Jennie Snyder, Superintendent of Piner Olivet Unified School District has been awarded a Circle of Excellence Award by the School of Education's Educational Leadership faculty. Jennie has served the district as Superintendent for two years. She is an alumna of the CANDEL Ed.D program, a joint doctoral program that Sonoma State offers in collaboration with UC Davis. Dr. Paul Porter, Co-Director of CANDEL describes Jennie as an outstanding educator and thoughtful leader who, since becoming Superintendent has "already begun to change and shape the culture of the district, stressing collaboration, team work, and highest standards."

At a recent visit to her office I had the opportunity to speak with Superintendent Snyder about her work and her experience in the CANDEL program. As a doctoral candidate, she appreciated the time and space for reflection, and the collaboration with a cohort of fellow students with a diverse set of experiences and backgrounds. In her role at Piner-Olivet she sees tremendous challenges ahead, yet is inspired by the opportunity to collaborate with teachers and administrators in an effort to find creative solutions for her schools and community. In the end she believes that each student in her district is entitled to an education that sparks their natural curiosity, builds on their capacity to learn, inspires their imagination and provides opportunities for them to express their ideas to their fullest. Jennie Snyder is receiving the Circle of Excellence Award because she is an accomplished scholar and gifted administrator. She is the kind of child-centered, collaborative, reflective and thoughtful leader that can make those goals come to fruition.

The SSU Educational Leadership Program will host a series of Information Meetings in May for educators interested in earning Administrative Services Credentials, Preliminary and Clear Credentials and Master's Degree in Educational Leadership.

• Sonoma Valley Unified School District
  El Verano Elementary School Library
  18606 Riverside Drive - Sonoma CA, 95476
  Wednesday, May 2, 4:30 p.m.
• Napa Valley Unified School District
  Napa Valley Adult Education, Room #15
  Monday, May 14, 2012, 4:30 p.m.
• Solano County Office of Education
  Wednesday May 16th 4:00 pm

The meetings will provide Information on how SSU's Master's Degree in Educational Leadership and/or Preliminary or Clear Administrative Services Credential Programs will prepares candidates for a position of leadership in K-12 educational settings. Public, private and charter educators welcome. Prospective candidates will receive information on the following topics:

The ASC Preliminary and Clear Credentials and Master's Program

Information about the Administrative Intern Credential

Requirements for admission and how and when to apply

Now accepting applications for Fall, 2012 admission.
Application Deadline: May 30, 2012

For more information visit the Educational Leadership Programs webpage, or contact Dr. Rod Buchignani at buchignr@sonoma.edu or Dr. Viki Montera at montera@sonoma.edu

On April 25, 2012 the School of Education made a public presentation to 2011's Elliott Scholars: Christina Towner, Linsey Gannon, and Chris Berg. The presentation was part of the annual School of Education Recognition and Awards Ceremony. Recipients were selected for their scholarship and success in the classroom.


The F. George Elliott Scholarship Fund is an endowment of over $250,000 to the Sonoma State University School of Education. The endowment each year awards two scholarships for graduate study at Sonoma State University; one for an outstanding student teacher, and the other for a Santa Rosa City School District middle school, junior high, or high school teacher. Recipients of these scholarships will be known as Elliott Scholars.


Christina Towner is a student who came to the Special Education Credential Program at Sonoma State University in the Fall 2009 term, and she completed her Education Specialist Credential from Sonoma State in 2011. She is an outstanding student, praised for maintaining her strong academic record at Sonoma State while also holding a full-time teaching position as a Special Education Intern. Currently, Christina teaches a Special Day Class comprised of students who have mild to moderate disabilities at Altamira Middle School in Sonoma, CA. According to her University Support Provider, Barbara (Bobbie) Russell, Christina has created an exemplary positive learning environment for all of her students. As an Intern, Christina quickly adopted many of the core practices necessary to become an effective special educator. With recommendations from faculty, her dedication, preparation and passion make Christina Towner the perfect recipient of the Elliott Exemplary Student Teaching Scholarship this year.


