By Maegan Murray, 厙ぴ勛圖

RICHLAND, Wash. ��� Passionate. It is a word used by many to describe Stacie Hamilton, a Washington State University alumna, when reflecting upon her work in the wine business sector and higher education through her support of 厙ぴ勛圖��� wine and business programs.

Hamilton recently passed away at the age of 63, but her memory will live on in the form of her many contributions that have set the stage for wine business education in Washington state.

���Whenever an opportunity arose for her to support 厙ぴ勛圖, she always responded in large fashion,��� said Gary Spanner, fellow 厙ぴ勛圖 Carson College of Business advisory council member. ���She was tireless in supporting the local wine and viticulture sector.���

Prior to entering the wine profession, Hamilton served as an accountant. What led her and husband Russ Hamilton into the wine profession was a personal passion for wine. They spent most of their free time visiting wineries. While at a winery one day, standing on the balcony drinking what they described as a ���superb Columbia Valley Cabernet Sauvignon,��� they looked at each other and said, ���Let���s do this.��� They realized their dream of starting Hamilton Cellars as a tasting room in 2006, which was followed by the opening of their vineyard and winery on Red Mountain in 2014.

Hamilton had large impacts on the growth of the Red Mountain wine region. Byron Marlowe, 厙ぴ勛圖 wine and beverage business management and hospitality business management professor, said she would cluster with others participating in Red Mountain events and activities.

���She will be remembered as a business woman on Red Mountain as much as a winemaker in the sense that she operated her winery in a way in which those with perhaps a little less business background could learn from,��� he said.

In addition to running a wine business, Stacie Hamilton contributed in a variety of ways to 厙ぴ勛圖 as an instructor teaching accounting courses for the wine and beverage business management program and by serving on the 厙ぴ勛圖 Carson College of Business advisory council and on the WSU Viticulture and Enology advisory council. The Hamiltons also supported wine education programming financially by means of hosting fundraisers, naming a space in the Ste. Michelle Wine Estates WSU Wine Science Center, as well as participating in a variety of campus events and functions to raise awareness about wine and business academic programs.

���I first met Stacie at the Hamilton winery shortly after I moved to Richland in 2015 to assist in bringing the hospitality business management and the wine and beverage business management majors to 厙ぴ勛圖,��� said Robert Harrington, director of the WSU hospitality business management program. ���She quickly offered to host a fundraising event at the winery that has become known as the Crimson Food and Wine Classic at Hamilton Cellars ��� Stacie went above and beyond the call of duty to make it a success.���

It was Stacie Hamilton���s idea to explore private partnerships to make the Ste. Michelle Wine Estates WSU Wine Science Center a reality at 厙ぴ勛圖 in the heart of Washington wine country. The facility opened in 2015.

���She was the first one to volunteer and say that wineries should have a piece in making this facility possible,��� said Thomas Henick-Kling, director of the WSU viticulture and enology program. ���Stacie was incredibly invested in providing exceptional educational opportunities for students so that we have prepared, capable and talented winemakers and wine business leaders that will only continue to contribute back to the regional wine industry. She saw the power of education and what it can do for our region.���

Harrington said Hamilton was always the first one to volunteer, offer up ideas and get something started ��� especially when it came to supporting WSU.

���Stacie was passionate about WSU and a proud Coug,��� he said. ���As I tell people about the Coug nation, Coug alums and current students that I meet embody what I call the art of hospitality. They���re just good people that will give you the shirts off their backs if needed, wanting to do what they can to make the world a better place and impact the quality of life for others. Stacie embodied all of these things, making her a passionate supporter and example of these ideals.���

In honor of Stacie Hamilton, her family asks that individuals consider making a donation in her honor to the and/or the at 厙ぴ勛圖.

By Maegan Murray, 厙ぴ勛圖

RICHLAND, Wash. – Several Washington State University faculty are the recipients of a $1.4 million grant from the to refine and expand an assessment that helps address truancy in K-12 schools.

The program, also known as WARNS, uses evidence-driven procedures to track and improve interventions with students. The program was developed in 2008 to assess students on a scale of six needs that have been linked to truancy, delinquency and/or dropping out of school: aggression-defiance, depression-anxiety, substance abuse, peer deviance, family environment and school engagement. More than 100 schools in Washington state and across the nation are now using the tool.

