Dear all,

As the calendar year ends and we anticipate the holidays, I want to express again my gratitude for your steady and creative contributions to our core mission and to our ambitious goals. There have been so many large and small things this last semester that have fired my admiration and sustained my faith in the caliber and commitment of all of you – students, staff, academic professionals, clinical and adjunct instructors and faculty – including our venerable and dedicated emeritus faculty.

I was particularly inspired last week when I attended a panel discussion organized by Associate Dean for Research, Stafford Hood to showcase the wisdom of some of our colleagues who had won awards for their teaching, mentoring and supervision. The presentations delivered by Professors Cris Mayo, Kiel Christianson and Stacy Diamond underscored not only the type of scholar we recruit and grow in our College, but the fact that teaching and learning is at the heart of all we do – albeit from different angles – design, delivery, evaluation, testing, measurement, organization, politics, history, workforce and so much more. Our three colleagues spoke eloquently and passionately about the challenges of shepherding students through their own learning and professional journeys. They reflected on the human and emotional aspects of these tasks as well as the conditions for students to find their own voice and build on whatever foundations we provide through our courses, instruction and support.

Equally impressive was the poster session this week by Clinical Assistant Professor Adam Poetzel’s EDUC 102 class of freshmen, the James Scholars. The students shared with me their research findings answering questions related to student academic achievement, poverty, race, disability, native language, teacher quality, or school reform. The confidence and poise they expressed and the obvious mastery of their chosen topics, was simply outstanding.

I would like to take this opportunity to also note a number of other highlights this last semester that represented well our College’s identity and our trajectory. I do hope you have all had a chance to see a copy of our 2012 Annual Report. You can get a copy from Advancement or read it online. We have tried this year to pitch it at a more conceptual level and increased its production values. It certainly looks as vibrant and contemporary as our spirit. I have received a lot of positive comments. Please let us know what you think.

Foundation Week provided us with another opportunity to showcase the work of Professors Dorothy Espelage and Phil Rodkin whose expertise continues to be in high demand. The large number of visiting alumni that attended this session expressed great appreciation for what they learnt.

The annual visit by the Chancellor and Provost also provided us with an opportunity to familiarize them both with our achievements and capacity to contribute to their agendas. (See Chancellor-Provost Oct 19 2012) We are certainly very well aligned with both the Chancellor’s and Provost’s ambitions for our campus. We made a strong case for our distinctiveness, relevance and diversity. We also highlighted the talent in our College that can underpin the success in two of the key aspects of the Visioning Excellence agenda in which many of you contributed. (See slides 13 & 15)

The Campus-wide celebration of the Morrill Act allowed me, along with the Deans of ACES and LAS, to outline our vision of the future of the Land Grant University. My presentation focused on an exploration of the effects of digital ecologies. Clinical Associate Professor Johnell Bentz and her students also contributed to this celebration with a project showing how the Morrill Act and other legislation have impacted American education.

Another two milestones were reached this semester with the signing of the agreement by our Chancellor to formalize the Confucius Center that Professor Hua-Hua Chang has been championing. Second, Professor Ron Jacobs, the Director of our International Programs Office, stewarded the successful establishment of our Greater China Desk in partnership with our distinguished alumni Betty Chan, and the Yew Chung School of Shanghai. Lucinda Morgan is doing a fine job coordinating our activities there. She also was instrumental in organizing our latest China Study Tour for twenty of our undergraduates to explore China’s education systems. Lucinda secured funds not only from our College of Education but also was awarded $20,000 from the Freeman Undergrad Initiative Study Tour Grant provided by the Center for East Asian and Pacific Studies for this project. In fact our activities in the international arena are roaring ahead – thank you so much to all involved. Please visit the web site and note how this area is evolving.

Our 24th Student Recognition Brunch at the iHotel was as moving as always. Over 100 students were recognized in what was for all those who attended a most satisfying and rewarding event. Thank you to all who make donations that honor and support our students.

Professor Cameron McCarthy, in collaboration with his graduate students, organized a very stimulating, Globalizing Education Conference. The quality of the guest speakers and the student presentations attested to the expertise, rigor and thoughtfulness of those involved in the program and provided much information about the complex, fast changing and at times vexing, challenges of Higher Education all over the world.

And of course, I must mention the Youth Literature Festival, which hosted 17 authors in over 60 schools this year again reached thousand of young readers and aspiring writers. The festival day was very well attended including a visit from our Provost and our President’s wife and many of our faculty and their families, librarians, a growing number of members from our local communities and those who have sponsored this wonderful event.

