Category Archives: Faculty

Ask Me Anything – with ChAD Professor, Dr. Ellen Middaugh

This summer, professors from the SJSU Lurie College Departments of Child & Adolescent Development and Communicative Disorders & Sciences will be joining us in conversation and community.  You can learn a little about their background, what inspired them to teach, and ask all of your questions about life at the Lurie College of Education and beyond.  On Tuesday, June 30, at 1pm, chat with Dr. Ellen Middaugh, Assistant Professor in the Department of Child and Adolescent Development.  Register today to receive a Zoom link for this workshop!

SJSU Lurie College of Education Child and Adolescent Development Department Faculty Ellen Middaugh

Welcome New Lurie College Faculty Member María Ledesma!

Lurie College is excited to welcome its newest faculty member in the Department of Educational Leadership, Dr. María C. Ledesma, to join our community beginning in the Fall 2020 semester to lead the establishment of our Higher Education Leadership program!

SJSU Lurie College of Education Educational Leadership Department Faculty María Ledesma

Dr. María C. Ledesma grew up in Oakland, California. As a first-generation college student, María earned a B.A. from UC Berkeley, a master’s degree from Harvard’s Graduate School of Education, and a Ph.D. in education from UCLA. She has previous experience as an undergraduate admissions reader for her undergraduate alma mater, UC Berkeley, and sat as the graduate student representative for the University of California’s faculty senate committee on undergraduate admissions—The Board of Admissions and Relations with Schools. As a doctoral student María was selected to sit as the 32nd Student Regent for the University of California, the first Latina to hold this post. Her research interests include equity oriented critical policy analysis, including contextualizing and historicizing the history and application of race-conscious social policy in higher education and the examination of leadership for social justice. She is also interested in exploring the experiences of faculty of color who identify as first-generation. Her work has appeared in the Association of Mexican American Educators Journal, Equity and Excellence in Education, Review of Higher Education, and Qualitative Inquiry.

Lurie College Faculty Highlighted by the Carnegie Project on the Education Doctorate

Shoutout to our EdD Leadership Program Director Brad Porfilio, whose previously co-authored article “Centering Social Justice in EdD Programs” was recently highlighted by the Carnegie Project on the Educational Doctorate as a resource on racial justice in educational systems and leadership.  Read the publication at https://bit.ly/2VeiqQU.

SJSU Lurie College of Education Ed.D. Leadership Program Faculty Brad Porfilio

Congratulations to Lurie College Faculty Member Lorri Capizzi!

Congratulations to Department of Counselor Education Lecturer, Dr. Lorri Capizzi, who will continue on with the Lurie College community in the Fall 2020 semester as an assistant professor!

SJSU Lurie College of Education Counselor Education Department Faculty Lorri Capizzi

For the last 14 years Dr. Capizzi has taught both undergraduate and graduate-level courses as well as served as faculty advisor to over 75 Master’s Candidates. She has 10 years of placing and supervising school counselors in their internships/field-work in high need districts and in juvenile court schools for students under court supervision. Dr. Capizzi also has over 15 years of federal grant administration experience where she co-authored and managed multi-million dollar budgets. Dr. Capizzi has extensive experience working with first-generation low-income students in K-12 and in higher education. Her professional interests include examining social justice-based school counseling and its role in increasing access to higher education for foster youth and students experiencing homelessness.

Lurie College Faculty Receive Tenure and Promotions

Congratulations to Teacher Education Department faculty Allison Briceño, who received tenure and promotion to associate professor!  Learn more about Allison’s academic background by visiting her faculty profile webpage.

SJSU Lurie College of Education Teacher Education Department Faculty Alison Briceno

Congratulations to Special Education Department faculty Lisa Simpson, who received tenure and promotion to associate professor!  Learn more about Lisa’s academic background by visiting her faculty profile webpage.

SJSU Lurie College of Education Special Education Department Faculty Lisa Simpson

Congratulations to Communicative Disorders & Sciences Department faculty Wendy Quach, who was promoted to professor!  Learn more about Wendy’s academic background by visiting her faculty profile webpage.

SJSU Lurie College of Education Communicative Disorders and Sciences Department Facutly Wendy Quach

Lurie College Faculty Opinion Piece Published in Mercury News

Department of Teacher Education lecturer Ralph McKay wrote a letter to the editor “No mention of serving all in California’s police oath” to the Mercury News and it was recently published!  Give it a read below or by visiting the Mercury News at https://bayareane.ws/2Ap3GI3.

