Message from the Dean
People Must Know/Spotlight
Several years ago, a receptionist working in the School of Education asked for time off to go to Dallas, Texas. She was going to be an “extra” in the show The Chosen. It sounded like an exciting opportunity! When I mentioned that I was not familiar with the show, she sent me a link. I have now watched every episode produced. This past Christmas I watched the Christmas special episode. Throughout the two-hour event, a theme emerged that focused on three words: “People must know.” Various cast members shared what they believed people must know about Jesus — his birth and life.
This got me thinking about our work in the School of Education. What is it we want people to know about our staff, our faculty, our students, our programs? I don’t know if the phrase is copyrighted but I asked the SOE team to complete the sentence, “People must know ____ about the SOE.”
I received a pretty long list. Here are some things I would like to spotlight about the SOE:
- Our faculty and staff think deeply about what it truly means to love your neighbor. We want our students to know that they are loved.
- We take great effort to act with integrity in every task we perform.
- By design, our programs allow students to participate in democratic processes by critiquing power, weighing arguments, making arguments, and reading, writing, speaking, and listening across multiple points of view.
- We provide opportunities for all of us, as a community, to learn how to work with other people with whom we disagree, and to be humble and to learn how to live and grow fruitfully in an increasingly diverse and globalized world.
Again, quoting Dallas Jenkins, creator of The Chosen, “It is not your job to feed the 5,000. You just need to bring the loaves of bread and fish.” I marvel at what God is doing with the loaves of bread and the fish the SOE faculty and staff bring for the benefit of our students.
Blessings to you,
Nyaradzo Mvududu
Dean
School of Education
Alumni & current students highlights
Carolyn Russo is a clinical training director and core faculty member at Counseling@Northwestern, the Family Institute at Northwestern University. Dr. Russo earned a PhD in counselor education from Seattle Pacific University. Her dissertation topic examined new counselor self-efficacy and the supervisory working alliance. She is passionate about supervision and training the next generation of counselors. Supervision is the single most important part of a counselor’s training, and quality supervision helps to shape a new counselor.
Today, Dr. Russo is contributing to the Master of Arts in Counseling program, which is accredited by the Council for Accreditation of Counseling and Related Education Programs (CACREP), at Northwestern University by supporting student’s clinical training experience and teaching within the program. Under her direction, there are close to 100 students that she oversees through training and advising.
Dr. Russo reported that she enjoys the mentoring aspect of counselor education and emphasizes the growth of developing the new counselor identity, self as counselor, and self-reflection. These practices are modeled by strong supervision skills and relationships that emphasize her strengths as a counselor educator. Dr. Russo’s experience in teaching diagnostics for the DSM-5, counseling theories, and counseling ethics has spanned over the last decade. Her journey as a counselor educator began in 2009 and has prepared her for the rigors of her current role.
She has previously managed a training clinic in a university setting and knows the unique aspects of leading students during this important point in their education. Currently, Dr. Russo owns a group practice, also considered a training clinic, where she supervises and provides therapy. She said she believes in the teaching practitioner model, which uses real experience to facilitate learning within the classroom. Her clinical specialties include disordered eating, life transitions and relationships, attachment and family of origin, and personality disorders within the adult population, both individually and as a system.
Prior to becoming a counselor educator and clinician, she worked in retail management, where she reached sales goals while managing several employees. This experience strengthened her leadership skills and emphasized her passion for mentoring. Dr. Russo said she works best when she is able to develop a strong relationship with her students through trust-building and open communication, and a strong supervisory working alliance sets the standard for the best clinical training experience.
The Neural Education Institute for Connecting Neuroscience with Teaching and Learning presented Dr. Kathi Weight, Steilacoom Historical School District superintendent, with the Neural Education Change Agency Award in recognition of her leadership with positive system-level changes implemented by the school district. Social-emotional learning has been formally underway in SHSD for over five years under the leadership of SOE alumni Superintendent Kathi Weight and Assistant Superintendent Paul Harvey. SPU Assistant Professor of Teacher Education Dan Bishop has been working as the evaluator on this grant, providing guidance and support with effective implementation through formative assessment of progress toward identified goals, collaborative support for program development, and implementation through data collection and analysis.
