— David Passmore, distinguished professor of workforce education and development, in May was invited to present "Recent trends affecting higher education in the United States" at Providence University in Taichung City, Taiwan, and "Celebrating art" at the TransWorld University photography awards ceremony. In June, he presented "Artificial intelligence in education and its impacts on learning interactions" at EdTech 2017 in Sligo, Ireland.
— Tiffany Benner has been promoted to the position of certification assistant in the Advising and Certification Center, effective June 1. Benner will work with Cathy Hipple in this role until Hipple retires at the end of June, after more than 20 years of service to the College of Education.
— William Diehl, assistant professor of education, recently shared his ideas for how to develop successful online courses in an article in Inside Higher Ed.
— Jessica Dirsmith, instructor of school psychology, co-authored "Practice what we teach: Supporting positive behavior in our schools," which was recently published on statecollege.com.
— Erica Frankenberg, associate professor of educational leadership and demography, spoke with Mother Jones magazine and City Lab regarding a new report she co-authored that discusses the increase of racially segregated schools in the south. She also was quoted by The Washington Post in an article about segregation in pre-schools in Washington, D.C. and by Philly.com in a story about the impacts charter schools have on racial divides.
— Kevin Kinser, head of the Department of Education Policy Studies, was quoted in an article about the Internet in China, in a publication in the Netherlands.
— Scott Metzger, associate professor of education, wrote an article for The Conversation regarding the use of movies to teach history to K-12 students.
— Dana Mitra, professor and director of graduate studies in the Department of Education Policy Studies, appeared on the Matt Townsend Show and addressed the topic of building jobs in the Rust Belt. She also had a blog published at Students at the Center Hub on "A Challenge to Our Community: Make Connections Across Disciplines."
— Paul Morgan, professor of education policy studies, presented at the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering and Medicine conference on June 6 in Washington, D.C., about science and mathematics achievement of children with or at risk for disabilities. Morgan also spoke with Education Talk Radio on May 31 about his research on racial disparities in disability identification in U.S. schools.
— David Post, professor of educational theory and policy and comparative and international education, has been recognized for 25 years of service to the University.
Obituaries
— Jack Gido, an adjunct instructor who taught WF ED 405 Project Management for Professionals for many years, died May 9. He also was director of PennTAP and then director of Economic and Workforce Development at Penn State from 1991 until his retirement in 2007. More information: http://kochfuneralhome.com/tribute/details/1437/John-Gido/obituary.html
— Yoshimitsu Takei, professor of Education Theory and Policy in the College of Education for many years, died Jan. 30, at the age of 84.
— Drucie Weirauch, a research technologist with the Institute for the Study of Adult Literacy and Goodling Institute for Research in Family Literacy from July 2000 until her retirement in June 2015, died May 21, at the age of 66. More information: http://www.heintzelmanfuneralhome.com/book-of-memories/2936957/Weirauch-Drucilla/obituary.php
"Around the College" highlights accomplishments by faculty, staff and students in the College of Education, including publications; research presentations at conferences and workshops; and awards, grants and fellowships. Please share your news with us and your colleagues by emailing edrelations@psu.edu.