Thanks to the efforts of our Child and Adolescent Development students Julia Doan and Erin Maxwell and faculty Joy Foster, Jessica Frasier, Rayna Friendly, and Emily Slusser and thanks to the numerous contributions from Lurie College donors, our Play Yard Crowdfunding Campaign has exceeded our goal and raised a total of $10,175! We’re looking forward to transforming our Child Development Lab Preschool Play Yard into one that promotes inclusivity and enhances the quality of care and instruction offered to the Toddler Lab students.
Julia Duggs | Ethnic Studies teaching candidate | SJSU Lurie College of Education
Victoria Durán, PhD | Social Science teacher | Overfelt High School
Marcos Pizarro, PhD | Associate Dean | SJSU Lurie College of Education | Twitter: @sjsulurie
Luis Poza, PhD | Assistant Professor, Teacher Education | SJSU Lurie College of Education | Twitter: @luisepoza
Description
This presentation brings together SJSU faculty and practicing Ethnic Studies teachers to deepen participants’ understandings of the purposes and core principles of Ethnic Studies teaching alongside examples from classroom practice. Webinar participants will have the opportunity to learn about the documented benefits of Ethnic Studies for students (regardless of racial and ethnic background) as well as specific culturally responsive curriculum activities that afford student agency, community engagement, and meaningful social analysis as part of students’ academic and personal development. Such activities include Youth Participatory Action Research, student counterstories and testimonios, and an in-depth look at a multi-faceted unit of instruction implemented in the 2020-21 academic year that fostered healing, home and community connections, and students’ “freedom dreaming” — collective envisioning of a more just society.
Robert Marx, PhD | Assistant Professor | SJSU Lurie College of Education | Twitter: @RbrtMrx
Frank J. Peña | Outreach and Speakers Bureau Coordinator | The LGBTQ Youth Space
Description
For some trans and genderqueer students, returning to in-person school may bring anxiety, fear, and expectations of victimization. For others, though, school may be the sole safe haven from an unsupportive home environment. This webinar, therefore, will provide the knowledge and skills needed to establish or enhance affirming and supportive classroom and extracurricular spaces, with a specific focus on practical steps to foster gender equity and inclusion. The presenters bring their experience teaching high school English, serving as a GSA advisor, providing direct community support to teachers and LGBTQ+ youth in the Bay Area, and conducting research with trans and genderqueer adolescents about their families, schools, and communities.
Wanda Watson, EdD | Associate Professor | SJSU Lurie College of Education | Twitter: @wawatty
Description
This session explores how TK-5th grade teachers launch the school year with three main interrelated goals at the forefront: Building a classroom community that humanizes students and values their intersectional racialized identities, particularly those from Black, Indigenous, Latinx, and Asian backgrounds; Learning about students’ strengths, interests, experiences, and barriers to learning; Integrating students’ funds of knowledge and community cultural wealth into Ethnic Studies and Anti-racist curricular and pedagogical practices to facilitate liberatory student learning.
Eric Cross | 7th Grade Science Teacher | Albert Einstein Academies | Twitter: @sdteaching
Description
In The Next Normal we will reflect on lessons learned from the prepandemic era of teaching and provide practical strategies to restore an equitable classroom community while supporting teacher wellness.
On Friday, July 30, join Teacher Education faculty Brent Duckor and Counselor Education faculty Lorri Capizzi at the online CCOG Educator Summit, where we will feature Dr. Erika Zepeda, Educational Psychologist and CCREE consultant, in our breakout session “Using Trauma Informed Approaches in a Post-Pandemic Classroom for Students in Foster Care and Youth Experiencing Homelessness.” Dr. Zepeda will provide educators with “on-the-ground” tools to assess and support students transitioning back into the classroom in a post-pandemic world. Dr. Zepeda will include her experience in working with culturally diverse communities and in identifying student protective and risk factors through a trauma informed approach for all students and in particular for students in foster care and youth experiencing homelessness. Register to attend the summit by Thursday, July 15, by completing this Google form.
