College of Education

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In the College of Education Spotlight:

College of Education Scholarship Opportunity:

USF Sarasota-Manatee College of Education is proud to announce that we are accepting applications for the McCracken Educators Scholarship program for the Fall 2010. The goal of the scholarship program is to encourage undergraduate and graduate students who are residents of Manatee County to actively pursue degrees and careers in the field of education K-12. This scholarship is valued up to $2500.00 and is awarded on a competitive basis to the most qualified applicants. Meeting minimum qualifications does not guarantee receiving a scholarship.

Award Criteria:

1. Submission of FAFSA and Statement of Financial Need to demonstrate financial need.

2. A minimum cumulative grade point average: undergraduate applicants= 2.5; graduate student applicants=3.0

3. Evidence of leadership position(s) and community service activities.

4. Resident of Manatee County

5. Enrolled in the University of South Florida Sarasota-Manatee and accepted into the College of Education.

6. This scholarship is restricted to students preparing for positions in education K-12.

Scholarship Policies:

1. Award Period-$500.00 per semester for up to 5 semesters (including summer) over a 3-year period.

2. Allocation-scholarship applied toward tuition for USF Sarasota-Manatee courses (including USF S-M online offerings) only. Must be enrolled in 6 hours minimum.

3. Students must maintain a cumulative USF GPA for eligibility over the award period (see award criteria)

4. Scholarship recipients who graduate with a degree in education from USF S-M shall be recognized at commencement and in various publications.

Please visit this link to apply: http://www.sarasota.usf.edu/Academics/COEDU/McCrackenScholarship.php

Faculty News:

The College of Education congratulates the following faculty members for their recent achievements:

Dr. Lynn McBrien (Pyschology and Social Foundations), Dr. Phyllis Jones (Special Education), and Rui Cheng, coauthored a recent publication about the benefits and challenges expressed by USF Sarasota-Manatee students responding to a survey following a course taught via Elluminate Live!. Link to publication.

Dr.Jennifer Mariano who was selected to participate in the 2009-2010 Florida Campus Compact Engaged Scholarship Fellows program, and to Dr.Judy Carr who co-authored Improving Standards-Based Learning: A Process Guide for Educational Leaders, which was published by Corwin Press.

Drs. Liz Larkin and G. Pat Wilson for publishing "Reading Bigs: An Intergenerational Literacy Mentoring Program," a chapter in a book entitled, Literacy Tutoring That Works.

More...

Graduate School Newsletters

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Announcements/Important Dates:

CALL FOR PAPERS/PRESENTATIONS: “THE VALUE AND EVOLUTION OF STORY”

THE FOURTH ANNUAL CHILDREN’S LITERATURE SYMPOSIUM

The University of South Florida Sarasota-Manatee

FEBRUARY 20, 2010

DEADLINE FOR SUBMISSION OF PROPOSALS: December 1, 2009

NOTIFICATION OF ACCEPTANCE: December 15, 2009

Keynote Addresses:

Dr. Eric Tribunella – University of Southern Mississippi
Dr. Lance Weldy – Francis Marion University

Long before I became a writer, I was a listener. On hot summer evenings our family sat on the porch and listened to my grandmother tell a hair-raising ghost story, or watched my mother dramatize a Dunbar poem. But it was always a special treat when my grandfather took the stage...it is through me that my family's storytelling legacy lives on.... (McKissack, 1986)

Each year, the University of South Florida Sarasota-Manatee organizes a symposium centered on issues related to children’s literature. The overarching goal of these symposia is to gather expertise in ways to "engage a generation of readers." The Children’s Literature Symposium provides a program through which participants learn about authors and illustrators of children’s books, about the process of composing and writing stories, about the ways books can be promoted, and about contemporary issues that affect children’s literacy and literature. With an audience of professionals in library/media science, literacy studies, and education, as well as university students and local community members, the symposium aims to engage in scholarly and pedagogical discussions about children’s literature.

Stories are "a way of knowing" (Bishop, 2008) through which we understand the world and ourselves. Robert Coles (1989) writes that it is through telling stories of ourselves that we define our truths. But, who reads, listens to and writes stories? Some stories are deemed appropriate for children and others for adults, yet the line is obscure. Literature long read by adults finds itself in the hands of children either in original form or through retellings of the tale – and tales written for children are often embraced by or retold for adults. With the advent of the Internet and fanfiction, the line of authorship of stories is fuzzy: story lines change, characters morph, and books become movies, music videos, and more.

This year, the symposium is inviting proposals from children’s book authors, story tellers, educators, scholars, critics, librarians, graduate students, and publishers for presentations that address shifts and developments in traditional genres of literature, explore new and emerging (sub-)genres in children’s and adolescent literature, or the blurring lines between "children’s" and "adult" literature. Through this symposium, we seek to enrich understandings of the history of stories as well as evolutions in and of literature for participating librarians, classroom and pre‐service teachers, and the community more generally.

We invite abstracts (of approximately 500 words) for ninety‐minute interactive sessions or individual/panel presentations treating critical or pedagogical concerns in children’s literature. While all proposals will be considered, preference will be given to those which focus on most clearly with the conference theme. This year’s theme is intentionally broad to allow for papers that explore genres (i.e., folklore, series fiction) or a specific text, as well as presentations that draw connections between literature and media and culture (i.e., film, television, toys). Proposals must be sent electronically to one of the symposium co‐chairs: Dr. Thomas Crisp (tcrisp@sar.usf.edu) or Dr. G. Pat Wilson (gpwilson@sar.usf.edu) on or before December 1, 2009. Receipt of proposals will be confirmed via email within a few days of submission. Proposals will be evaluated through a blind review process by the symposium planning committee and authors of accepted proposals will receive notification via email on or before December 15, 2009. For more information, contact Thomas Crisp or G. Pat Wilson at the email addresses listed above.

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For a listing of the Florida Educator Accomplished Practices (APs): Competencies for Teachers of the Twenty-First Century click here

Information about Florida education jobs:

1. Teachers-Teachers: in an ongoing effort to recruit qualified education personnel to all Florida public and charter schools, the FLDOE is continuing their partnership with this web-based, nationwide recruitment service where employers can post available positions and educators can post their resumes.

2. FLDOE Teach in Florida : this site provides assistance to educators, potential educators and school districts including the areas of recruitment, recognition, preparation and professional development.

Spring 2010 College of Education New Grad Student Orientation

Unable to Attend? Click the link below to download brochure

***Grad Orientation Brochure***

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Transition Point Project Meetings (MA Reading and MA Elementary Education students)

Spring 2010-TBA

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Information Sessions - (Info and RSVP)

Gear up for Grad School January 23, 2010, 9:00-3:00 pm

Lunch & Learn February 19, 2010, 12-1:30 pm

Dine & Discover March 4, 2010, 5:30-7:00 pm

Lunch & Learn June 3, 2010, 12-1:30 pm