Professor George Elliott taught Education at Sonoma State University from 1968-1992.  He worked for many years supervising student teachers in middle schools and junior and senior high schools in the Santa Rosa City School District. He was dedicated to quality teacher education, and worked closely with many master teachers and school administrators in Santa Rosa schools to achieve that end. This scholarship is his legacy to the middle level, junior high, and senior high teachers of the Santa Rosa City School District.


The Elliott Fellowship for Professional Renewal is an award open to all Santa Rosa City School District middle school, junior high, and senior high teachers who have completed from three to nine years teaching in the Santa Rosa City School District. It provides the recipient a two-semester scholarship in the amount of part- or full-time enrollment fees plus an additional twenty percent toward fees for books and supplies. For the award year 2011, two recipients were chosen to receive the Elliott Fellowship for Professional Renewal. The first award goes to Chris Berg, a physics teacher at Montgomery High School. And the second recipient for The Elliott Fellowship for Professional Renewal is Linsey Gannon, Assistant Principal at Lawrence Cook Middle School. Linsey is also now enrolled in the Master's Degree program of Educational Leadership at the Sonoma State University School of Education.

The School of Education at Sonoma State University successfully completed its national and state accreditation review with a stellar performance that the university president described as "hitting a home run with the bases loaded." The School of Education prepares teachers and principals for the North Bay Region.

"These are a remarkable group of faculty and students," said Gerry Giordano, a professor in education management at the University of North Florida who was the head of the 13 member review panel which said the School had exceeded both state and national standards.

This includes all of the California Commission on Teacher Credentialing Program Standards for all of its programs and all six National Council of Accreditation for Teacher Education (NCATE) Standards.

Giordano said that the School stood out because of "the extraordinary faculty and students that it had recruited," "highly imaginative community-based programs," and a "culture in which candidates and faculty members interacted outside as well as inside university classrooms."

The team specifically commended School programs where social justice permeated every aspect of every program as evidenced by eloquent and inspiring testimonials that local teacher candidates provided.

The re-accreditation was extensive, said Carlos Ayala, interim Dean of the School of Education.

Since the fall of 2011, the expert panel had reviewed the School's website, an exhaustive repository of documentation for all of the teacher, counseling, school administrator and masters programs, sifting through evidence from the last three years of program implementation.

In order to verify the electronic reports and evidence, the expert team then visited campus. While at Sonoma State, they interviewed nearly 473 teachers, faculty, staff, students, mentor teachers, counselors, school principals, superintendents and community members; sifted through budgets, meeting minutes and assessment results; and visited Roseland Elementary School where School of Education prepared teachers, counselors and principals work.

Signficantly, the review panel did not find any "areas of concern" nor did they identify any "areas for improvement" in any of the programs and are proposing that the maximum accreditation period of seven years be awarded.

The panel specifically gave the School of Education four commendations in the following areas: teacher candidates completing programs learn to develop highly creative learning activities, learn to assess student learning, exhibit professional dispositions, and employ pedagogy aligned with state standards.

The review panel will present its findings to their respective governing boards for those boards to take final action in April for state and in October for the national review.

Article written by Jean Wasp, University Affairs

What does the President of the California State Board of Education think about the current state of the educational system? Dr. Michael W. Kirst delivers his overarching vision for California to emerge once again as a national leader in education from 7-8:30 p.m. on Thursday, March 22 in the Cooperage as a part of the Andrea Neves and Barton Evans Social Justice Lecture Series.

His talk - "California K-12 Education: Challenges And Solutions" - addresses the current state of affairs of a state public school system stretched to the limit but aspiring to greatnesss once again.

Kirst is serving his second term as President of the State Board of Education and is also Professor Emeritus of Education at Stanford University.

Kirst's aims to rebuild and re-imagine the public education system through a set of policies that include stabilizing education funding and increase local flexibility,implementing the Common Core Standards, strengthening the teacher workforce, building district and school leadership capacity, supporting innovation, but ensure accountability, facilitating the best uses of technology and ensuring that all students are included.

"Our goal is to dramatically improve the academic achievement and attainment of all students, regardless of proficiency, but with targeted attention to raising achievement and opportunities low income and minority students," he says.

A prolific writer, he has authored ten books. As a policy generalist, he has published articles on school finance politics, curriculum politics, intergovernmental relations, as well as education reform policies.

