It is my pleasure to welcome you to the Nazareth College School of Education website. Here you will find information about our graduate and undergraduate academic programs, as well as information about teacher certification and other school-wide activities.

The School of Education is currently engaged in an exciting reorganization of its academic structure. Four new academic departments have been created: Department of Inclusive Childhood Education, Department of Adolescence Education, Department of Language, Literacy, and Technology, and Department of Social and Psychological Foundations. The website will be updated soon to reflect this new organizational structure.

The School of Education is also searching to fill four new tenure-track faculty positions for the 2008-2009 academic year. Please see http://www.naz.edu/dept/hr/postings/faculty.html for additional information on each position.

Nazareth College has a long and distinguished history of preparing outstanding teachers, and we take great pride in continuing this tradition. We encourage you to learn more about our community by perusing the website and by posing additional questions about the kinds of educational experiences that we offer in the School of Education. We look forward to responding to your questions and comments.

Sincerely,

Timothy Glander
Dean, School of Education

The goals of the School of Education are inextricably interwoven with the liberal arts philosophy, traditions, and mission of Nazareth College; therefore, the mission of the School of Education is to prepare teachers who are educated in the liberal arts and committed to a life guided by intellectual, moral and ethical values. To carry out its mission, the School of Education:

• Demonstrates the liberal arts' contribution to supporting and enhancing professional preparation.
• Recruits faculty who support the department's goals, are sensitive to the needs of individual students, committed to teaching and scholarship, and connect practice to theory.
• Provides curricula that challenge students to high academic achievement and prepare them to become ethical and reflective teachers.
• Advances its students' intellectual development necessary for critical thinking, problem-solving, and effective communication.
• Promotes respect for diversity through multicultural study and instruction, diverse field placements, and a commitment to recruit a more diverse faculty and student population.
• Employs technology to extend the professional expertise of both faculty and students.
• Serves the community's children and families.
• Supports dynamic collaboration between its faculty and the broader community of schools, agencies and cultural institutions for mutual professional growth.

Claims of Student Learning:

1. are competent in the subject matter that they will teach and are knowledgeable about the corresponding NYS standards and standards of their respective professional organizations.
2. have gained a liberal education and demonstrate competence with the tools of the liberal arts (e.g., critical thinking, aesthetic appreciation, intellectual curiosity, engagement with moral/ethical issues)
3. have the skills, knowledge, and dispositions to teach all children in varying educational contexts (e.g., in urban/suburban/rural schools; in inclusive/self-contained classrooms; via multiple pedagogical approaches).
4. are advocates for the profession as well as for the children and families with whom they work.
5. demonstrate effective oral and written communication skills.
6. demonstrate the ability and willingness to critically reflect on their own beliefs and practices.
7. are caring and committed professionals.
8. understand that schooling is a social construction affected by cultural, historical, and political forces.