February 2019 Newsletter

Maisha T. Winn and Torry Winn Receive Chancellor’s Achievement Award for Diversity and Community

Dr. Maisha T. Winn, UC Davis Chancellor’s Leadership Professor and Faculty Director of the School of Education’s Transformative Justice in Education Center (TJE), and Dr. Lawrence (Torry) Winn, TJE Executive Director, have been honored with the Chancellor’s Achievement Award for Diversity and Community for 2018-2019 in the Special Recognition Category. This award recognizes the exemplary contributions they have made to enhancing campus inclusiveness and diversity through their leadership roles at TJE.

Housed in the School of Education, TJE’s primary focus has been on transforming teacher education, schools and community organizations. In addition to the outreach the Center performs at the local, state and national levels, TJE reaches undergraduate and graduate students, faculty and staff across the UC Davis campus. 

“Through the work of the Transformative Justice in Education Center, Dr. Maisha Winn and Dr. Torry Winn have tirelessly advocated for social justice and sought to build community on campus and beyond,” said School of Education Dean Lauren Lindstrom. “In less than two years, TJE has emerged as a national leader for transformative justice and racial equity, and this special recognition for the important impact they have made is well-deserved.” Learn more about the award on our website. 

School of Education Supporters Receive High Honors from Cal Aggie Alumni Association

Darryl and Lois Goss (second and third from left), Mohini Jain (fourth from left) and Francisco Rodriguez (sixth from left) at the Cal Aggie Alumni Awards Celebration.

On February 1, the Cal Aggie Alumni Association honored alumni and friends who have provided extraordinary service to UC Davis, their professions and communities. Among those honored were three friends of the School of Education: Supporters Darryl Goss (’83) and Lois Goss (’88) received the Aggie Service Award, supporter and former Dean’s Board of Advisors member Mohini Jain received the Distinguished Friend of the University Award, and supporter and former Dean’s Board of Advisors member Francisco Rodriguez (’85, MA ’97) received the Jerry W. Fielder Award. Congratulations to these amazing honorees! Watch a video, see photos and read more about their accomplishments at One Aggie Network.  

Dennis Mangers and Dr. Caroline S. Turner Join School of Education Dean’s Board of Advisors

We are pleased to announce the addition of two new members to the School of Education Board of Advisors: Dennis Mangers and Dr. Caroline S. Turner.  

Dennis Mangers is the Strategic Advisor for Arts, Culture, and the Creative Economy for Sacramento Mayor Darrell Steinberg. He was elected to the California State Assembly in 1976 and served two terms as a member of the Education Committee and Chair of the Sub-Committee on the Improvement of Pre and In-service Training for School Principals. He then served in leadership roles at the California Cable and Telecommunications Industry, holding the position of President for over 27 years. He began his career in 1964 as an elementary school teacher in Long Beach, California and in 1968 became the youngest school principal in California. Read more.

Dr. Caroline S. Turner (BS ’67, MA ’70) graduated from the first MA cohort in the School of Education, and was the recipient of the School’s 2016 Distinguished Alumna award. Turner is a Professor for the Doctorate in Educational Leadership Program at CSU Sacramento. She is past President of the Association for the Study of Higher Education (ASHE), the leading scholarly society for research on higher education. Turner’s numerous recognitions include the Yolo County Mexican American Concilio Pilar Andrade Award for community service, CSU Sacramento’s University-Wide Faculty Award for Research and Creative Activity, and the American Educational Research Association’s Scholars of Color in Education Career Contribution Award. Read more. 

The Dean’s Board of Advisors helps the School of Education align its programs, people and resources with the needs of the communities and constituencies it serves, and supports the School through volunteerism and philanthropy. Currently the Board is providing advice and input on the School of Education’s strategic plan and helping with fundraising priorities. Thanks to all our board members for their important leadership and service.

In Memoriam: School of Education Professor Paul E. Heckman, Retired Lecturer Burt Liebert, Professor Emeritus Julius M. Sassenrath 

Professor Paul E. Heckman, PhD passed away on January 22, 2019. He served as a Professor in the School of Education from 2004 to 2019, as well as serving as the Associate Dean for eight years and as the founding Co-Director of CANDEL. His research interests focused on educational change, leadership and structure. He designed projects to encourage and understand the conditions for educational renewal in schools in the greater Sacramento area and in an after-school program in the City of Los Angeles, LA’s BEST. Dr. Heckman made many important contributions during the formative years of the School of Education, and he was deeply dedicated to supporting his students, even in the final days of his life.