Lara Ervin-Kassab, EdD | Assistant Professor | SJSU Lurie College of Education | Twitter: @drlarakassab
Description
As we return to both face to face and blended classrooms, we need to explore how we are (re)building learning communities, relationships, and safety in our classrooms. This presentation will be an interactive exploration of digital and analog approaches and tools for building relationships with and between students. We will explore the need to critically analyze our own practices and schooling norms so that school becomes a place of healing, rather than perpetuating and compounding the traumas all of us have experienced over the past year and a half.
Chassidy Olainu-Alade | Coordinator of Community and Civic Engagement | Fort Bend Independent School District | Twitter: @ChasAlade
Description
Parent engagement has always been a top ranking tenant of successful K-12 education systems. Effective parent engagement practices benefit students as school-to-home connections promote positive reinforcement of knowledge and skills, allow for extension of learning, and develop mutual support around discipline and expectations. Additionally, the broader community provides schools and teachers with the resources, expertise, and volunteerism to achieve their goals. Prior to the COVID-19 pandemic, common methods of parent and community engagement included a variety of face-to-face events, in-person opportunities, and one-way communications. Since the pandemic, the ways in which teachers engage parents, families, and the community has shifted to practices that are more inclusive, flexible, and creative in nature. This session will allow participants to walk away with a deep understanding of the role that parent, family, and community engagement plays on the classroom environment and school culture. Participants will understand methods of engaging parents in a post-pandemic school setting and be provided with some best practices for developing two-way communications and collaborations with parents, all the while navigating new modes of 21st century learning, anti-racist curriculum implementation, and meeting the needs of diverse learners.
Betina Hsieh, PhD | Associate Professor of Teacher Education | California State University Long Beach | Twitter: @ProfHsieh
Description
How can we stay connected with our own humanity and that of our students after a year of distance learning? In this interactive presentation, educators will gain a sense of how humanizing pedagogies can be at the core of disciplinary learning and how we can invite students to share their identities, cultures, and experiences using digital tools and multiple modalities to support inclusive, community-grounded instruction in classrooms.
Maria Nichols | Author and Literacy Consultant | Twitter: @marianichols45
Description
Talk has the potential to transform classroom culture, literacy learning, and children’s identity – both individually and collectively. Building a culture of talk creates joyful, engaging space for students to think and construct together. This session will create a vision of classrooms alive with talk, and offer strategies for launching talk, and developing the kind of thoughtful, authentic facilitation that honors student’s intellect, teaches into meaning making as a process, honors unique understandings, and helps each student realize the power of their own voice.
Teachers can assign and students can submit, but the real learning comes from the discussions we have in a classroom. It’s in those talks that the mix of content and life skills come alive and not only show students’ true understanding but pushes them to consider other perspectives. Classroom discussions are the perfect foundation for the society we hope to see in our future and we’ll all need to practice how to speak to one another after a year of distance and change.
Rafael Rodriguez | Positive Behavioral Interventions and Supports Specialist | Santa Clara County Office of Education | Twitter: @SCCOE
Jessica Simpson | Positive Behavioral Interventions and Supports Specialist | Santa Clara County Office of Education | Twitter: @SCCOE
Description
We are at a unique point along the pathway towards rebuilding educational culture. The past year has repeatedly demonstrated that individual educators are pivotal in both the physical and the social-behavioral health and wellbeing of our students and families – what if we could intentionally design activities and strategies that each educator could adapt in order to create more inclusive environments for all students? Participants will have the opportunity to learn how (and why) to incorporate social-behavioral instruction and practice into the initial weeks of school. Participants will also explore how to incorporate identity building, precorrection (both social-behaviorally and academically) and relationship skills with the Positive Greetings at the Door intervention (Cooke, et. al).