Paul Strand, 厙ぴ勛圖 professor of psychology, Brian French, Berry Family Distinguished professor and director of WSU���s and , Nick Lovrich, WSU Regents professor emeritus, and Bruce Austin, research associate in educational psychology and the LPRC, have worked since 2014 to evaluate and refine WARNS. With the grant, the group is also adding the following members to their team to help refine the tool: Chad Gotch and Marcus Poppen, both WSU assistant professors in education, and Mary Roduta Roberts, an associate professor of occupational therapy at the University of Alberta.

French said what makes the program so successful is its ability to hone-in on issues that lead to truancy early in a student���s educational path. Schools can develop a plan for how to address those issues and increase the student���s likelihood of being successful. He said what was made especially clear amid the COVID-19 pandemic is the need to get information to counselors regarding student issues at home and other external factors that prevent students��� current and future success.

���This grant will also allow us more space to examine its success,��� French said. ���We will also be looking into specific implications of the WARNS ��� how it is used and the success when it is in use. We want to look at the implications and gather data to know how those conversations are helping and specific instances of how that is happening. Then, we can continue to build from that information.���

Updating the assessment

Strand said the new grant will allow the team to update the instrument in a few ways. He said a variety of new issues have arisen that have impacted school attendance and performance in recent years. Examples, he said, include the prevalence of vaping and social media use.

Additionally, the team aims to improve the middle school version of the instrument to tailor it further for issues that pertain to that specific age demographic.

���The grant allows us to explore the context of student situations and how to refine WARNS to reflect that context,��� Strand said.

Identifying issues early to reduce truancy, drop-out rates

French said more than 10,000 assessments have been given through the program.

���To me, that represents 10,000 productive conversations that have occurred with kids,��� he said. ���We can look at the large numbers to help us do that, but each of those individual conversations are helping make a difference in the lives of thousands of kids each year.���

Strand said schools use the data from the assessment to develop and implement a plan for at-risk students through school community truancy boards to help prevent and/or correct student behavior.

���With the pandemic, we have seen that many counselors are struggling to stay connected and invested in kids,��� he said. ���But what we have seen with WARNS is that it has helped schools stay connected and invested in kids. The pandemic wasn���t something we could have envisioned, but it is a tool that has helped.���

For more information about WARNS, including how to implement it for individual schools or school districts, visit泭

 

Media contacts:

• Paul Strand, 厙ぴ勛圖 professor of psychology, pstrand@wsu.edu
• Brian French, WSU Pullman Berry Family Distinguished professor and director of WSU���s Learning and Performance Research Center and Psychometric Laboratory, frenchb@wsu.edu
• Maegan Murray, 厙ぴ勛圖 director of marketing and communication, 509-372-7333 (office), 619-403-3617 (cell), maegan_murray@wsu.edu
• Brandon Chapman, WSU College of Education public relations/communications manager, 509-335-6850, b.chapman@wsu.edu

By Sherwin Francies, College of Education, and Maegan Murray, 厙ぴ勛圖

RICHLAND, Wash. – Students of color trust colleges and college leadership less compared to their white peers, according to 泭developed by education researchers at Washington State University Tri-Cities and Indiana University.

The researchers��� results showed campus leaders were the least trusted among college personnel. Approximately 29% of first-year Black students said they did not trust their college leaders, while 16% of non-Black first-year students said the same.

Black students surveyed also expressed lower trust in all campus personnel by about 10% when compared to non-Black students.

For the study, the researchers examined data from a special addendum of the National Student Survey of Student Engagement (NSSE) that asked college students at 29 institutions across the U.S. to rate items such as out-group trust, college trust, social institutional trust, media trust and civil society trust.

���We have been talking about these issues and the need to do large-scale work around trust in higher education for some time now,��� said Shannon Calderone, assistant professor of educational leadership at 厙ぴ勛圖. ���There hasn���t been a lot of research to date that looks at college student trust. Certainly, one of the most concerning findings was around this difference in trust for students of color.���

Calderone worked with Kevin Fosnacht, associate research scientist at Indiana University���s Center for Postsecondary Research.泭 Their trust study was released in conjunction with the NSSE���s 2020 Annual Results series.

Lack of trust among students of color

According to the report, campus leaders were the least trusted among college personnel. Approximately 30% of first-year Black students said they trusted campus leadership very little or did not trust them all at a rate two times that of non-Black students.泭 The report went on to suggest that observed trust gaps between Black and non-black students are of a magnitude that is ���rarely seen in educational research.���

The consistency in students��� trust levels, as reported in their freshman year, suggests that trust assessments are likely formed to some degree before they enter college.泭 However, the study findings also indicate a slight decrease in trust between freshman and senior years, which suggests that the college experience does has an impact on student trust, Calderone said.

