02-04-2024 EDU - Flipbook - Page 8
8 The Baltimore Sun | Sunday, February 4, 2024
SPECIAL SUPPLEMENT
Pictured are Salisbury University students in a Science Methods Lab taught by Dr. Jeni Davis of the Early and Elementary
Education Department. SU’s Conway Hall is home to the Seidel School of Education.
Credit: Salisbury University
Salisbury University prepares
educators for the future
S
alisbury University will soon celebrate its 100-year history that started as the Maryland State Normal
School at Salisbury, an institution
dedicated to training teachers for
the Eastern Shore of Maryland.
In the decades since, SU and its Samuel
W. and Marilyn C. Seidel School of Education
have been leaders in preparing educators who
inspire students in classrooms and schools
across the state and beyond.
“Teacher preparation is in the roots of
Salisbury University,” said Dr. Laurie Henry,
Seidel School Dean. “We opened our doors
in 1925 as a teacher’s college, so having an
opportunity to help develop new teachers
for classrooms and help practicing teachers
further develop their craft is a true honor.”
The Seidel School offers 16 undergraduate
majors: Early childhood education, elementary education, and dual certification in both;
secondary teacher education in the areas of
biology, chemistry, earth science, English,
French, history, mathematics, physics and
Spanish; and K12 certification in English to
speakers of other languages (ESOL), music
education, and physical education; as well as
a new major in outdoor education leadership.
Students also may choose a range of minors,
from athletic coaching to the creative arts
and social justice studies.
“We have a small student to teacher ratio,”
Henry said. “Most of our classes are around
20 students, so our faculty really get to know
our students. It’s such a warm and welcoming
community.”
The benefits of this personal attention are
echoed by Dr. Niya Brown, an SU graduate
Shaping
Educators of
Tomorrow
Salisbury University’s Seidel School of
Education is preparing the next generation
of educators equipped to navigate
complexity and drive meaningful change.
Celebrating the transformative power
of education, we emphasize educational
equity and embrace a mosaic of
perspectives. Inclusion is woven into the
fabric of teaching, giving all students
opportunities to succeed.
Make Tomorrow Yours
Visit salisbury.edu
24
education-related majors &
graduate programs
13:1
student-to-faculty ratio
Salisbury University is an equal educational and employment opportunity institution.
who is now clinical faculty in the Early and
Elementary Education Department.
“We prioritize relationships with our students,” she said. “You don’t feel like a number
here; you feel like a person with an identity. We value those different identities and
diverse perspectives, and that really drives
students to want to make a decision to come
here.”
“It’s also important to think about high
impact practices and what kinds of opportunities exist outside the classroom,” Henry
said, “like studying abroad and other experiential learning activities available at SU.” SU’s
Conway Hall is a state-of-the-art facility, with
an education-focused MakerSpace and other
innovative instructional spaces.
Last year, the Seidel School received
a nearly $2.5 million Maryland Rebuilds:
Growing a Highly Effective Childcare
Workforce grant from the Maryland State
Department of Education to help advance the
education of those already in the field.
Drs. Althea Pennerman, Chin-Hsiu Chen,
and Vincent Genareo, associate professors of
early and elementary education, are leading
the initiative, which helps current child care
workers and paraprofessionals earn bachelor
degrees and teaching certifications.
“We have some really unique programs,”
Henry said. “Our students from day one
can be in classrooms working with children.
We also have tutoring available in the May
Literacy Center, where we bring students
from our local community to campus for our
students to work with one-on-one.”
SU’s programs that seek to advance the
literacy development of children are critical,
said Dr. Brian Flores, director of the May
Literacy Center, which was established at SU
more than three decades ago.
This commitment to literacy is reflected in SU’s offerings of master’s and doctoral programs. The Master of Education
(M.Ed.) Reading Specialist program is one of
only nine in the country to receive National
Recognition by the International Literacy
Association. The Doctor of Education
(Ed.D.) in Literacy Studies is a member
of the Carnegie Project on the Education
Doctorate and emphasizes research solutions
to complex problems of practice framed by
questions of equity and social justice.
SU also offers several graduate certificate
programs, as well as a Master of Arts in
Teaching, a Master of Science in Mathematics
Education, and a Master of Education in
the areas of Curriculum and Instruction,
Post-Secondary Education, and Educational
Leadership, now offered fully online along
with the Ed.D.
SU’s education programs strive for excellence. In 2023, three SU alumni were among
only seven finalists for Maryland Teacher of
the Year: Tara Martens '11 M'17 in Wicomico
County, Jaimie Ridgely '01, M'11, Ed.D. '19 in
Worcester County, and Nicole Rhoades ’03 in
Frederick County.
The Seidel School also is home to an
award-winning Professional Development
Schools network, which allows teacher candidates to spend time in classrooms with
mentors honing their craft. In all, the Seidel
School partners with 44 schools in seven
Maryland counties to provide clinical preparation for prospective teachers.
“Our goal is to send the best educators
out in the field to be leaders in their schools,
wherever that may be,” Henry said.
Learn more about opportunities
to make tomorrow yours at
www.salisbury.edu/seidel.