We established our free K-12 Teaching Academy in Summer 2020 to support current teachers, teacher candidates, and community partners in transitioning to online teaching as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic. Since then, our webinar recordings have been viewed nearly 25,000 times and our series has been highlighted on ABC7 News, EdSource, and the COVID-19 CA website.
Join us from Monday, June 28 – Thursday, July 8, for our free Summer 2021 K-12 Teaching Academy webinars, which will feature teachers, administrators, professors, and other practitioners and focus on relevant topics regarding returning to a “new normal” in classrooms in Fall 2021. Sessions include:
Week(s) of Welcome: Intentional, Inclusive Relationships Start Here
The Discussion-based Classroom
Talk as Transformation: Building Equity, Agency and Joy in the Elementary Classroom
Reimagining K-16 (Science) Teaching and Learning During a Time of Crisis: Transforming Learning Environments Through Justice-Centered Instructional and Pedagogical Design
Centering Humanity Through Identity-Informed Collaborative Notebook Activities
Better Together: Partnering with Families and the Community for Student Success
Considering Community and Trauma
The Next Normal: Reimagining Next Year’s Classroom
Bringing Our Humanity to the TK-5 Classroom Through an Ethnic Studies Stance
Queering the Classroom to Foster a Safe and Inclusive Environment: Lessons from Research and Practice
Freedom Dreaming: Ethnic Studies Teaching in the Secondary Grades
Bring it Back to the Classroom: What Did We Learn From a Year of COVID?
Building Culture and Community One Story at a Time
Shoutout to Teacher Education faculty Brent Duckor and Counselor Education faculty Lorri Capizzi, who co-presented the webinar “How can Teachers, School Counselors, & Administrators support educational outcomes for students in foster care during extraordinary times?” as part of their SJSU Center for Collaborative Research Excellence in Education (CCREE) and in collaboration with the CSU Center for Closing the Opportunity Gap (CCOG). Watch the recording of the webinar below.
Congratulations to Department of Educational Leadership faculty Fabiola Bagula and Rebeca Burciaga, whose chapters “Belonging and Being Enough” and “Coraje y Amor: Cultivating Leadership Through Cultural Intuition” were included in the recent publication of the book Latinas Leading Schools. The book also includes contributions from Ana Tavares, Melissa Martinez, and Sylvia Méndez-Morse and all five scholars also collaborated on the Latinas Leading Schools panel as part of our Spring 2021 Emancipatory Education Speaker Series.
Emancipatory Education Speaker Series Latinas Leading Schools Panel
We established our free K-12 Teaching Academy in Summer 2020 to support current teachers, teacher candidates, and community partners in transitioning to online teaching as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic. Since then, our webinar recordings have been viewed nearly 25,000 times and our series has been highlighted on ABC7 News, EdSource, and the COVID-19 CA website.
We hope you’ll join us from Monday, June 28 – Friday, July 9 for our next series of free K-12 Teaching Academy webinars. Our upcoming series will focus on returning to a “new normal” in classrooms in Fall 2021. Visit sjsu.edu/education/community/k12-academy to fill out our interest form if you’d like to receive an email notification when our schedule of summer 2021 webinars becomes available.
Join Teacher Education faculty Brent Duckor and Counselor Education faculty Lorri Capizzi on Tuesday, June 15, from 1-2pm for their webinar “How can Teachers, School Counselors, & Administrators support educational outcomes for students in foster care during extraordinary times?” with the CSU Center to Close the Opportunity Gap. RSVP at bit.ly/3geTgLG
Congratulations to Special Education Department faculty Saili Kulkarni, who has received a racial equity grant from the Spencer Foundation for her project “Playing Together: Using Learning Labs to Reduce Exclusionary Disciplinary Practices for Young Children of Color with Disabilities!”
“I’ve learned about the importance of a good support system from friends, family, colleagues and faculty. As attending college during a pandemic can feel emotionally and academically defeating and isolating, having people you can turn to for support during these difficult times can make the experience easier.”