SJSU Lurie College of Education Teacher Education Department Lecturer Ralph McKay

The California police officer’s oath states, “I, (employee name), do solemnly swear (or affirm) that I will support and defend the Constitution of the United States and the Constitution of the State of California against all enemies, foreign and domestic; that I will bear true faith and allegiance to the Constitution of the United States and the Constitution of the State of California.

Does the existing California oath address the practical responsibilities of a police officer’s duty? I think not. “Protect and Serve” are the words we see on the side of many police cars and it is the motto of most police departments; therefore, the words define the mission of the police, which is to “protect” and “serve” the community. The California Police Officer’s Oath makes no reference to these responsibilities.

Since California’s oath is based on constitutional responsibilities which are subject to differing interpretations and includes no mention of an officer’s responsibilities to their community, I propose a rider to the oath which states that a police officer must protect and serve all community members.

Proposed Rider to the California Police Officer’s Oath

“I, (employee name), do solemnly swear (or affirm) that I will protect and serve all of the people of my community.

Watch the Lurie College Faculty Documentary: South Asian Student Experiences

Lurie College EdD Leadership Program Alumni, Dr. Radha Aravamudhan, and Lurie College Lecturer, Dr. Bob Gliner, produced a documentary film that describes experiences of South Asian students and parents in public schools. The documentary project was funded by the Lurie College Research and Teaching Collaborative Grant and was designed with valuable inputs from Dr. Rebeca Burciaga, Dr. Arnold Danzig and Dr. Saili Kulkarni.

The film shares perspectives from students, parents and teachers and hopes to raise awareness about the successes, struggles and resources needed to meet the needs of South Asian students. The students and families interviewed for the documentary are from a public school district in the south bay area.

Summer Events at the Lurie College of Education

In addition to orienting our incoming fall semester students this summer, we are in the process of organizing various academic, networking, and social events, such as:

  • A K-12 Online Teaching Academy
  • Ask Me Anything sessions with Lurie College faculty
  • A summer film series, co-hosted by our Lurie College student organizations

Connect with us on Instagram, LinkedIn, Facebook, or Twitter for updates!

SJSU Lurie College of Education Summer Series

Lurie College Set to Celebrate Spring 2020 Graduates

SJSU Lurie College of Education Spring 2020 Graduation Celebration

Although the COVID-19 pandemic has significantly impacted so many facets of society over the past couple of months, that’s not stopping the Lurie College of Education at San Jose State University from organizing a live graduation celebration to recognize its more than 500 Spring 2020 graduates (and soon-to-be alumni)!

This is an incredibly significant moment for our graduates, their support networks, our Lurie College of Education community, and our society as a whole. College commencement ceremonies are a rite of passage for students every year who have worked tirelessly to prepare themselves for the next chapters in their lives. While we are saddened that we are not able to celebrate with our graduates in person at this time as a result of COVID-19, we are proud of how our entire Lurie College community of students, faculty, and staff have responded and persevered during this pandemic, and so it’s our priority to celebrate virtually with our graduates to acknowledge their accomplishments and bring some closure to their academic experiences with us.  We look forward to welcoming our graduates back to campus and celebrating in person together at the Fall 2020 or Spring 2021 Commencement events. – Dean Heather Lattimer

The Lurie College Graduation Celebration will take place online on Friday, May 22, at 4pm and begin with a college-wide ceremony that will include remarks from Dean Heather Lattimer, Associate Dean Marcos Pizarro, and student speaker Giselle Arellano, who is graduating with a Bachelor’s Degree in Child and Adolescent Development.

It feels really special to be the graduation speaker, especially during these times.  When I was first selected as the speaker, it was more of an ‘I did it’ moment as a first-generation student of an immigrant family and someone who is representing that small percentage of graduating Latinas all over the world.  Now it feels like I am the person who is able to voice what I’m hearing from my fellow classmates, my friends, from those who are graduating from other departments.  Many of us are feeling the same sadness about not being able to celebrate in person, but we still feel very accomplished and made it to a point where, even though the odds may not be in our favor right now, we still can celebrate and know that ‘we did it’! – Giselle Arellano

Each Spring 2020 graduate will also be recognized during the college-wide ceremony.  Lurie College graduates, faculty, and staff have been invited to attend the event live and family and friends are invited to watch the ceremony live on the Lurie College YouTube channel.