The family welcomes sharing remembrances on Dr. Heckman’s memorial page. For those who wish to make a memorial gift in Dr. Heckman’s honor, the family will be establishing several funds to continue his work, starting with the Dr. Paul Heckman Memorial Fund in the School of Education. Other links will be available on the memorial funds page in the coming weeks. A celebration of his life is being planned for this spring.

Retired Lecturer Burt Liebert, who taught at UC Davis from 1981 to 1998, passed away on Dec. 24, 2018. A high school teacher in English and theater for 14 years and a teacher of adult education, he published multiple textbooks on language education and education for students with disabilities, as well as works of literature for young readers. 

Professor Emeritus Julius M. “Sass” Sassenrath, PhD passed away in January. Sassenrath taught at UC Davis from 1961 to 1991 and was integral to the growth of the Education Department at UC Davis. In 2008, alongside Doug Minnis and George Yonge, he established the Education Faculty Scholarship Fund, which honors past and present faculty and provides support for future education students with the greatest financial need.

School of Education Announces Open-Rank Faculty Position Search Based on Commitment to Diversity

The School of Education has joined a campus-wide initiative to hire leading research faculty who are strongly committed to promoting the success of underrepresented minority students and addressing the needs of our increasingly diverse state. The School is  accepted applications for an open-rank faculty position from candidates with a strong disciplinary background in any current or emerging areas in the field of education up until February 18, 2019.

According to New Faculty Research, Students Benefit When a “Professor Cares”

Plenty of anecdotal evidence says that having a professor who cares can make a big difference. Now, new research from School of Education Prof. Michal Kurlaender and Scott Carrell, professor of economics at UC Davis and co-faculty director of the California Education Lab, is backing that up with data from UC Davis and California State University students. 

Their preliminary research, titled “My Professor Cares: Experimental Evidence on the Role of Faculty Engagement,” suggests that just a few emails from a professor can improve student performance and perception. This “light-touch, targeted feedback” increased study time and exam scores among the economics students who participated in the study at UC Davis. In the CSU study, students with fewer than 30 previous college credits seemed to have improved course performance after getting the emails, and perceptions about the course and instructor were positive among Latinx, female, first-year students and more prepared students. Kurlaender and Carrell plan to expand this project and create another study among UC Davis students to reexamine initial results. Learn more about their research in this Inside Higher Ed article.  

Alumni Spotlight: Mayra Llamas (EdD ‘17)

“It’s important to me that prospective and current students see their value and that our campus provides them with the support they need to thrive,” said Mayra Llamas (EdD ‘17), who serves as the Executive Director of Community Resource and Retention Centers at UC Davis. 

Llamas decided to earn her doctorate in educational leadership as a way to advance her thinking when it comes to student support. “I think of my EdD as a leverage point,” she said. “A doctorate in educational leadership gets you validation from colleagues and makes you stand out above just being an exceptional employee, but it is first and foremost about learning. The CANDEL program helped me become a better leader and allowed me to conduct high-quality research directly related to the projects I oversee. My EdD has given me the tools I need to give back to my community in an even richer way.” Learn more about Llamas in our latest alumni spotlight.

UPCOMING EVENTS

3/16: CANDEL Networking and Luncheon Event

CANDEL alumni are invited to a CANDEL Networking and Luncheon Event, Saturday, March 16th, from 11 a.m. – 2 p.m., at the Alpha Gamma Rho Hall in the Walter A. Buehler Alumni Center, UC Davis. At this event, you’ll have the opportunity to hear from Dean Lindstrom about her vision for the School of Education, visit with CANDEL Co-Directors and fellow faculty, and network with CANDEL alumni and students. CANDEL alumni who haven’t received an email invitation may contact Rosaisela Rodriguez, CANDEL Associate Director, at (530) 754-6664 or at rrodr@ucdavis.edu for details. We hope you’ll be able to join us!