Congratulations to two-time Lurie College alumni Neng Xiong, who was featured by SJSU as an extraordinary graduate! Read the feature at bit.ly/2S7TtZn
The SJSU Lurie College of Education Learning Showcase highlights our undergraduate, graduate, credential, and doctoral students’ while they’re on their journeys to becoming transformative educators, counselors, therapists, school and community leaders under our college’s four priority areas: community-engaged, culturally sustaining, holistic, and interdisciplinary. Check out some of the presentations from our Department of Communicative Disorders and Sciences and Department of Special Education students.
Communication, COVID, & Complications
Building upon their presentation from the Fall 2020 Lurie College Learning Showcase, SJSU Communicative Disorders and Sciences students Aminah and Alejandra share their insights on the intersections of the speech medical field, dysphagia, and COVID-19.
Action Research / Intervention for Students with Disabilities
32:35 – Joanna Gaeta – “Discipline Disparities of Male Minorities and Special Education: Effects of Perceptions, School-Imposed Labels, and Behavior-Based Referrals”
47:10 – Chloe Orton Cartnal – “Emotional Recognition of Individuals with Autism Spectrum Disorder”
54:08 – Maria Sanchez – “Paraeducators Knowledge of and Training Needs for Effective AAC Implementation”
Systematic Review
2:20 – Emily Im – “Technology-Based Social Story Interventions for Individuals with Autism Spectrum Disorder: A Systematic Review”
12:38 – Breanna Brooks – “The Effect of Social Stories on Students with Extensive Support Needs: A Systematic Review”
23:54 – Thania Garcia – “Reading Comprehension Intervention for Emergent Bilinguals with Learning Disabilities: A Systematic Review”
34:02 – Rennea Phillips – “Using Technology Based Instruction to Increase Academic Engagement for Students with Autism Spectrum Disorder”
46:10 – Jessica Ultreras Ruiz – “A Systematic Review: Perceptions of Typical Peers in Play Based Interventions with Students with Autism”
Our Student Success Center reconnected with Lurie College alumni during the spring semester to learn about their academic, professional, and personal insights. Watch the recordings of the panels below!
Counselor Education, Child & Adolescent Development, and Multiple Subject Credential Program
Featured alumni in this panel include:
Nicole Ellis – Counselor Education (2019), current counselor at Piedmont Hills High School
Lily Soto – Child & Adolescent Development (2018), Multiple Subject Credential/MA in Education (2019), current 1st grade teacher at Mattos Elementary School
Child and Adolescent Development and Speech Language Pathology
Featured alumni in this panel include:
Karina Rivera – Child & Adolescent Development (2018), currently pursuing Child Life Specialist MA at Central Washington University
Alison Pentland – Speech Language Pathology (2014), AAC specialist and SJSU lecturer
Congratulations to all of our Spring 2021 SJSU Lurie College of Education graduates who earned their bachelors, masters, credentials, or doctorates! Watch the recording of our Graduation Celebration above.
0:00 – Welcome to the Lurie College Graduation Celebration
7:29 – Remarks from Dean Heather Lattimer and Marcos Pizarro, video recognition of Lurie College graduates
20:58 – Remarks from Janeth Canseco (MA, Counselor Education Department)
27:22 – Remarks from Charline Tenorio (MA, Communicative Disorders and Sciences Department)
SJSU has also created a website to recognize all of the Spring 2021 graduates for the entire university. Visit the SJSU Commencement website to access the recognition websites.
Shoutout to Special Education Department Chair Peg Hughes, who was recently featured on Zippia’s Future Of The Job Market Report! She, along with thousands of other experts, shared insights around trends in the job market as a result of the pandemic, what skills stand out on resumes, and more. Read the full feature on the Zippia website.
Congratulations to all of our SJSU Lurie College of Education undergraduate, graduate, credential, and doctoral students for completing a very full and uniquely challenging semester! Watch this video message from Dean Heather Lattimer or read the transcription of the message below.
