News and Events 
Thanks in large part to an accomplished faculty and leading research on today’s high-profile educational issues, Regent University has a national presence and a growing influence in the world of education. The following is a small selection of the current news unfolding in the School of Education at Regent University.
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Supporting Our Schools
Throughout the academic year Regent's graduate School of Education (SOE) looks for intentional ways of supporting the hard-working teachers and administrators that are in our classrooms, schools and central offices. These incredible men and women are directly affecting the lives of students, and we want to show our support in any way possible. The SOE is proud to provide annual initiatives that support our schools. Learn more >>
Student & Alumni News
Educational Specialist Graduate Named NPS 2013 Teacher of the Year
Congratulations to Educational Specialist (Ed.S.) graduate and Sherwood Forest Elementary Teacher, Tamara Smith-Moyler, who was named the Norfolk Public Schools (NPS) 2013 Teacher of the Year.
SOE Graduate Wins Apps4VA Educator Award
SOE Graduate, Kendall Nicholson, was named the winner in the educator category of Apps4VA HAC4EDU Challenge. Nicholson was recognized in the educator category for guiding all fifteen of his students through the process of accessing the data available of the Apps4VA site, and then meeting the requirements of the competition in way that was engaging and meaningful for his students.
Learn more >>
SOE Graduate Promoted to Leadership Position with International Ministry
SOE Ed.D. Graduate, Dr. Adam Focht, was recently promoted to National Director for Precept Ministries Israel. In his new role, he will oversee the daily running of the organization as well as providing representation of Precept Ministries International in Israel, meeting and building relationships with existing group leaders and students, developing opportunities to establish people in God's Word in Israel, and encouraging organizational relationships within Israel to support the expansion of the Ministry.
Alumni Appointed Provost
Congratulations to Hank Kelly, Ed.D. Graduate, who is currently serving as Provost at Ohio Christian University.
SOE Alumni wins 2012 Milken Educator Award
Congratulations to LaKeshia Ames, SOE Alumni, who won the 2012 Milken Educator Award. Learn more>>
SOE Student Receives Honor at Virginia Student Services Conference
Jack Vitaliz, current student in the M.Ed. in Student Affairs program, presented at the Virginia Student Services conference in November 2012 where his program was awarded Best Program. He will go on to represent the Virginia Association of College and University Housing Officers (VACUHO) at the SouthEastern Association of Housing Officers (SEAHO) conference in early 2013. Jack says he is "so blessed and proud to represent the Regent M.Ed. in Student Affairs program!" Learn more>>
SOE Graduate Appointed Administrative Intern
Congratulations to Lauren Gay, M.Ed. in Educational Leadership Graduate, who was recently appointed as an administrative intern at Bayside Middle School in Virginia Beach.
SOE Alumni Runs Worldwide Ministry
SOE alumni, Elizabeth Youmans, has worldwide ministry with her Christian education curriculum. Chrysalis International, Inc. is a non-profit educational institute that disciples Christian leaders around the world who are called to break the cycle of ignorance and the poverty of ideas in the Church by teaching the knowledge and application of Biblical principles for education and self-government to transform the culture for Christ. Learn more >>
SOE Alumni, Graduate Students & Faculty Present at
American Institute of Higher Education
Dr. Tera Simmons (2006), Naomi Ludwig (Ed.D. Candidate), Clarinda Cole (Ph.D. Student), & Dr. Linda Grooms presented our research at the American Institute of Higher Education in Niagara Falls, NY in mid-October. Presentation topics included "Training Leaders Across the Generational Divides Through Online Learning," "Resilient Leadership Preparation," and "Exploring the Relationship Between K-12 Public School Teachers Conceptions of Assessment and Their Classroom Achievement Confidence Levels." All were very warmly welcomed into the academy, and we look forward to hearing more from them in the near future.
SOE Graduate Student & Faculty Member Partner with Barnes & Noble
Graduate student, Heather Newton, and faculty member, Dr. Jenny Sue Flannagan, have been asked to participate with Barnes and Noble at the Embrace the Culture festival on September 8, 2012. They will be doing a book reading and various science activities: exploring the color black, manipulating the design of a sound sandwich to see how changes can affect the pitch of the sound, and exploring bubbles.
SOE Graduate Appointed Executive Vice President of National Bible College and Seminary
On August 8, 2012, Dr. Hope H. Murphy, graduate of the Ed.D. in Adult Education, was appointed Executive Vice President of National Bible College and Seminary. Congratulations to Dr. Murphy!
SOE Current Student Appointed Associate Pastor
Transitioning from his private school teaching position in Pennsylvania, Toussaint Williams, current Ph.D. in Character Education student, is the newly appointed Associate Pastor of the Oakwood University Seventh Day Adventist Church, a 2000+ member organization located in Huntsville, AL. Toussaint will have responsibilities for church administration, mentoring programs, and the television ministry. In addition, Toussaint will assume duties as the liaison to Oakwood University which is the campus location of the church.
