College of Education

Dean Viola E. Florez
505-277-7267
vflorez@unm.edu

Listed below are the community and outreach programs of the College of Education.

The Center for Teacher Education
The Center was actively involved in local and statewide efforts in education reform during 2000.

The Center worked extensively with key groups including NM Educational Study Committee, NM First, Albuquerque Business Education Compact, and Economic Forum, NM State Board of Education, the NM State Department of Education, the NM Commission on High Education, the National Commission on Teaching and America's Future, the National Conference of State Legislatures, and the National Governor's Association.The Center continued to work closely with the State Department of Education in the areas of content standards and benchmarks, accountability assessment, and teacher licensure.

College Of Education Exchange Of Services Collaborative Programs
The Albuquerque Public Schools/UNM College of Education Partnership continues to be a nationally recognized leader in modeling collaborative partnering between a higher education institution (The College of Education - Teacher Education, Special Education, and Educational Leadership), and regional school districts.

The Albuquerque Public Schools' Exchange of Services program serves an acknowledged leadership role in providing a platform for other school districts such as Belen Public Schools, Los Lunas Schools, and Rio Rancho Public Schools, to participate in providing professional development and growth opportunities for all teachers in the region.

The Exchange of Services Career Development Program (CDP) is recognized for its Mentor Teacher Program. CDP continues to be a role model for the professional development of veteran teachers who have demonstrated a long-term commitment to their school districts.

Educational Leadership Program Unit-School Leader Preparation Program
The mission of the school leader preparation programs is to prepare educational administrators as school principals, assistant principals, and other administrative roles whose first focus is student success. Graduate students in the Educational Leadership Program Unit are able to complete a Masters or Educational Specialist program of studies and meet all requirements for New Mexico State Administrative Licensure. Since 1990, in cooperation with schools and school districts, the faculty of Educational Leadership at UNM has supported 450 educators in 17 cooperating public school districts and eight other sites: Albuquerque, Aztec, Belen, Bernalillo, Grants-Cibola, Española, Gallup-McKinley, Jemez Mountain, Jemez Valley, Los Alamos, Los Lunas, Moriarty, Mountainair, Rio Rancho, Santa Fe, Socorro, Taos, Albuquerque Technical-Vocational Institute, Pueblo Pintado Elementary School (BIA System), San Felipe Elementary and Middle School, Santa Fe Catholic Archdiocese School System Level, St. Pius X High School, St. Francis Elementary School, UNM-Gallup Branch, and UNM-Santa Fe Branch. Inherent in the total administrative internship program are clinical experiences, working closely and collaboratively with mentors who are effective school administrators, and receiving knowledgeable feedback to increase the intern's capabilities as an effective educational leader for their work with schools and communities.

College of Education Partnership with Golden Apple Foundation of New Mexico
The College of Education and the Golden Apple Foundation of New Mexico have worked in partnership since 1999 to recognize, reward, provide professional development for existing teachers and recruit and mentor the next generation of New Mexico's teachers. Since 1996 five awards annually have been presented to teachers of excellence (Golden Apple Fellows) in communities as diverse as Taos, Las Cruces, Cimarron, Cuba, Santa Fe, Farmington, Capitan, Angel Fire, Lovington, Albuquerque, Clovis, Roswell, Las Vegas, Los Alamos, and Peñasco. Each summer these Golden Apple Fellows and New Mexico Board Certified teachers work together during an institute to address educational issues in New Mexico. Participants in the summer 2001 institute were from Albuquerque, Rio Rancho, Clovis, Cimarron, Artesia, Lovington, Capitan, Las Vegas, Cuba, Angel Fire, Santa Fe, and Chama. New in 2001, Senior Scholars Program students will work with Golden Apple Fellows to develop teaching skills and expertise as they prepare for careers as teachers. Scholars in 2001 will come from the Albuquerque area and northern New Mexico.

Secondary Schools Literacy Project (SSLP)
This initiative is designed to provide teachers with specialized assistance through professional development workshops to help students at the secondary school level who did not obtain sufficient reading/writing skills in the lower grades. Over 100 teachers participated at 38 schools during this first year of the multi-year project (10 of 11 high schools, 21 of 25 middle schools, and 7 of 9 alternative schools in the APS District).

UNM College of Education and the National Youth Sports Program
The College of Education's Physical Performance and Development (PPD) Division hosted 610 children from the Albuquerque area in the National Youth Sports Program (NYSP), for 10 to 16 year olds, this summer 2001. The program uses sports instruction and competition as a vehicle to enhance self-esteem and respect. The aim of the NYSP is to help at-risk youth learn to "walk tall-talk tall-stand tall."

New Mexico Research and Study Council (NMRSC)
Created in 1959 by the New Mexico public school districts and the University of New Mexico, the New Mexico Research & Study Council is a non-profit, service organization under the University's College of Education. Its mission is to provide research, professional development for administrators and their staff, purchasing programs and other services to all member school district. The Council annually co-sponsors a Legislative Seminar, allowing legislators, superintendents, and members of the NM State Department of Education and State School Board Association the opportunity to meet together to address educational issues.

Ed.D. Program in Educational Leadership
The Ed.D. Program in Educational Leadership is designed for those who are, or intend to be, high-level leaders in K-12 and higher education institutions, or in state and other service agencies.