After the college-wide ceremony, each Lurie College department – Child & Adolescent Development, Communicative Disorders & Sciences, Counselor Education, EdD Leadership, Special Education, and Teacher Education – is hosting an online reception to include remarks from faculty chairpersons, individualized slideshows, and socializing among graduates, faculty, and staff to close out the academic year.

Since this year’s experience is entirely digital, Lurie College has created some other digital items to enhance the experience, such as:

San Jose State University as a whole is honoring and celebrating all Spring 2020 graduates by launching graduate recognition websites, which will go live on Friday, May 22.  Learn more about the San Jose State University graduate recognition websites on the SJSU Newsroom website.

I’m looking forward to seeing everyone’s faces and feeling that overall sense of relief in knowing that, while this journey seemed daunting at first, I’m finally able to say ‘I’m a graduate’ and complete something that I’ve been working towards for so long.  Overall, this all feels very surreal and amazing! – Giselle Arellano

SJSU Lurie College of Education Child and Adolescent Development Student Giselle Arellano

Giselle Arellano, SJSU Lurie College of Education Graduation Speaker

Conversation with Fulbright Scholar Dr. Armen Mkrtchyan

Watch the Lurie College Department of Child and Adolescent Development’s conversation with Fulbright Scholar Dr. Armen Mkrtchyan. During the conversation, he discussed Armenian teenagers and aspects of their behavior (eating, risk, sexual), health, socio-emotional habits, and mental health. Dr. Mkrtchyan is a lecturer at Yerevan State Medical University in Armenia.

Connect with Lurie College at https://linktr.ee/sjsulurie to receive more news about academic and student life!

Watch our MA in Special Education Student Research Project Presentations

Congratulations to our Lurie College graduate students in our Department of Special Education who recently presented their final research projects!

  • 3:34 – Nathaly Cisneros-Mendoza: “Perceptions of Latino/a parents when accessing services for their child with autism”
  • 11:51 – Marissa Richers: “Cerebral Palsy: The impacts on a child’s motor and social development”
  • 20:32 – Fatema Rahim: “Impact of South Asian cultural views on parents of children with special needs”
  • 29:12 – Monica Gonzalez: “The effect of a graphic organizer intervention on math word problem solving skills for English language learners with high incidence disabilities”
  • 40:26 – Elizabeth Sanchez: “The effect of culture on parent involvement in special education”
  • 50:31 – Ashley Highsmith: “The disproportionality of black students in special education”
  • 1:02:00 – Madison Henry: “Homeschooling vs public schooling: Decisions to homeschool children with special needs”
  • 1:10:01 – Dilkash Ahmed: “Teacher perceptions of assistive technology classroom implementation”

Connect with Lurie College at https://linktr.ee/sjsulurie to receive more news about academic and student life!

Join us for a Conversation with Fulbright Scholar Dr. Armen Mkrtchyan

You’re invited to join the Lurie College Department of Child and Adolescent Development on Friday, May 15, at 12pm for a conversation with Fulbright Scholar Dr. Armen Mkrtchyan.  During the conversation, he will discuss Armenian teenagers and aspects of their behavior (eating, risk, sexual), health, socio-emotional habits, and mental health.  Dr. Mkrtchyan is a lecturer at Yerevan State Medical University in Armenia.  Join the webinar on the day of at https://sjsu.zoom.us/j/93892115530.

This event is co-sponsored by the SJSU Armenian Students Association and the Lurie College of Education Department of Child & Adolescent Development.

Conversation with Fulbright Scholar Dr. Armen Mkrtchyan

Lurie College Faculty Participates in Mental Health Panel

Shoutout to Department of Special Education faculty Saili Kulkarni, who recently participated in a panel on mental health, disability, and wellness in the Asian American community during COVID-19.  Check out the news coverage of the panel from the Spartan Daily and check out the Padlet of resources that Dr. Kulkarni compiled below!

SJSU Lurie College of Education Special Education Department Faculty Saili Kulkarni

Made with Padlet

Lurie College Student and Faculty Published in Multilingual Educator Journal

Congratulations to Teacher Education Department graduate student Danielle Patenaude and faculty member Eduardo Muñoz-Muñoz, whose respective articles “Classroom Translanguaging: Building Identity and Agency” and “¿Qué español debo enseñar en mi clase? Permanezcamos en silencio, escuchemos, apreciemos y aprendamos” were recently published in the spring issue of the California Association for Bilingual Education’s (CABE) Multilingual Educator.  Give the articles a read at https://bit.ly/2RU2npY.

