2008 Woodie Awards
The College of Education looks back on a decade of success
BARRY FRANKLIN
Issue date: 3/1/07 Section: News
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The graduates have gone on to work in nearly all levels of the Idaho’s education field.
Patricia Toney, recently of the State Board of Education, was in the first graduating class in 1997. She had already worked as an educator for several years at Centennial High School and at Albertson College but the new program gave her a chance to further her career without uprooting her life.
“It was very exciting,” Toney said of her experience. “We had a great cohort and we bonded very well.”
Diane Boothe, dean of the College of Education, thought
the students who went through the program performed remarkably well.
“The education doctoral program in Curriculum and Instruction has graduated over 50 students who are making valuable contributions to the State of Idaho and the nation through their expert knowledge and quality leadership,” Boothe said.
Robert Barr, professor emeritus and dean who oversaw the
development of the program, said its founders strived to create a plan that would break away from convention.
“[They] set out to develop a doctoral program that was new, unique, distinctive, powerful, creative - we weren’t bound by tradition,” Barr said. The program was designed around students’ lives, Barr said, offering a chance to gain a doctorate without leaving the Treasure Valley, which was impossible before the program began.
“Our first group of doctoral students had been waiting here in the metropolitan area for decades, waiting for a doctoral program to come to them so that they might not have to resign their jobs, leave their families, leave their church and go out of state to go to a doctoral program,” Barr said.
Kelly Cross, assistant principal at Taft Elementary in Boise, entered the program in 2001 after working for nine years as an educator. She said the program completely changed the way she approached her work.
“My experience in the doctoral program was extremely rewarding,” Cross said. “I became a much better writer and a more critical reader.
She said the program not only changed her critical analysis skills but also her reading choices.
“It changed the way I read education journals. Now I pore over them; I’ve learned to look closely at the key points, resources and citations. As a result, I have a more comprehensive understanding of instruction and curriculum – and I know how to read, interpret and evaluate research.”
The College of Education marked the anniversary with an invitation-only event February 7. The event reflected on the program’s successes and looked towards the future in Idaho education. Keith Thiede recently took over as coordinator for the program.
“If you look throughout this valley, you will find our graduates in leadership positions, providing the direction and the substance that truly is taking public education into the future,” Barr said.
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