The Ed.D. Program recruits individuals from diverse settings and communities who seek to be educational leaders. Graduates of the Ed.D. Program in Educational Leadership work with the New Mexico State Legislative Education Study Committee, the State Department of Education, and the New Mexico Commission on Higher Education.
English as a Second Language (ESL)/Bilingual Summer Institute
The ESL/Bilingual Summer Institute, which is designed to help teachers obtain their ESL and/or Bilingual endorsements, has had a strong community component to it. The Institute offers free English classes to adults, often parents of the ESL elementary school students. They also can help the parents become more involved in the education of their children. For the first two years the Institute was held in Albuquerque; however, in summer 2001, institutes were held in Bernalillo and Los Lunas, in addition to the Albuquerque site. These two new sites drew teachers from Santo Domingo, Jemez, Belen, Cuba and Rio Rancho. In all three sites, institute participants helped in ESL elementary classrooms and in the free Adult ESL classes.

The New Mexico Geographic Alliance
The New Mexico Geographic Alliance (NMGA) is a nonprofit organization housed at the University of New Mexico. Its primary goal is to improve the quality and quantity of geographic education in the state's K-12 grade classrooms, as well as for pre-service and induction teachers. NMGA has conducted 11 summer institutes for more than 200 teachers representing almost two-thirds of the school districts in the five regions of the state. NMGA enhances teachers' ability to teach geography that leads to improved achievement levels. It also develops and distributes educational materials related to the geography of New Mexico promoting the state's Social Studies Standards and Benchmarks.

The Strengthening and Sustaining Teachers Initiative (SSTI)
The SSTI is a collaborative partnership between the College of Education, the College of Arts & Sciences, Albuquerque Public Schools, Bank Street College of Education (New York City), and the University of New England (Portland, Maine). The goals of this initiative: To redesign teacher education components of pre-service education, induction programs, and professional development opportunities; and to build connections to ensure rigorous, coherent teacher development.

The Mathematics and Science Summer Academies for Teachers
The Mathematics and Science Summer Academies for Teachers are designed to increase K-12 teachers' knowledge of mathematics or science; familiarize and support teachers in implementing new teaching strategies that excite children's interest in science or mathematics; enhance teachers' instruction to reflect state and national standards in mathematics or science; and develop teachers' ability to design and deliver professional development for colleagues in their schools and community.

The Center for Family and Community Partnerships
The mission of the Center for Family and Community Partnerships is to strengthen individuals, families and communities through partnerships, which are formed between the University and members of the community, including families, community members, schools, state and federal agencies, businesses, and other institutions of higher education. The Center has several projects funded by state and federal agencies, and private foundations including the Family Development Program.

Family Development Program - supports community-based programs statewide that work to strengthen family involvement in young children's education and to help more children succeed in school. In addition to providing on-site training throughout NM, they operate the Wemagination Center, a resource center for teachers and families, where the promotion of recycled materials in play-based curricula is used. Education materials, English and Spanish, are created, published and disseminated to early childhood educations and families throughout the state. Family Development also houses the Baby Amigo Program, a home visiting program for new parents and Escuelita Alegre, a 16-year old preschool in the South Broadway community of Albuquerque.

Multicultural Education Center Community Outreach
The multicultural Education Center sponsors a variety of federally funded scholarships and grants to support students from across NM in becoming bilingual and English as Second Language teachers. At the present time, students receiving scholarship funding represent a variety of communities including Albuquerque, Belen, Bernalillo, Cochiti Pueblo, Crownpoint, Farmington, Gallup, Grants, Jemez Pueblo, Los Lunas, Newcomb, Rio Rancho, Santa Fe, Santo Domingo, Shiprock, Taos, Thoreau, Tohatchi, Window Rock, and Zuni.

UNM Service Corps
The College of Education and the Division of Student Affairs are recipients of part-time AmeriCorps direct education award slots. Through these positions, the UNM Service Corps served ten neighborhoods in Albuquerque's Pocket of Poverty and seven tribal community sites in western NM through a partnership with UNM/Gallup. Through the Albuquerque Community Schools Project, the UNM Service Corps support literacy efforts with seven elementary schools and ten-neighborhood community after school partnerships. This effort went into implementation in early June 2001.

Office for Community Learning and Public Service (OCLPS) - As a result of its role in establishing the UNM Service Corps and other community outreach projects, the College of Education created the OCLPS. The OCLPS now is engaged with developing and coordinating, in conjunction with its various community partners: 1) the next phase of the UNM Service Corps, 2) the new 21st Century Learning Center grant, 3) the Albuquerque Community Schools Project, and 4) the training and technical assistance support required to sustain these efforts.

OCLPS will be connecting UNM students and faculty, from not only the COE but across the entire campus, for these projects and others that are emerging from the communities' interest. One goal inherent in these efforts is to build and strengthen the civic engagement experiences for the college and the university with NM communities and citizens.

OCLPS is also redesigning the Institute for Education and Community Leadership (IECL) to bring parents, teachers, young people, school administrators, university students and faculty, together with neighborhood and community leaders to discuss ongoing efforts to improve education and address quality of life issues at the local level. IECL will be a non-formal educational institute designed to address ongoing community learning opportunities and how the COE and UNM can enhance its public service mission.

Comments to dgon@unm.edu