An overflow crowd gathered in LMU’s Ahmanson Auditorium to listen to Shane P. Martin, dean and professor of the LMU School of Education, deliver his eighth annual Convocation address. This year’s address, titled “Transforming Education: Building a Community of Ignatian Inquiry and Impact” highlighted recent accomplishments of LMU’s faculty, staff, students and alumni.
Dean Martin positioned the School of Education as a different kind of school of education, one rooted in the Ignatian tradition of community, inquiry and impact, and committed to nothing less than setting the world on fire by transforming the lives of youth.
Dean Martin noted that the SOE faculty is extremely successful in teaching, scholarship and service; they publish critically acclaimed books, win national awards and serve in leadership roles in state and national organizations. The SOE faculty also earns prestigious grants and contracts, raising more than five million dollars in sponsored research and contracts during the 2010-2011 fiscal year.
“SOE reached a record graduate enrollment in 2011 of more than 1,200 students, showing the continued strength of our programs,” said Dean Martin. Highlights include the LMU/Teach For America Partnership’s growth and impact, Chinese Bilingual Teacher Education’s citation as a model program by the federal STARTALK initiative, Catholic Inclusion’s receipt of a national award, School Psychology’s new Education Specialist degree, Counseling’s new set of specializations and the Charter School Leadership Academy’s unique program and successful symposium. Notably, Ana F. Ponce, a candidate in LMU’s Ed.D. for Educational Leadership in Social Justice program, was named to a list of the world’s seven most powerful educators in Forbes.
“SOE centers and initiatives continue to have an impact locally and nationally,” remarked Martin. The LMU Family of Schools recently expanded to include four area Catholic schools to the seven public schools in FOS. The program now serves more than 6,000 students in our community. LMU’s Center for Catholic Education continues to strengthen and support Catholic schools through leadership development, teacher preparation and research and outreach. The Center’s recent study of Catholic schools has garnered media attention at the local and national levels. The Center for Equity for English Learners continues its important work in support of California’s 1.5 million English Learners and the nation’s 3.5 million English Learners through research, advocacy, professional development, speakers and resources. Finally, the Center for Math and Science Teaching continues to achieve significant gains in student performance in math and science. The center just added a new Teacher Leader certificate and continues their partnership in the Los Angeles Math and Science Residency, funded in part by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation.
Dean Martin also highlighted SOE’s capital campaign, which was at 92% of its $20 million goal on Nov. 7, 2011. SOE had raised $18,298,422 with the campaign ending May 31, 2012.
In closing, two students and an alum shared their experiences in the LMU School of Education, delivering remarks on the personal and professional impact the school has had on their lives and work. Speakers included Craig Bouma, a current Ed.D. student and science teacher at Loyola High School; Raquel Michel ’08, a graduate of the counseling program and a counselor at Animo Charter High School within the Green Dot Public Schools; and Luis Arevalo, who was an undergraduate at LMU, is now in the SOE graduate-level teacher preparation program, and teaches first grade at Celerity Dyad Charter School.