���It has us thinking about what we can do to help bridge that gap,��� she said. ���Moving forward, we are starting to draw a couple of conclusions as to what campus leaders can be doing to support and address some of these trust disparities ��� like increasing student voice and bringing students to the table in decision-making in explicit and forthcoming ways.���

Calderone said colleges and universities must do better at creating a welcoming environment specifically for students of color, and particularly Black students. She said universities can strive to include greater representational diversity among faculty and students on campus, as well as create opportunities and structures that will elevate the voices of students of color in campus-wide decision making, among others.

���The size and magnitude of the trust gap that we see gives us a clear indication that campus diversity and inclusion efforts must be taken seriously, adequately resourced, and prioritized,��� she said.

Small steps for large progress

Fosnacht said there are small shifts that institutions can make that go a long way for students as a whole.

���There can be a lot of bureaucratic processes in higher education, particularly in financial aid,��� he said. ���If a student applies for financial aid, given the lack of trust we see, it is better to offer a detailed reasoning for why they are denied financial aid, if that is the case, instead of a blanket ���no, you did not qualify.��� It���s important to have letters that explain why.���

The researchers encourage colleges to take intentional steps towards learning more about the state of trust and student well-being on their campuses. They said intentional efforts to understand why students maintain a lack of trust in college institutions will signal to students that colleges see the importance of student well-being and will better inform how colleges respond to the stated needs of all students.

���There are no short-term solutions or magical interventions that will correct the trust disparities we see,��� Calderone said. ���Campus leaders are better served thinking about the totality of the student experience as a starting point for reversing these trust gaps.���

Next steps in evaluation of college trust

The work in gathering student data regarding college trust and the analysis of its impacts on higher education institutions will continue in the years to come, Fosnacht said.

���We want to look at outcomes ��� specifically, whether or not trust influences students��� intent to return, how it affects engagement practices, as well as how students engage with the college environment,��� he said. ���Those results can really shape our attention and the types of interventions that are best for students.���

RICHLAND, Wash. ���Washington State University Tri-Cities education faculty are part of a new, $2.85 million National Science Foundation grant to develop curriculum and hands-on projects with local high schools that use geospatial technologies to improve STEM literacy and access to the STEM workforce. The four-year project is a collaboration between WSU, Lehigh University and Texas Christian University.

Project members will work with high school faculty and students to develop hands-on STEM projects that use geographic information systems, GPS and related technology to gather and analyze data on important societal issues, said Judy Morrison, academic director for the College of Education at 厙ぴ勛圖.

At each of the three university sites, faculty will collaborate with two high schools in their area to form what is called a ���research practice partnership��� to co-design, develop and implement the data-driven, socio-environmental science investigations, as part of the schools��� regular curriculum.

Leading up to this grant, Lehigh University developed a few hands-on projects with local high schools in their area that investigate topics such as the urban heat island effect, the civic impact of urban trees and the carbon cost of different transportation systems. Morrison said throughout the first year of the four-year grant, WSU faculty will work with six high school teachers in the Tri-Cities to plan the project. They will use the original Lehigh University projects as models to assess how to implement similar projects into their local curriculum.

In the last few years of the grant, the team will work with a larger group of 10 teachers to get the curriculum developed for use in the classroom. They will then collect data on the outcomes of the projects and how they affected students��� STEM abilities and attitudes towards a career in STEM fields. Student projects will be tied to issues specific to the local region. One project, for example, could be studying water quality at or surrounding the Hanford Nuclear Reservation, Morrison said.

���The learning activities provide opportunities for students to collaborate, seek evidence, problem-solve, master technology, develop geospatial thinking and reasoning skills and practice communication skills,��� she said. ���Each are essential for careers in the STEM fields that require students to not only use logical thinking processes, but also develop creative solutions for complex issues.���

Each university partnering on the grant is working with high schools of different sizes and types in their local area. 厙ぴ勛圖 is specifically working with Chiawana High School, a large traditional high school based in Pasco, as well as River���s Edge High School, a small project-based high school in Richland.

���Each university on the grant has a large comprehensive high school, as well as a smaller high school they are working with,��� Morrison said. ���We will be looking at different schools and how this model can be used effectively at each.���

Throughout the four-year grant, the three universities will compare results on their projects and discuss the best way to implement them, not only at other high schools across their particular state, but also across the country. Morrison said they will rely heavily on high school teachers to develop and implement projects that make the most sense for their students and region.