While his early work focused primarily on k-12 policy and politics, much of his recent work has focused on college preparation and college success at broad access postsecondary institutions that are open enrollment, or accept all qualified applicants.

The disconnections between k-12 and postsecondary education cause much of the low college completion rates, he says. Kirst's research demonstrates that only K-12 and postsecondary education working together to improve preparation and college readiness will increase college completion.

Before joining the Stanford faculty in 1969, Kirst held several positions with the federal government, including Staff Director of the U.S. Senate Subcommittee on Manpower,
Employment and Poverty, and Director of Program Planning for Elementary and Secondary Education at the U.S. Office of Education.

He received his Ph.D. in political economy and government from Harvard. His latest books are "From High School to College" with Andrea Venezia (2004) and "Political Dynamics of American Education" (2009).

Kirst was appointed in 2011 as the President of the California State Board of Education for the second time. He also was President from 1977 to 1981. He received his bachelor's degree in economics from Dartmouth College, his M.P.A. in government and economics from Harvard University, and his Ph.D. in political economy and government from Harvard.


For further information about the event, contact Pam Van Halsema, School of Education, (707) 664-2132, pamela.vanhalsema@sonoma.edu

Sonoma State Associated Students Productions welcomes political analyst and intellectual Dr. Marc Lamont Hill to Sonoma State University on Wednesday, February 8, 2012. He will be presenting a free workshop at 3PM in the Multi-Purpose Room in the Student Union and will lecture at 7:30PM in the Cooperage.

Dr. Marc Lamont Hill is one of the leading hip-hop generation intellectuals in the country. His work, which covers topics such as hip-hop culture, politics, sexuality, education and religion, has appeared in numerous journals, magazines, books, and anthologies. Dr. Hill has lectured widely and provides regular commentary for media outlets like NPR, Washington Post, Essence Magazine, and New York Times and has been a regular guest on CNN, MSNBC, and Larry King Live. He has recently become the host of the nationally syndicated show Our World with Black Enterprise.

In Fall 2009, he joined the faculty of Columbia University as Associate Professor of Education at Teachers College. He also holds an affiliated faculty appointment in African American Studies at the Institute for Research in African American Studies at Columbia University.

His workshop, "Why Black Fraternities and Sororities Still Matter," will take place at 3PM in the Multi-Purpose Room in the Student Union. As we enter the 21st century, many people question the role, purpose, and function of Black Greek Letter Organizations (BGLOs). In this lecture, Marc Lamont Hill (a member of Kappa Alpha Psi Fraternity Inc.) argues that Black fraternities and sororities still play a critical role in the Black community. He takes on some of the key issues and challenges faced by BGLOs such as hazing, political engagement, and institution building. Rather than merely spotlighting problems, Dr. Hill also offers concrete solutions and shares his vision for building and sustaining strong 21st-century Black fraternities and sororities. FREE

In his lecture, "1st Class Jails, 2nd Class Schools," Dr. Hill will be speaking about the how much financial focus is given to our jail system while our education system is continually on the chopping block.   He will acknowledge the large number of poor and /or minority people currently incarcerated, which he attributes in large part to a War on Drugs going on since 1984.  Dr. Hill believes that democracy needs people to ask tough critical questions in terms of how to get American society on track to educationally balanced country.

This lecture will take place at 7:30PM in Cooperage. Tickets are free for SSU students and faculty and $10 for general admission. Pick up yours today in the Student Union or order by phone at 664-2382.

On December 8, 2011, the Pre-Service Teacher Technology Showcase provided SSU School of Education pre-service teachers and recent credential students in their first years of teaching with an opportunity to present how they have used or plan to use technology in the classroom to support students and student learning. The Showcase was run like a poster session at a conference and allowed students to share with attendees their unit plans, lessons, or activities that incorporated new media technologies.

The Showcase was created out of a project supported by Google and developed in a collaborative project at the Google Faculty Institute. Three CSU campuses explored online tools and how they are integrated into classroom projects. A special emphasis was placed on geospatial technologies for multidisciplinary, locally relevant lessons for K-12. Cal State Bakersfield, San Diego State and SSU each took part in the collaboration, with Dr. Jessica K. Parker directing the efforts here at Sonoma State.  Students and recent graduates from the Multiple Subject Program, the Single Subject Credential Program, Education Specialist Program presenters, with some demonstrations offered by School of Education Masters students and faculty.

