, and more. Our students even went on an adventure to Austin.

The School of Education is part of an interdisciplinary team that earned a grant to drive transformative local initiatives aimed at food security, sustainable agriculture, and climate resilience in Waco’s underserved communities. They are expanding educational and gardening programs into schools and faith-based organizations.

Baylor School of Education’s “Interns in England” study-abroad program is celebrating its 40th anniversary. Baylor seniors or graduate students can spend four weeks in a London suburb, and their co-director Dr. Kelly Johnston has a unique perspective on the program — she was a student participant!

The School of Education’s global programs offer opportunities on four continents — Africa, Australia, Europe, and North America (Costa Rica) — for undergraduate students, graduate students, and faculty to deepen their intercultural understanding while exploring comparative education and a variety of other disciplines.

Dr. Sandi Cooper became the SOE's associate dean for undergraduate education, three professors were named among the nation’s top researchers, and educational psychology faculty are studying patience, focusing specifically on families raising adolescents who experience intellectual and developmental disabilities (IDD).

Retired professor Dr. Jimmy Williamson, BSEd ’57, and his late wife Glenda, BSEd ’58, dedicated their lives to education, and now the family has established an endowed scholarship for school leaders to continue that impact. Dr. Williamson taught educational leadership and served as SOE interim dean.

The Baylor Center for Developmental Disabilities (BCDD) is celebrating its tenth anniversary throughout 2024. Read about significant milestones and what the future holds.

Dean Shanna Hagan-Burke shares what she wishes people knew about the field of education and, more specifically, about Baylor's School of Education. Hint: the skills that students acquire earning an education degree can take them along many exciting paths.

Debbie Chou, a May 2023 Baylor education graduate, received the Clinical Teacher of the Year award for the state of Texas.

Baylor TIP provides life-changing opportunities to talented adolescents by providing them with high-quality instruction in advanced content within a caring community in which they can explore and transform.

Gloria Conatser, a 2022 secondary social studies graduate, spent the 2022-23 school year as a Fulbright English Teaching Assistant in Augsburg, Bavaria, in the Fulbright diversity program, which placed her at a school with students from underrepresented groups.

Baylor School of Education welcomed quite a few new faculty members during both the spring and fall semesters of 2023, bringing the total of full-time faculty members to 63. Learn a little about them  here.

Faculty and graduate students received significant awards for their scholarship — three national honors for faculty members, Baylor faculty research awards, and dissertation research awards for two EdD students.

A School of Education (SOE) seminar for future teachers received statewide recognition for its innovation in preparing education graduates.

The School of Education is hosting the second year of STEM+ Camp Launch, a week-long day camp focused on rocket science, for rising fifth graders from three Transformation Waco schools. 

The first cohort of the School of Education’s Dallas-based program in School Psychology graduated in May of 2023. 

The 2023-24 academic year marked the first opportunity for Baylor student teachers to have paid residencies, which require an expanded schedule beyond the usual internship — mostly during the Christmas holiday and after graduation.

Funded by a U.S. State Department federal grant award, a team of Baylor educators traveled to Lahore, Pakistan, in December.

Baylor School of Education’s Center for School Leadership (BCSL) strives to be the most effective Christian leadership catalyst for educators worldwide, with a mission to help educators make a lasting impact on each student’s life.

A Baylor group, led by students and a professor in the MSEd Sport Management program, set an official Guinness World Record. Their record-breaking project also provided more than 1,200 sleeping bags to homeless veterans.

When Dr. Bert Crossland, BSEd ’80, MSEd ’86, thought about creating an endowed scholarship at Baylor, he thought of the professor who most influenced his career path — Dr. Larry Browning.

All of Central Texas was abuzz with eclipse excitement this spring. The School of Education hosted a special event for Baylor students teaching in schools to prepare them for the April 8 eclipse, sharing a booklet of activities and lesson plans for them.

The School of Education anticipates an expansion of disability research and community impact with the arrival of Endowed Chair Dr. Erik Carter, who brings an impactful research record.

The motto of Baylor University — Pro Ecclesia, Pro Texana — is the School's guiding principle in identifying new faculty and scholarly pursuits.

The School of Education’s Department of Educational Leadership graduated its first cohort in a new master’s program, the MA in School Leadership, in December 2022.

Faculty, alumni, and graduate students are making an impact and being recognized for leadership and research, including a prestigious early career award for Dr. Phil Nichols.

As the Cherry Award recipient, Dr. Hollylynne Lee spent the spring semester in the Department of Curriculum & Instruction, teaching courses and delivering presentations on campus and beyond.

As Vice Dean of Academic Affairs at John Sealy School of Medicine, University of Texas Medical Branch Galveston, Dr. Majka Woods is putting three Baylor degrees to good use.

Dr. Hollylynne Lee, Baylor Cherry Award recipient, has created free online professional development about mathematics education. You can also view Dr. Lee's Baylor lectures here.