Liz Buffington, doctoral student, presented a talk titled, “Voice and choice for promoting student agency through the AVID digital learning framework & universal design for learning” at the 2021 International Conference on Productivity and Sustainability in December 2021. The conference was co-hosted by Krida Wacana Christian University (Indonesia), National Formosa University (Taiwan), and Seattle Pacific University (USA). Buffington received the Best Presenter Award.
Dr. Esther Penzar, SOE alumna, and faculty members Drs. Cher Edwards and Munyi Shea published an article titled “College Students’ Academic Achievement: Exploring the Role of Hope and Academic Self-Efficacy” in the online journal International Dialogues on Education: Past and Present online journal.
Cristina Bistricean, doctoral student, and faculty member Dr. Munyi Shea published an article titled “Understanding bereavement among college students: Implications for practice and research” in International Dialogues on Education: Past and Present online journal.
Have a professional success to share? Send it to On Point at fryettl@spu.edu for publication in the “Alumni and Current Students Highlights” section of our next issue.
Faculty and staff highlights
Faculty and Staff Recognition
At the February 2022 meeting, the SPU Board of Trustees granted Associate Professor Nalline Baliram tenure. Congratulations to a wonderful colleague. Well deserved indeed!
Dr. Nalline Baliram brought 14 years of experience as a teacher in a Florida private high school when she joined SPU as a doctoral student and adjunct faculty in 2013. In her current position as an associate professor in teacher education, Dr. Baliram brings her passion and expertise to prepare pre-service mathematics and science teachers at both the graduate and undergraduate levels.
Furthermore, she supports and mentors students in the Teacher Education program in their professional learning networks (PLNs), a support network designed to promote interdependence among groups of students who share the same endorsements.
Megan Hamshar has accepted the position of associate registrar in the Office of the Registrar. In that role, she will be overseeing the yearly publication of the SPU graduate and undergraduate catalogs, as well as the academic calendar. She will also be heavily involved with academic policies and procedures.
Megan has been a part of the SOE team for the past 14 years, with another five years before that in the Center for Professional Education. While we are sad to see Megan go, we are incredibly excited about this new chapter for her. Peterson Hall won’t be the same without you, Megan!
Kristi Kanehen has transitioned into the role of associate director of graduate programs. While Kristi is new to this role, the work in this role is not entirely new to Kristi. Kristi has a long history in the SOE and a deep understanding of our processes and procedures. This depth of knowledge and experience sets her up well for this new adventure. She officially began this role on Jan. 1. Congratulations, and thank you, Kristi!
Dr. John Bond has been in education for 50 years and is retiring after 13 years of service to the School of Education. Having served in a variety of roles (assistant superintendent, elementary school principal, and secondary school principal) in the K–12 world, Dr. Bond has “been there, done that.” The SOE and the Educational Leadership Program benefited from the educational experience he brought to us, and Dr. Bond is deeply engaged in school leadership and heavily involved in executive leadership organizations and associations across the state. Such partings are always bittersweet, but we are happy to celebrate your next chapter ahead.
This is the newest addition to our SOE family!
We welcomed Forest James Hainzinger, born to Shana (field placement coordinator) and her husband, Nate, on Dec. 18, 2021. Forest was an early Christmas present, and needless to say, he is absolutely adorable. Congratulations to Shana and Nate!
The Office of Global Engagement has accepted Dr. Grace Blum into the COIL Fellows Program for 2022–23. The COIL Fellows Program at SPU provides support for faculty in creating and applying collaborative online international learning (COIL) modules in their existing courses. The COIL Fellows Program will provide insights to faculty on designing course modules with an international partner, utilizing group work to support student learning, applying technology tools for collaboration, providing ideas for course assignments, and evaluating various methods and tools to assess the COIL course. Dr. Blum will be collaborating with the Papua Hope Language Institute in Papua, Indonesia.
SPU faculty Dr. Kristine Gritter, Dr. June Hyun, Dr. David Wicks, and SOE alumna AnneRene Joseph, gave various presentations at the 2021 International Conference on productivity and sustainability in December 2021. The conference was hosted by Krida Wacana Christian University (Indonesia), National Formosa University (Taiwan), and Seattle Pacific University (USA). They spoke on topics related to equity and social justice in higher education, mental health and resilience, arts education, and promoting literacy in all content areas in K–12 schools.
An article by Christy Barnes, adjunct instructor and Center for Professional Education program coordinator, titled “Toddler Dissertations” was published in the literary journal, McSweeney’s. Christy is also a 2013 SPU MFA graduate.