SJSU Lurie College of Education Teacher Education Graduate Student Danielle Patenaude

SJSU Lurie College of Education Teacher Education Faculty Eduardo Munoz-Munoz

Watch the Lurie College Faculty Research Symposium

Watch the recording from our Faculty Research Symposium, which took place on Friday, April 10, and showcased SJSU Lurie College faculty and the impact of their research! Presenters in this symposium included:

  • Eduardo Muñoz-Muñoz, PhD | Assistant Professor, Department of Teacher Education | “Targeting linguistic targets: Academic English, Standard English, and ideologies among preservice teachers” | Presentation starts at 5:34
  • Nadia Sorkhabi, PhD | Professor, Department of Child & Adolescent Development | “Mothers’ and Fathers’ Parenting Style and Emerging Adults’ Academic Achievement: Self-construal, Self-esteem, and Parental Psychological Control as Mediators” | Presentation starts at 32:19
  • Shawn Vecellio, PhD | Lecturer, Department of Teacher Education | “Using Clearness Committees to Address Teacher Candidates’ Critical Incidents” | Presentation starts at 1:05:39

Lurie College Faculty Recognized by CCTE

Shoutout to Teacher Education Department faculty Lara Kassab, who was recently recognized by the California Council on Teacher Education (CCTE) for the virtual instruction tutorials that she has recently created to support faculty in response to COVID-19.  View the tutorials at bit.ly/PlaylistsOnlineTeachingKassab.

SJSU Lurie College of Education Teacher Education Department Faculty Lara Kassab

Join us at the Lurie College Faculty Research Symposium

SJSU Lurie College of Education faculty, staff, students, alumni, and friends are invited to attend our Faculty Research Symposium on Friday, April 10, from 12:30-2pm, which will showcase several Lurie College faculty and the impact of their research!  Join the Zoom webinar at sjsu.zoom.us/j/794703207. Presenters include:

  • Eduardo Muñoz-Muñoz, PhD | Assistant Professor, Department of Teacher Education
    • Presentation: “Targeting linguistic targets: Academic English, Standard English, and ideologies among preservice teachers”
  • Nadia Sorkhabi, PhD | Professor, Department of Child & Adolescent Development
    • Presentation: “Mothers’ and Fathers’ Parenting Style and Emerging Adults’ Academic Achievement: Self-construal, Self-esteem, and Parental Psychological Control as Mediators”
  • Shawn Vecellio, PhD | Lecturer, Department of Teacher Education
    • Presentation: “Using Clearness Committees to Address Teacher Candidates’ Critical Incidents”

SJSU Lurie College of Education Spring 2020 Faculty Research Symposium

Andrea Golloher Chosen to Spearhead the Use of DEC Recommended Practices for Young Children with Disabilities

SJSU Lurie College of Education Special Education Department Faculty Andrea Golloher

­­­­­Andrea Golloher will serve as a statewide “ambassador” to spearhead use of the DEC Recommended Practices for the care and education of young children with disabilities. Andrea Golloher, Assistant Professor of Special Education and the Associate Director of the Early Childhood Institute at San José State University’s Connie L. Lurie College of Education, is among 22 newly selected aPRy Ambassadors chosen to bring awareness and support to the dissemination and use of the DEC Recommended Practices (RPs) and the associated resources and tools. Ambassadors now reside in 24 states.

Andrea says, “As a faculty member preparing early childhood special education and training early childhood educators to support inclusive programs, I am very excited to be a part of the aRPy Ambassador Initiative. I look forward to learning more about the tools that have been developed and establishing a plan to promote the Recommended Practices in California”.

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Participate in the Lurie College 10-2-1 Challenge

We’re building community at the SJSU Lurie College of Education while sheltering-in-place. Challenge a friend, classmate, professors, advisors, or colleague to answer 10 questions in 2 minutes using 1 take. You choose the questions (nothing designed to embarrass please). If you record a video of the responses and share it on social media, tag us @sjsulurie and then pass on the challenge. If you’ve already been interviewed, it’s your turn to interview someone else.  Watch Briettny Curtner, graduate student in the Department of Counselor Education, interview Dean Heather Lattimer, and then Dean Heather Lattimer interview Associate Dean Marcos Pizarro in the videos below.