SOE Doctoral Students to Present at ASCD
Current Character Education doctoral students, Kalyn-Mace Guilloux and Wanda McNair, have been accepted to present at the ASCD Conference, a gathering of 20,000 educators and policymakers from around the world, to be held in Chicago during March of 2013. Kalyn and Wanda, along with professor Helen Stiff-Williams, will deliver presentations on "Bullying Prevention and Discipline: Teaching Empathy and Transforming School Culture" and "Serving African American Male Students: Essential School and Classroom Changes".
SOE Graduate Named National Outstanding Assistant Principal of the Year
Congratulations to Karen O'Meara, assistant principal of Pembroke Elementary School, on being named the National Outstanding Assistant Principal of the Year by the Virginia Association of Elementary School Principals (VAESAP) in conjunction with the National Association of Assistant Elementary School Principals (NAAESP.) O'Meara is the first assistant principal in the Commonwealth of Virginia to receive this award. Learn more >>
Ph.D. Graduate Honored for Excellence in Teaching
Congratulations to Cindi Spaulding, 2009 graduate of the Ph.D. in Special Education program, who was recently honored with a Chancellor's Award for Excellence in Teaching from Liberty University. Spaulding was recognized for promoting significant student learning evidenced by exceptional pedagogical skill, effective use of instructional technology, and incorporation of creative and innovative approaches to teaching and learning.
M.Ed. Student Receives Awards for Service
Congrats to M.Ed. current student, Alicia M. Langley, who was recently awarded the School of Education Barnabas Award and the Dede Robertson Service Award.
Ed.D. Student Receives Fulbright DAT
Congrats to Ed.D. current student, Mark Gudgel, who was recently awarded a Fulbright DAT and will be doing research in Holocaust education at the University of London, Institute of Education, in their Holocaust Education and Development Programme in 2013.
Mark is beginning his third year in the Ed. D. Program as a student in the Character Education cognate. He is a young veteran English teacher at Lincoln Southwest High School in Lincoln, Nebraska. Mark will be on sabbatical from his teaching position during the 2012-13 academic year while doing his Fulbright studies in England.
Mark is also co-director of the Educators' Institute on Human Rights. He has studied genocide and human rights in such places as Israel, Poland, Rwanda, Germany, Belgium and the United Kingdom. A fellow of the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum in Washington, D.C. and the Imperial War Museum of London, he is the author of two books, no/sixteenths and Accessing Darfur, a teachers' guide to addressing the ongoing genocide in Sudan. Mark is also the author of more than a dozen articles, published in Teaching Tolerance, Prairie Fire, Relevant Magazine and others, and ranging in topic from education and pedagogy to the Holocaust, anti-Semitism and social justice issues. Source: http://www.eihr.org/speaker-biographies.html
Ed.D. Student Presents at 2012 National Forum
Congratulations to Kalyn Mace-Guilloux, Ed.D. current student, who is presenting with Dr. Helen Stiff-Williams and Dr. Sheila Hill at the 2012 National Forum on Character Education on the topic of The Digital Age of Bullying: Preventing Bullying and Developing Leaders. Her session will focus on reducing bullying behaviors of students in the digital age. With the increase of technology, there is a new platform for bullying, which can have deadly or life-long consequences. Effective tools will be shared with participants to teach empathy and bullying prevention in middle and high school. School bullying policies will also be addressed with suggestions for improvement based on participant's examples.
M.Ed. Student Named Teacher of the Year
M.Ed. in Educational Leadership current student, Brandon Burdick, was named 2011 Teacher of the Year for Douglass Park Elementary School in Portsmouth, VA and later 2011 Portsmouth Elementary Teacher of the year for the entire district.
M.Ed. Student Named VBEA 2011 Outstanding New Business Teacher
M.Ed. in Educational Leadership student, Glenn Starnes II, was honored at the 2011 Virginia Business Education Association (VBEA) Summer Conference held in late July in Virginia Beach. Glenn, a business and information technology teacher at John Marshall High School and coordinator of the John Marshall 21st Century Community Learning Center, was named the VBEA 2011 Outstanding New Business Teacher.
M.Ed. Student Receives 2011 REB Award for Teaching Excellence
Danica Millner, M.Ed. in Educational Leadership student, received a $12,000 REB Award for Teaching Excellence for recognition as an outstanding educator. One of 15 educators to receive the award, Danica is a chemistry teacher at Thomas Jefferson High School. REB Awards present cash grants to teachers to enable them to pursue postgraduate studies, professional training or world travel. Regent faculty member, Dr. Smith-Jones, says Danica "is a true professional and a 21st century, reflective learner and teacher." Learn more >>
Ed.D. Students to Present at Women as Global Leaders (WAGL)
Conference in Abu Dhabi
Congratulations to Sara Lockett & Clarinda Cole who have had proposals accepted for the Women as Global Leaders (WAGL) Conference in Abu Dhabi. They will travel to the UAE in March 2012 to present their research on the topic of leadership & sustainability - Sara Lockett: Leading the Movement for Sustainability in 21st Century Educational Settings & Clarinda Cole: Sustainable Leadership Principles to Empower Vision Fulfillment.