The goal of the Showcase was to highlight how our novice (pre) teachers were integrating technology in their work with students. The focus was not just on the technological tools the teachers are employing but also on the content objectives as well: how are they creating a better learning environment for students through the integration of this technology? We also offered "how-to" stations on Google Earth, Google Docs, and iPad apps for attendees interested in learning about new, cool tools for teaching.

Some examples of the 13 student presentations included a middle school science teacher using Google Maps to highlight plate tectonics and numerous earthquakes; a high school history teacher employing a Flickr gallery to analyze Russian propaganda during the Cold War; a middle school English teacher relying on blogs to stimulate student discussion about students' outside reading books; a high school math teacher using Google Earth to have students learn about the Pythagorean theorem by measuring distance; and special education pre-service teachers using an iPad app called proloquo2go to promote student communication.

Watch the two videos here and hear our students talk about their projects.

On Tuesday, November 29, the School of Education will hold the second annual Cognate Fair in Schulz 1121 from 6:00-7:45 PM . The Cognate Fair is an informal way for students, faculty, teachers and Sonoma State community members informally interact with Master's Degree candidates about their research, through a poster session-style event. The open house event will include project presentations by Juhwan Kim, in the Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages (TESOL) program concentration; Shawn Rosales and Jonathan Wright, in the Curriculum, Teaching and Learning (CTL) program concentration; and Jennifer Cantrell and Emily Walz in the Early Childhood Education program concentration.

The cognate is one of three pathways to completion of the Master's Degree in Education program in the School of Education. The cognate project (e.g., professional article, video, website, field-based product) is a significant undertaking through which students connect their cognate course of study with the program concentration, and/or work in the field. Projects arise out of candidates' goals and professional interests and may take virtually any form. The project may address, for example, implications of the cognate course of study for the classroom, or be reflections on teaching practices involving the use of new technologies, or the application of scholarly research and educational theory in a particular setting. A written reflection that includes the theoretical context for the project must be included, and students must present the completed project to their three-member committee in a public forum. The Cognate Fair provides the perfect setting for that public forum, which not only fulfills the degree requirement but also allows others not in the program to hear about the creative,and stimulating research with which our students are engaged.

Teaching English in another country is becoming a popular post-graduation career option, one that is exciting, rewarding and even life-changing. The School of Education TESOL (Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages) Masters Degree Program is joining with the English Department to host an Informational Panel Discussion about Teaching English Abroad. The event will take place in Schulz 3001 on Wednesday, November 16, 2011 from 5:00-6:30 PM. This event is free and open to community.

Panelists will include SSU students and graduates who have traveled and have lived around the world while teaching English.  They will talk about their personal experiences and answer questions.  Faculty will be on hand to discuss what programs SSU offers to prepare student for teaching English overseas, what countries are looking for English teachers, and what qualifications are necessary for getting a good position. 
For more information contact Greta Vollmer in the English Department, or Karen Grady in the CSSE Department.

Teaching literacy to middle school kids means a whole lot more than reading books and writing papers for the students in Laura Bradley's English classes at Kenilworth Junior High.  The lessons in this classroom are applied to a 21st-century media and technology environment. Although this generation of middle schoolers have grown up with computers, Bradley has discovered that they needed instruction to know how to use technical tools appropriately.  Bradley  teaches essential reading and writing skills through blogging and writing their blogs keeps them engaged.  Laura notes, "This simple shift from paper to internet is a powerful strategy for improving students' writing, reading and analysis. For example, an online blog allows students to 'pass through' classroom walls and collaborate with peers in other classrooms, schools and even countries."  

Bradley, who is currently a Masters Degree candidate in the Curriculum, Teaching and Learning Educational Technology program in the School of Education, was recently awarded a grant to help purchase laptop computers for her classroom. The $15,000 Major Impact Grant from the Petaluma Education Foundation is awarded annually to innovative projects of "extraordinary scope, reach or longevity".  The news of Bradley's grant was recently featured online in the Petaluma 360 blog: http://town.blogs.petaluma360.com/10107/petaluma-educational-foundation/