Early Childcare Providers are on the Front Lines of the Coronavirus Pandemic

Please call your federally-elected official to ask for their support in providing emergency funding to maintain high-quality child care.

SJSU Associated Students Child Development Center

In order to slow the spread of the novel coronavirus (COVID-19), schools have closed down across the region and the country, sending children of all ages home for extended periods of time.

Working parents are therefore facing unprecedented challenges in determining how to balance child care and work responsibilities. Those who are able to work from home must meet the needs of their children while remotely addressing responsibilities under rapidly evolving work conditions. Moreover, with the increased risks of exposure to coronavirus among older adults, grandparents may not be able to safely fill in as back-up caregivers.

With the economy reeling from the coronavirus crisis and the complications and consequences of hitting pause on the work of small and large businesses, schools, and other public entities, many employers and working parents will struggle to find a way through. While employers may allow some flexibility, it is clear that both working parents and the caregivers who support their children are critical to keeping the economy going.

Meanwhile, some parents simply must continue to work on site, including first responders (firefighters, police, nurses, etc.) and those deemed to be in essential roles. Importantly, the Santa Clara County Health Officer’s Shelter in Place Order recognizes childcare providers within this essential workforce, as their services enable other exempted employees to continue working.

As employers and employees throughout the region scramble to adjust to the shelter in place order and to flatten the curve, child care workers are being asked to serve on the front line of the coronavirus pandemic. This crisis highlights the importance of ECE providers to society and economic stability – not just now, but always. Meanwhile, these providers are themselves frequently living on the edge of economic security given persistent low wages. As a society, we need to recognize the importance of ECE providers. In light of this and other emergencies and natural disasters, resources should be provided directly to childcare providers, recognizing the role that they play in maintaining safe environments for children and facilitating adults’ continued involvement in the workforce. Furthermore, in order to maintain this workforce, they must be paid a worthy wage that not only keeps them out of poverty, but one that adequately compensates them for the role they play in society.

Written by the Early Childhood Institute (ECI) at San José State University, which is led by Dr. Andrea Golloher, Dr. Emily Slusser, and Dr. Maria Fusaro.  Recognizing the potential each and every child brings into the world, ECI promotes equitable and inclusive access to high-quality early learning experiences by collaborating with campus and community partners; advancing applied research; building the capacity of early childhood professionals; and advocating for professionals, young children, and their families.

Lurie College of Education Impresses in Best Graduate School Rankings

This story was originally posted on the SJSU Newsroom website by Robin McElhatton.

SJSU Lurie College of Education 2021 U.S. News & World Report

San Jose State’s Connie L. Lurie College of Education had an impressive showing in the 2021 U.S. News and World Report Best Graduate Schools rankings.

The rankings, released on March 17, show the Lurie College placed in these four categories:

  • Tied for #2 among CSU schools of education
  • In the top 5 for schools of education in the Bay Area
  • Tied for #16 among schools of education in California
  • Debuted at #158 for best education schools in the country

“All of us in the Lurie College of Education are proud that we have been recognized for our efforts to prepare transformative educators, counselors, therapists, school and community leaders,” said Lurie College Dean Heather Lattimer. “We look forward to continuing to work collaboratively with our students, alumni, faculty, staff, and community partners to expand our college’s opportunities and impact in the region!”

The magazine bases its ranking of best graduate schools of education on two types of data: reputational surveys of deans and other academic officials and statistical indicators that measure the quality of a school’s faculty, research and students. They also assess both the preparedness of a school’s incoming students and the career or academic outcomes of a school’s graduates.

Meet the Lurie College Faculty | Maria Fusaro

Maria’s research centers on how young children, under age 5, learn from other people, through both verbal and gesture-based communication and through question-answer exchanges. Her recent work examines how preschoolers’ skill in asking questions supports their ability to solve science-relevant problems in innovative ways. Bridging her teaching and research, Maria also studies the preparation of undergraduate students for careers in infant/toddler care and education, and for providing high quality, supportive learning experiences for young children. Read Maria’s full profile below and listen to Maria’s personality playlist on the Lurie College Spotify account !

Maria Fusaro

Associate Professor, Child & Adolescent Development

Education

  • Ed.D., Human Development and Psychology, Harvard Graduate School of Education
  • Ed.M., Mind, Brain and Education, Harvard Graduate School of Education
  • B.A., Education Studies (Human Development) and Public Policy and American Institutions (Education Policy), Brown University

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