Faculty/Student Collaboration on National CEP Conference Presentation
and Research Project
Ed.D. current students, Kalyn Mace-Guilloux and Patrice Troutman, recently attended the Character Education Partnership (CEP) Conference in San Francisco in October 2011 where they joined Dr. Helen Stiff-Williams, Regent faculty member and lead presenter, as presenters for the session — "Teacher Readiness for Teaching Character Education." In addition, they conducted interviews of the CEP conference attendees as part of a faculty research project on integrating 21st century skills in K-12 instruction. Patrice shared the following comments on her attendance. "I was able to learn from many renowned experts in Character Education, participate in hot topic discussions, and actually see how the Ed.D. in Character Education program is preparing me for entrance into this great field. Overall, I had a phenomenal experience, and it has made an indelible mark on my future career path." Kalyn added that the "conference was an amazing experience that was invaluable in [her] career!"
Ed.D. Student Named Teacher of the Year
Ed.D. current student, Kelly Kitchens, was named 2011 Teacher of the Year for Oscar Smith High School in Chesapeake, VA.
Regent Graduate Named Hopewell High School Basketball Coach
Graduate of the M.Ed. in Educational Leadership, Shervi Barnes, is leading the Hopewell High School girls' basketball team to new heights. Shervi has an extensive background in high school and college sports and played four years of basketball and softball at Southampton High School and softball and volleyball at Virginia State. As a coach, she's led teams in multiple sports — including basketball, softball, volleyball and cheerleading. From her experience as a coach and an educator, Barnes has developed an academic-oriented coaching philosophy. She believes "that you are a student first and an athlete second. Academics come before athletics."
Regent Graduate Recipient of a STTA Grant
Congratulations to Regent Graduate, Kelli Caras, on being selected to receive a Science Teaching Tools Award (STTA) grant from the AFCEA Hampton Roads Chapter. Kelli and one guest were invited to attend a Chapter Luncheon on November 8th to celebrate the achievement.
Regent Graduate Impacts Students in Kabul
Within the boundaries of Kabul, populated by 3.9 million people, the capital and largest city in Afghanistan, is home to the International School of Kabul. That's where School of Education alumna Gail Goolsby, currently is serving as principal. Take an in-depth look at the mission field of Afghanistan through the eyes of one graduate with a calling to change the world.
Regent Students Attend NASA Pre-Service Teacher Institute
Regent University Graduate and Undergraduate students were among twenty-nine university students, selected in the United States to participate in the two-week NASA Langley Research Center Pre-Service Teacher Institute from July 18th -29th, 2011 at the National Institute of Aerospace (NIA) in Hampton, Virginia. This year's class featured a number of people who have switched careers, including engineers and former military members. The institute's theme is "Press Release Science and Math"—how teachers can help turn current events into STEM lessons. Learn more>>
Regent Student Learns from the International Educational Experience
Regent University Graduate School of Education student, Donna Ivery Little, was among a select group of policy analysts, policy makers and academics who received an honorable invitation from Paul E. Peterson, Harvard University Director, Program on Education Policy and Governance to attend a conference entitled "Lessons from the International Experience: Lifting U.S. Students to World Class Levels of Performance." The conference was held at the Harvard Kennedy School of Government in Cambridge, Massachusetts from August 17th—19th, 2011. Learn more>>
Again in 2012, Donna was a participant in an invitation-only policy institute at Harvard University. The Program on Education Policy and Governance at Harvard University convenes a conference to "translate knowledge about what works internationally into an action agenda within the United States." Donna is being interviewed for a journal article that will be published in the Harvard publication, Education Next: A Journal of Opinion and Research.
Regent Graduate Named Vice Chair of VBCPS Gifted Education Community Advisory Committee
In September 2011, Dr. Victoria Walker (Class of 2009) was nominated and then voted in as the Vice Chair of the Virginia Beach Schools Gifted Education Community Advisory Committee. Dr. Walker is going into her fourth year and second term in service after she was honored with a request to serve another term on the Virginia Beach Schools Gifted Education Community Advisory Committee this past spring.
Ed.D. Student Named Teacher of the Year for Petersburg City Schools
Shauna Mayo, Ed.D. student and fifth grade teacher at R.E. Lee Elementary School in Petersburg, VA, was declared in May to be the Petersburg City Public Schools’ 2010-2011 Teacher of the Year. Learn more>>
Faculty News
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Regent Faculty elected Region 2 Representative on the |
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School of Education Faculty Quoted in New York Times Article |
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School of Education Builds Relations in Kenya |
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SOE Faculty Member Named Chair of CASP Commission |
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SOE Faculty Appointed to Numerous Education Boards & Commissions |
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Faculty Member, Dr. Jeff Pittman, Receives the |
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SOE Faculty Appointed to VDOE K-12 Science Textbook |
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SOE Professor Receives Gubernatorial Appointment |
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Center for Math & Science Addresses Need for Academic Achievement |
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