Congratulations!! We have made it to the end of a very full and uniquely challenging semester.
You have persisted through multiple hurdles, thrived while taking on new experiences, and consistently demonstrated your leadership, tenacity, and commitment in your classes, field experiences, and relationships with peers and mentors.
You truly are the transformative educators, counselors, therapists, school, and community leaders that we aspire to prepare here at Lurie College. We are so very proud of you!
For those of you who are continuing, I can’t wait to welcome you back to campus in August for the Fall 2021 semester. After over a year of seeing you only through Zoom, I am so excited to be able to greet you in person in Sweeney Hall.
Over the summer we’ll be offering a range of programming for current students, recent alums, and community partners. Featured activities include our STEM+C Teacher Institute and our K12 Teaching Academy which, this year, will include webinars to support classroom teachers as they work to build community, relationships, and healing following the COVID-19 pandemic. Please check out our website to stay connected and learn more about these and other opportunities.
As we celebrate your success this year, I want to also take a moment to recognize the friends, family, faculty, and staff who have gone above and beyond to support our students throughout the pandemic. I have been inspired and humbled by the creativity, commitment, generosity, and love that has been shown by our Lurie College community. If you have someone who has been particularly inspirational or supportive during this time period, please take a moment to express your gratitude. As a former school teacher, I can tell you that nothing is better than receiving an unsolicited note of heartfelt appreciation from your students.
I wish you a fantastic summer ahead and hope that you are able to take time to unplug, celebrate your achievements, reflect on your learning, and recharge for the work ahead.
The SJSU Lurie College of Education is looking forward to hosting a live graduation celebration to recognize our nearly 500 Spring 2021 graduates (and soon-to-be alumni)! The Lurie College Graduation Celebration will take place online on Friday, May 28, at 4pm PDT and begin with a college-wide ceremony that will include remarks from Dean Heather Lattimer, Associate Dean Marcos Pizarro, and student speakers Janeth Canseco and Charline Tenorio, who are earning their Master’s Degrees from our Department of Counselor Education and Department of Communicative Disorders and Sciences, respectively.
I didn’t believe I would make it this far, be 20 years into my education, and be the first in my family to earn a master’s degree. It’s something that I’m incredibly proud of, not only for myself but also for my family. It’s also an incredible opportunity for me to be recognized as the first Counselor Education student to be selected as Lurie College’s student speaker. That made me feel a sense of accomplishment. In terms of how I feel about graduating – it’s very surreal. It’s scary to think about what’s next, but I feel like if I try, I apply, and I don’t live with any regrets, then everything will work out. – Janeth Canseco, Counselor Education
Each Spring 2021 graduate will also be recognized during the college-wide ceremony. Lurie College graduates, faculty, and staff have been invited to attend the live ceremony on Zoom, and family and friends are invited to watch the live ceremony on the Lurie College YouTube channel.
After the college-wide ceremony, each Lurie College department – Child & Adolescent Development, Communicative Disorders & Sciences, Counselor Education, Ed.D. 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 semester and calendar year.
San José State University as a whole is honoring and celebrating all Spring 2021 graduates by launching graduate recognition websites, which will go live on Friday, May 28, at 10am. Learn more on the SJSU Commencement website.
This has been the fastest two years of my life and I’ve enjoyed every second of it. Before enrolling in my program, I knew generally that I wanted to be a speech therapist. Now that I’ve completed the program, I know that I want to specialize in schools and work with children from diverse backgrounds. It’s also an honor to serve as the Lurie College student speaker and represent our classmates who have such diverse backgrounds – some are parents, some are working while enrolled in school, some are switching careers, etc. – and have worked so hard to get to this moment. – Charline Tenorio, Communicative Disorders & Sciences
Charline Tenorio – MA, Department of Communicative Disorders & Sciences