An article co-authored by Dr. Grace Blum, associate professor of curriculum and instruction, titled “Becoming humanizing educators during inhumane times: Valuing compassion and care above productivity and performance,” was published in Current Issues in Education, an open access, peer-reviewed academic education journal.
An article co-authored by Liz Ebersole, adjunct instructor of education, titled “Equitable access to TPACK research: Tensions about using social media to disseminate scholarship,” was published in Computers & Education Open.
Jason Thornberry, receptionist for the School of Education, had two poems published in January 2022 in Poor Yorick Literary Journal. Jason’s work has appeared in The Los Angeles Review of Books, North Dakota Quarterly, Soundings East, Broadkill Review, Sledgehammer Lit, and elsewhere.
Dr. Scott Beers, professor and assistant dean, gave a presentation at the 2022 International Conference on the Science of Written Expression. The title of his presentation was “Spelling Errors and Writing Fluency for Students with Dyslexia.”
Graduate student Sami Burse and associate professor Dr. David Denton are presenting a poster at Seirei International Research Conference in March 2022. The title of their presentation is “Students Draw: Surveying Students’ Emotional Connection to Subject Matter With Drawings.” The presentation focuses on use of drawings as a source of diagnostic information and as a reference for having students reflect on their thoughts and feelings. The presentation also explores the idea that drawing and reflection may be used to alter negative complexes for improved academic and emotional growth.
Dr. Kirsten Koetje gave a presentation titled, “Integrating Video Self-Analysis as a High Impact Practice” at the American Association of Colleges of Teacher Education’s (AACTE) 74th Annual Meeting in New Orleans on March 5, 2022. While the use of video recordings of classroom lessons began as a way to supervise remotely, it quickly became apparent that video analysis was also a successful development tool and useful for both self- and peer-to-peer review. Video analysis is a practical way to bridge the theory and research-based learning principles of the program with real-world classroom application.
An article, “Does Standardized Writing Predict Teacher Performance?,” authored by associate professor Kirsten Koetje was published in the winter edition of the Teacher Education Quarterly.
“Ten Myths About Seeking Counseling” with Dr. Jordan Shannon
- “If I seek help, I must be unworthy.”
This is a long-held stigma based in stereotypes about mental illness. It is a sign of strength to recognize one’s need for support.
- "If someone has a mental health disorder, they must be weak or inadequate."
This is another long-held stigma based in stereotypes about people living with mental health disorders, specifically psychotic disorders. Disorder simply means that the symptoms of the issue affect daily function (i.e., planning, walking, talking, eating, sleeping). Truth is that many folks living with a disorder continue to live healthy and well-ordered lives.
- “I have a strong support system. I do not need to seek therapy.”
This stigma still reflects a pathological view of counseling (i.e., I must have a weak support system to seek counseling). There is a benefit to allowing counseling to be a part of your support circle. People with strong support systems such as religious communities and friend groups have found therapy to be beneficial for personal goals.
- “I should only go to counseling if there is a major issue (i.e., suicidality, mental health disorder).”
You should feel empowered to engage in counseling at any time. Counseling is a collaboration meant to encourage you in your psychological, social, academic, career, and/or wellness-related goals.
- “If I go to counseling, I will be told what to do.”
Because counseling is a collaborative relationship, your counselor should only assist you in goal development. You can also have the autonomy to set goals in your work.
- "Counseling is only for the financially well off."
Affordability can present a real concern, but it should not be a barrier to seeking counseling. To support clients across varying socioeconomic backgrounds, counselors are ethically encouraged to offer sliding-scale rates.
- "Counseling is only long term."
Counseling can occur in short-term and long-term models.
- "Counseling is only for White people."
Though the histories and philosophies of mental health professions reflect Eurocentricism, many scholars have taken it upon themselves to develop multicultural philosophies, treatments, and theories to meet the needs of people across diverse social locations (race, ethnicity, gender, etc.). In practice, counselors are responsible for analyzing how their practices invite multicultural perspectives.
- "Men do not benefit from counseling."
This is another myth based in men’s adherence to overly stereotypical masculinity norms. Men have reported benefits from engaging in psychotherapy, such as greater self-awareness and reduction of psychological distress.1
- “I must know all about my issue before beginning counseling.”
The healing nature of psychotherapy is more about engaging in a therapeutic alliance with a counselor. This leads people to use the counseling relationship to explore the deeper meaning of presenting issues over time.
