SOE News Briefs: Honors and Awards
HONORS FOR FACULTY AND STAFF
Senior Lecturer Elected to National Board
Janet Bagby, PhD, Senior Lecturer in the Department of Educational Psychology, was elected to the board of directors of the American Montessori Society (AMS). Board members are elected by a vote of the group's members, which number 14,700 individuals and 1,520 schools and span 70 countries. Bagby took office last year for a term that will extend until July of 2022.
"I strongly believe in the Montessori philosophy and in the important work of AMS to support and promote quality opportunities for all children to learn," Bagby said.
Bagby has served on the AMS Research Committee for more than 10 years, conducted research studies related to Montessori education and published articles related to Montessori education. She has given over 25 research presentations on Montessori-related topics and has current research projects underway related to Montessori education, along with Baylor colleague Tracey Sulak, Ph.D., clinical associate professor of educational psychology. Bagby is a regular contributor to Montessori Life and serves on the editorial board of the Journal of Montessori Research.
Online EdD Assistant Director Receives Outstanding Staff Award
Baylor University honored the School of Education's Cece Lively with an Outstanding Staff Award this spring. Lively is the Assistant Program Director for the EdD in Learning and Organizational Change, which is offered online by the Department of Curriculum & Instruction and is the university's largest graduate program. In that role, she coordinates and oversees program development and execution for almost 300 students and 25 faculty and staff. When the program reaches full capacity, it will serve more than 600.
Baylor's announcement said, "Cece has proven to be an exceptional leader, innovative thinker, creative problem solver, student advocate, and collaborative colleague on campus. . . . The EdD students and faculty love working with Cece. She has a calm and caring demeanor and genuine concern for students."
EdD program director Dr. Sandi Cooper, Professor and Coordinator of Math Education, said Lively is integral to the EdD program's growth. "Cece exhibits a high level of self-initiative, innovative thinking, and motivation to organize the best program for everyone," Cooper said. "She has high expectations for herself and works to support faculty, staff, and students in their quest to meet high expectations for the program. She is the key to the success of the EdD in Learning and Organizational Change online program."
C&I Chair Blevins Named Strickland Professor
Brooke E. Blevins, PhD, Associate Professor of Social Studies education and Chair of the Department of Curriculum & Instruction, has been named The Conwell G. Strickland Endowed Chair in Education.
Blevins is only the third faculty member to hold The Strickland Chair, following recently retired professor Larry Browning, EdD (appointed in 2012), and the inaugural holder, the late Fred. K. Curtis, EdD (1985).
Highly respected as an exemplary teacher/scholar and a recognized leader in the field of civics education, Blevins' appointment to the endowed chair places her in the company of Baylor's most revered faculty. Colleagues describe Blevins as a fully engaged teaching scholar who empowers her students to become transformative and as a leader who serves through a philosophy grounded in care and demonstrated in collaboration.
Blevins joined the Baylor faculty in 2011 after earning a PhD from the University of Texas at Austin. She earned a bachelor's degree in economics and speech communications and master's degree in secondary education from Trinity University.
Glanzer and Collaborators Publish Books
Professor of Higher Education Dr. Perry Glanzer has teamed up with colleagues and students to publish two books this year. He and Dr. Nathan Alleman, Associate Professor also in the Department of Educational Leadership, authored their second book together, The Outrageous Idea of Christian Teaching, which was published by Oxford University Press in the fall. The book focuses on the various challenges that Christian professors face inside the classroom when intersecting their two identities — their Christian primary identity and their teacher vocational responsibility.
Glanzer published another book this June, a collaboration with three doctoral students in the department — Ted Cockle, Elijah Jeong, and Britney Graber. Published by Abilene Christian University Press, the book is titled Christ-Enlivened Student Affairs: A Guide to Christian Thinking and Practice in the Field. While he has collaborated with students on numerous academic articles, this is the first book he has published with students.
Glanzer said, "Collaborating with your students on this kind of book project teaches you so many things — including humility when they catch your mistakes. You see how each one of us brings a different perspective to the overall subject in a way that enriches our whole project and the book itself. I would certainly do it again."
Additionally, Glanzer has taken on the role of Editor-in-Chief of Christian Scholar's Review, a journal that is nearly 50 years old and describes its objective as a "publication of peer-reviewed scholarship and research, within and across the disciplines, that advances the integration of faith and learning."
Sriram Chosen for APU Board
Dr. Rishi Sriram, Associate Professor in the Department of Educational Leadership, was unanimously elected to serve on the Board of Trustees of Azusa Pacific University, a Christian university in California. Sriram earned his PhD in Higher Education there in 2010. Sriram is also Graduate Program Director for the Department of Educational Leadership, and Faculty Steward of Brooks Residential College. Sriram's research interests include student affairs practice, collaboration between academic and student affairs, and college student retention, engagement, achievement, and learning.
STUDENT AWARDS
National Award for C&I Doctoral Student
Baylor School of Education doctoral candidate Kurt Salisbury, MSEd ’03, won the Emerging PDS Leader Award from the National Association for Professional Development Schools (NAPDS) at the annual convention in February.
The award recognizes a student member of NAPDS who shows promising leadership in the PDS movement. Criteria for the award includes service to NAPDS, presentations at the annual conference, publications, and service to a PDS program.
Salisbury is a full-time doctoral student in the Department of Curriculum & Instruction and also a math instructional specialist at Midway Middle School, which is a PDS campus of the Baylor School of Education. Salisbury was a high school mathematics teacher for 12 years and spent two years as an assistant principal in Midway ISD. He earned a master's at Baylor and his undergraduate degree in mathematics at Texas A&M.
Statewide Scholarship Award for EdD Student
Mike Rockwood, recent graduate of Baylor SOE's EdD in K-12 Educational Leadership, received the Johnny L. Veselka Scholarship Award for 2020 from the Texas Association of School Administrators (TASA). This is the second year in a row that a Baylor K-12 EdD student has been a recipient. Rockwood was then Chief of Staff for Lamar CISD and was named Deputy Superintendent in June.
"I aspire to be a superintendent because I strongly believe in the power of public education to change lives and I am passionate about shaping our future," Rockwood wrote. "I believe a superintendent should remove obstacles, connect people, and protect students. . . . I have chosen the superintendency as a career because our children represent so much hope and positivity for a future that is yet to be discovered."
Research Award for PhD Student in Higher Education Studies
Jeff Strietzel, a PhD Candidate in the School of Education's program in Higher Education Leadership Studies within the Department of Educational Leadership, received the Baylor University Outstanding Graduate Research Award for the social sciences. Strietzel's dissertation research focuses on higher education leaders whose careers have been derailed at some point and how they recovered. That same week, Strietzel also placed second in the Baylor Graduate School's "Three-Minute Thesis (3MT)" competition, presenting his dissertation research in 180 seconds.
"Some of life's most valuable lessons are learned through failure," Strietzel said. And that inspired him to study the experiences of high-level administrators in higher education to find out what it felt like to lose a job and what they learned. Strietzel interviewed 37 leaders, all of whom had "rebounded" and found employment again in higher education. "It's painful. That's why this type of research hasn't been done yet. But adversities can be our greatest learning opportunities," he said.
In receiving the Outstanding Graduate Research Award from the Baylor Graduate School, Strietzel is the second student in a row to receive it from the School of Education. Last semester's social science recipient was Rachel Renbarger, who recently graduated with her PhD in Educational Psychology.