Event highlights from the spring semester in the School of Education included a visit from alumna Mary Woodard, president of the Texas Library Association, plus student research, job fair, and more.

As 10-year-old Genesis Santos sat in her homeroom desk at Bell’s Hill Elementary, she had no idea where her future career would lead her — back to Bell's Hill but on the other side of the desk.

Baylor SOE welcomed four new faculty members who arrived in the spring semester, including an endowed chair who also serves as executive director of the BCDD.

This issue of Impact features multiple accolades for faculty, alumni, students, staff, and programs. Frankly, that is nothing new, but something does stand out about the recent honors.

A decade of Baylor's iEngage civics education program has brought accolades, expansion, and research that confirms its effectiveness in teaching students how to be good citizens.

Dr. Karon LeCompte and her colleagues in social studies education in the Department of Curriculum & Instruction have published extensive research about the effectiveness of iEngage.

Baylor elementary education graduate Emily Blackwell, BSEd ’22, was named National Student Teacher of the Year, the second time recently that a Baylor graduate has been honored.

The School of Education’s First-Year Experience (FYE) program goes above and beyond to engage incoming students and ensure they feel a connection to Baylor and to their major.

Baylor SOE welcomed four new faculty members who arrived in the fall semester in each of the SOE's three departments, including a new chair for Educational Leadership.

Baylor University and the School of Education (SOE) and its programs have received recent attention through national rankings and other prestigious awards.

Now superintendent of Morgan ISD, Dr. John Bullion hosts a podcast on special education that has won the Barbara Jordan Media Award twice in a row.

Watch the video: Dr. Bullion discusses his career in special education, what the Baylor EdD meant to him, and all about his award-winning podcast.

Learn about faculty accomplishments from every department, an outstanding staff award, and an important program highlight for School Psychology.

David Morehead, Baylor's Chief Investment Officer, and his wife, Sara, believe that supporting Christians in education is a great investment opportunity.

Three School of Education faculty faculty members were honored as Outstanding Faculty Awards: Dr. Jessica Akers, Dr. Tonya Davis, and Dr. Jon Eckert.

A hallmark of Baylor’s educator preparation program is extensive experience in real classrooms, with seniors spending the entire year as teaching interns.

The School of Education's dedication to educator preparation is helping solve a national challenge while furthering the Baylor mission to educate students “for worldwide leadership and service. . . .”

Baylor is now designated as a doctoral university with “very high research activity,” but what does R1 status mean for the School of Education (SOE)?

Dr. Rachelle Rogers, clinical professor of mathematics education, is the 2022-23 president of the Association of Teacher Educators (ATE), a national organization that promotes quality teacher education.

A Baylor SOE education has been essential in Janice McCall's role as co-founder of Restoration Gateway, a ministry in Uganda serving 250 orphans and including a school focused on active learning.

Dr. Perry Glanzer is leading a multi-disciplinary Baylor research team that received a $2.7 million grant from the John Templeton Foundation to study the development of moral identity and virtue in college students.

Dr. Mack Burke receives two new grant awards, totaling $6.7 million; graduate students win Baylor research and teaching awards; Dr. Todd Kettler publishes a book on gifted education.

For Baylor football fans, Jalen Pitre's success story is a familiar one. But Pitre also found success in the classroom, describing himself as an "aggressive learner."

Maya Garrett’s calling to a career helping others was inspired by a teacher and made possible through the SOE's Lois Weatherall Endowed Scholarship.

The Texas State Board for Educator Certification recognized Baylor as a high-performing educator preparation program in the category "Rigorous and Robust Preparation," based on certification exams.

The Baylor Center for Gifted Education and Talent Development is launching Baylor TIP (Talent Identification Program) to enhance services for gifted children and to develop their potential.

Baylor has a rich history of educating students with extraordinary academic and creative talents, and the School of Education is launching a new program for gifted students.

Alexandra Ronnenberg, who graduated in May with a BSEd in elementary education, is “Clinical Teacher of the Year” for the state of Texas, honored for her work while a senior at Baylor.

Graduate programs in the School of Education are growing by leaps and bounds, and undergraduate teacher-education graduates are finding career success.

Baylor School of Education welcomed several new faculty members this fall, bringing the School’s total of full-time faculty members to 63. Each of the SOE's three departments added faculty members.

Baylor Associate Professor Dr. Bradley Carpenter, as a former principal and now a scholar in school leadership, sees educators under stress. And he is doing something about it.

Dr. Bradley Carpenter, associate professor in the Department of Educational leadership, shares some additional helpful links for those seeking more information about educator well-being practices.

It was a passion for gifted education that led Dr. Rebecca Tipton DeClue to study educational psychology. Once in the program, she discovered the challenges and rewards of a career in School Psychology.