1 Vogel, D. L., Heimerdinger-Edwards, S. R., Hammer, J. H., & Hubbard, A. (2011). “Boys don’t
Cry”: Examination of the links between endorsement of masculine norms, self-stigma, and help-seeking attitudes for men from diverse backgrounds. Journal of Counseling Psychology, 58(3), 368-382. doi:10.1037/a0023688
News and events
On Jan. 20, 2022, the School of Education hosted an EdTalks series event: “Supporting Transgender and Gender Non-Binary Students.” Samantha King, (MSW, MEd), manager of education initiatives at the Gender and Sexuality Development Program at The Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia, discussed best practices for supporting transgender and gender non-binary youth in education settings. In her professional role, Samantha provides direct resources to families and supports transgender and gender expansive youth in school and community settings. Samantha collaborates with providers to raise their awareness of gender identity and works to improve gender inclusivity through trainings and policy support.
In our EdTalks series event on Feb. 17, 2022, participants learned about the impact of quality Holocaust education on students’ attitudes towards diversity, tolerance, and upstander behavior in the face of hate and intolerance, and the effect of this education on their development of critical thinking skills. Participants also learned about the Washington State-required “Best Practices” for teaching the lessons of the Holocaust, and how the Holocaust Center for Humanity and its many resources help prepare them, regardless of prior knowledge and teaching experience, to create such positive, necessary student learning outcomes.
Paul V. Regelbrugge is the director of education for the Holocaust Center for Humanity in Seattle, Washington. A former attorney, Paul taught for 14 years in inner city schools in Chicago, Illinois, and Buffalo, New York, as well as in Spokane and Kent, Washington. He is a United States Holocaust Memorial Museum Teacher Fellow, Powell Teacher Fellow, and Alfred Lerner Fellow; he is also the author of The Yellow Star House: The Remarkable Story of One Boy’s Survival in a Protected House in Hungary, and co-author of the brand-new graphic novel, More Than Any Child Should Know: A Kindertransport Story of the Holocaust.
The SOE Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Committee (DEI) will host a virtual Diversity Conference titled “It’s Our Time: Creating An Equitable and Inclusive Classroom for All” on March 19, 2022. The keynote speaker will be Rev. W. Tali Hairston, MAGL, director of community organizing, advocacy, and development at the Presbytery of Seattle. He currently directs the Presbytery of Seattle’s Lilly Endowment Thriving Congregations grant program.
This conference will be an avenue for Washington educators to discuss the current needs of K–12 schools and learn ways to support K–12 students appropriately in response to the current sociopolitical climate. The keynote presentation will address eradicating the labeling of BIPOC children, and other presenters will share research and/or expertise in trauma-informed practice and cultural humility, transforming public education to close the achievement gap, disrupting racism in family engagement, social-emotional learning, and many other critical topics. Details and registration here.
Dr. Grace Blum hosted two virtual workshops focused on practical teaching strategies that students can use in the classroom for their multi-lingual learners. The first workshop, focusing on primary-age students, was held on Tuesday, Jan. 25, and the secondary-level workshop was held on Friday, Jan. 28. The workshops encouraged thinking equitably about language acquisition and how language development must be supported in all disciplines
The SOE will be hosting our annual Family Engagement Resource Fair on April 21. The fair will include up to 12 community-based organizations who serve schools and understand the power of community-teacher collaboration. The teacher education program continues to work to strengthen connections between our curriculum and teacher candidate experiences regarding family and community engagement. For the past several years, all of our undergraduate and graduate students have completed various activities designed to promote family engagement, such as the Family Engagement Plan.
In mid-February, our students attended a programwide family panel. Our guests were parents and caregivers of K–12 students with a range of learning needs. They shared their stories about navigating the school system and challenges resulting from language barriers, misunderstandings of cultural values, and the overwhelming world of accommodations and services for students with disabilities. Our students walked away with strategies to promote welcoming and equitable partnerships with families.
Giving
Like you, we believe in our mission to engage the culture and change the world … starting in the classroom. That’s why SPU’s School of Education is always looking for new ways to help you connect with the future of education in our state and beyond. And there’s more than one way you can get involved. In fact, here are four ways to give.
On Point
Do you have news or know of any faculty, staff, or alumni that should be featured in the next issue? Please email On Point at fryettl@spu.edu