Congratulations also to the following faculty and staff on their promotion:

• Chris Higgins, EPOL -promoted to associate professor with indefinite tenure;
• Karrie Shogren, Special Education – promoted to associate professor with indefinite tenure;
• Chris Mayo, EPOL – promoted to full professor;
• Katherine Ryan, Educational Psychology – promoted to full professor.
• Debra Morgan, Advancement – promoted to the position of Associate Director of development.

I would also like to share with you that Evelyn Grady from SAAO was admitted to Parkland College through the Adult Re-entry Center to pursue courses in Programming, Office Professionalism and Information Processing. I understand that she completed her first course ahead of time and with excellent results. It is gratifying to see our staff avail themselves of opportunities to improve their kills and qualifications

The following members of our community deserve special commendation:

• Professor Richard Anderson, who has entered his fiftieth year of service, remains one of our most distinguished and cited colleagues. Based on the SSCI, he led all educational researchers active at any time during the last half century in the number of papers cited 200 or more times. Over his first 49 years at the U of I, he has averaged an impressive 162 citations per year.
• Professor James Anderson, who is also much cited, has had a number of thought pieces appearing in campus publications on historic approaches to diversity in the USA. He has recently been appointed by the Chancellor to serve as her chief diversity adviser as she roles out a systematic program to address how our campus might better live up to its aspiration to be an inclusive community.
• Professor Anne Haas Dyson, another one of our highly ranked scholars, received the Early Literacy Educator of the Year Award from the National Council of Teacher Education.
• Graduate students who are following in the footsteps of their professors include, Royel M. Johnson, Ed.M.
2012-2012 who was elected as the 2012-2013 Vice- President of Administration of the National Black Graduate Student Association. And Janine Franklin who was elected as Vice-President of the Association’s Conference.
• Likewise, graduate students Ryen Nagle and Gloria Shenoy were honored for their in-process dissertations relating to community colleges.

Thank you to the following for securing research grants this last semester and thereby contributing to our rankings, enhanced profile and capacity to make a real educational difference in the world:

• William Trent – NSF
  
• Casey George-Jackson –  NSF
  
• Debra Bragg – ISBE, LUMINA & GATES Foundations
  
• Christopher Lubienski – ISBE
  
• Joseph Robinson –  ISBE
  
• Katherine Ryan – ISBE
  
• Don Hackman  – ISBE
  
• Kiel Chritianson – NSF
  
• Hedda Meafan Kaplansky – CRB, HICF
  
• James Halle – CRB
  
• Stacey Diamond – HICF
  
• Susan Fowler –  ISBE
• Evangeline Pianfetti – Champaign School District 4
• Patricia Brady/INCT – State Farm
• Lisa Monda-Amaya /CESU-  State Farm

I would like now like to congratulate and name those whose work has featured in College and campus news this last semester. Our communication team’s ability to capture the stories of our work and achievements is improving markedly so please go to our web site for more details. Thank you all and well done.

Faculty Mentioned in the UI Annual Report:

• David Huang — learning with video games
• Rebecca Ginsburg (then with Architecture) — Education Justice Project
• Matthew Thibeault (with School of Music, and 0% appt with COE) — his music education “ukelele” course

Faculty Featured in Campus News and Public Media for their Views, Scholarship, Awards and Publications:

• Nick Burbules
• Tim Cain
• Helen Neville
• Phil Rodkin
• Dorothy Espelage
• Joseph P. Robinson
• Dan Morrow
• Lillian Katz
• Susan Fowler
• Jean Mendoza
• Micki Ostrosky
• Lisa Monda-Amaya
• Debra Bragg
• Jennifer Delaney
• Bill Cope
• Rosa Milagros Santos
• Linda Harrera
• Adam Poetzel
• Gloriana Gonzalis
• Yoon Pak
• Chris Lubienski
• Keil Chistianson
• Tom Schwandt
• Cameron McCarthy
• Jennifer Delaney
• Ron Jacobs
• Rebecca Ginzburg
• Casey George Jackson
• Violet Harris
• Karrie Shogren
• Adrienne Dixson
• Peter Kuchinke
• Fouad Abd-El-Khalick

Alumni recognized in the news:

• Mary Lynn Boscardin
• Liz Jackson
• RoSuSusan Bartee
• Michael McKelvey
• Greg Johnson
• Stacy Bennet
• Freeman Hrabowski
• Timothy Eatman

Staff receiving recognition for their work:

• Ann Augspurger
• Michael Parrish
• Lucinda Morgan

Finally, thank you all for your ongoing kindness and support. I hope that the end of the year provides you some time to wind down and relax . Life and nature are both unpredictable – enjoy each moment that you can and make it meaningful.

The coming of a new year can be a time to take stock and recommit to those things that matter to you. I do hope that it turns out to be healthy, creative and fulfilling new year for each and every one of you.

Best wishes and happy holidays,

Dean Mary Kalantzis