The Baylor Center for Developmental Disabilities (BCDD) and several individual faculty members received significant grant funding and honors in the fall of 2021.

To provide support for Christians in education, Kim and Ken Wiseman chose to establish an endowment in the School of Education. “If all of us who are Christians walk away, what does that leave? If you take out the light, there’s just darkness,” Kim said.

Through a prestigious national grant, Dr. Stephanie Gerow is designing a system to help agencies provide effective behavior interventions for children with developmental disabilities.

The School of Education is growing rapidly and pursuing cutting-edge research while continuing to advance Baylor's Christian mission and shape the future.

Three School of Education faculty members received awards in the university’s 2021 recognition program honoring exemplary teaching and research.

The first graduates in the EdD program for K-12 leaders graduated in 2020 and are already having an impact in districts from Texas to Washington, D.C.

Sport Management graduate Isaac Gittens is the NFL's Senior Coordinator for Youth and High School Football. He shares insider info and "WEB EXTRA" content on his secrets to success!

As president of NCTM, Dr. Trena Wilkerson, Baylor professor of mathematics education, is working to bring equity in math education to each and every learner.

In her first column for NCTM, Dr. Wilkerson shared her own history of teaching, starting in Mandeville, Louisiana, where her principal called her "the greenest thing" he had ever hired. Click for the NCTM site.

Read about a new book for college students, academic paper awards, and what's behind the name change of one SOE center to become the Baylor Center for School Leadership.

Baylor School of Education students shape the future, and these significant awards for graduate students illustrate the wide-ranging excellence of the leaders the SOE is preparing.

Baylor School of Education faculty have recently received grants to expand and enhance services to children with developmental disabilities and to deepen the diversity of students pursuing STEM careers.

Grant-funded projects by Dr. Suzanne Nesmith and Dr. Stephanie Boddie are dovetailing and collaborating with numerous partners to bring professional development to science educators.

Baylor’s teacher education program integrates hands-on learning in local schools, and no pandemic was going to stop that. If you’d like to glimpse a “day in the life” of a Baylor teacher education student who is teaching in local schools, Instagram is the place to do that.

For Baylor freshman Lana Brady, finding her calling to teach was a long process — but it happened all in one week. To anyone who remembers those gut-wrenching high-school decisions, that makes perfect sense.

In March, Baylor’s Center for Christian Education (CCE) was well into arrangements for its annual summer learning academy, intending to welcome 250 educators to campus. Then COVID-19 hit. CCE made a quick pivot to help educators survive and thrive.

Dr. Shanna Hagan-Burke, who became Dean of the School of Education in July, shares her goals and gratitude for the School and for Baylor. Even arriving in the midst of a pandemic, she has felt a warm welcome.

Read excerpts from the "Baylor Connections" interview with School of Education Dean Dr. Shanna Hagan-Burke, conducted by Derek Smith. Then link to full broadcast interview.

In the time of COVID, all students — from kindergarten to the graduate level — are experiencing school in new and different ways. For teachers, the challenges are extraordinary.

Kenley Bailey Ritter, a PhD student in Curriculum & Instruction, graduated from Baylor with a degree in secondary mathematics education and has pursued an adventurous career in teaching and leadership on two continents.

Alex Jones knew when she was only 14 that she wanted to work with children with autism. Now she is pursuing that dream at Baylor's new Dallas program in School Psychology.

From new faculty members and post-doctoral researchers to new books to new leadership roles on the national stage, keep up with all the latest from the School of Education faculty.

Baylor School of Education is launching the MA in School Leadership, offered through the Department of Educational Leadership. Cohorts will launch each June, beginning in 2021.

Check out the fall's alumni awards news, as well as updates on new web resources and the job placement success of the School's 2020 BSEd graduates.

Baylor's "Give Light" campaign is building the endowment, providing funds for today, and allowing for campus growth. See the fall updates from Baylor and for the School of Education specifically.

Jim and Kaye Patterson are advocates of the School of Education with a desire to provide opportunities for future educators. The Pattersons emphasize Baylor’s positive campus environment as a big reason they choose to give back to their alma mater.

Dr. Terrill Saxon looks back on three years as the SOE's Interim Dean and recaps some accomplishments. He says the SOE has thrived because of the devotion of the faculty.

Shanna Hagan-Burke, PhD, professor of special education and head of the department of educational psychology at Texas A&M University's College of Education and Human Development, has been selected as Dean of the Baylor and will arrive at Baylor SOE on July 1.

Through the Math for Early Learners Academy (MELA), a Baylor summer program for pre-K through second graders, Dr. Sandi Cooper, professor of mathematics education, has been trying to address math deficits in young children since 2016.

Dr. Nick Benson has committed his academic career and devoted his extensive research to the evaluation of tests and their uses — specifically to the study of the science and practice of psychological and educational testing and assessment.