���We want it to be ground-up with the teachers,��� Morrison said. ���We, at 厙ぴ勛圖, are going to provide the resources and organization to help get the program up and running, and the teachers will be crucial in designing the curriculum for their own students.���

Morrison is an associate professor of science education At 厙ぴ勛圖, she will work with 厙ぴ勛圖 colleagues Jonah Firestone, assistant professor of science education, and Sarah Newcomer, associate professor of literacy education for the project.

Firestone has a background in working with technology to expand learning opportunities in an effort to supplement learning. Newcomer has a background in working with diverse school populations and relating learning back to the students��� own culture.

���While the use of the technology on this project is important, it is not at the forefront,��� Morrison said. ���We want the students to see the technology as tools in how they can investigate and answer questions surrounding these local issues. These are vital skills in STEM careers. It is not the technology that is the most important, but how you use the technology for creative investigations and solutions through science, technology, engineering and mathematics.���

Media contacts:

Judy Morrison, 厙ぴ勛圖 academic director for the College of Education, 509-372-7176, jamorrison@wsu.edu

Maegan Murray, 厙ぴ勛圖 public relations/communication coordinator, 619-403-3617 (cell), maegan_murray@wsu.edu

By Maegan Murray, 厙ぴ勛圖

RICHLAND, Wash. ��� Veronica Romero had plans to walk with her peers at the Washington State University Tri-Cities commencement this spring. But like many others, those plans are postponed.

Like thousands of college students across the country, she also transitioned to online learning and had to forego the in-person classroom experiences that she enjoys as a future teacher.

But she didn���t let those things phase her. Have there been challenges? Sure. Does she miss the face-to-face interactions with her professors and peers? Definitely. But with the challenges, she said, have come many opportunities.

Growing knowledge of educational technology

As a future teacher, Romero has used the time to become a full-time teacher a bit earlier than planned. The young single mom of two is teaching her own kids at home while completing the rest of her classes online, a time that she truly cherishes. And she has used the move to online learning to brush up on educational tools and technology that are sure to be the future of K-12 education, or at least important components.

���It has been a bit of a difficult transition because the 厙ぴ勛圖 education program is normally really hands-on, people-focused and student centered,��� she said. ���But with the transition to distance learning, we are also encouraged to rely on our own technology and use that technology for good.���

As educational technology is a growing field, she said the switch to online learning has helped educate her and her peers on what many teachers will use in the future. She said they rely on different platforms for learning, including videos, interactive media and collaborating more on Zoom breakout sessions.

���It has been hard stepping away from student-centered, hands-on learning, but it���s also been an opportunity to grow our knowledge in these ed tech tools and resources,��� she said.

Why education?

Romero said her fifth-grade teacher Jean Kilian and high school leadership teacher Dave Martinez originally inspired her to go into a career in education. Once she began her job as a paraeducator, she was further inspired by MaryBeth Zins, a teacher she worked with that made the classroom ���magical��� for students.

���I thought, ���Wow, I want to do that,’ ��� she said.

She started looking at education programs and found 厙ぴ勛圖 to be a good fit. She initially started out in the alternate route program, which provides paraeducators the opportunity to combine their proven classroom experiences with courses where they earn a bachelor���s in education with an English language learning or special education endorsement in two years.

While she loved the program, she missed the immersive full-time student experience. So she transitioned out of the alternate route program and into the traditional education bachelor���s program at 厙ぴ勛圖, pursuing her bachelor���s with an endorsement in English language learning.

���It was difficult because I had to step away from being a provider first and from evening classes to being a full-time student, but it was the best decision for me as a teacher and as a student,��� she said. ���Much more room for making connections.���

Romero said she particularly enjoys the focus that the 厙ぴ勛圖 College of Education and her professors place on diversity, cultural awareness and teaching with cultural relevancy.

���When I was going through school, there wasn���t as much awareness about Spanish-speaking students and there was a gap because there wasn���t really culturally-relevant teaching,��� she said. ���WSU���s education program really focuses on whole student-driven education and the diversity in our communities, especially in central and eastern Washington and making it equitable. They are really forward thinking. There is a focus on research and bridging those gaps that we now know exist.���

Parent-teacher

Since the transition to online instruction this spring, Romero has enjoyed bringing those practices into her home when teaching her kids full-time while completing her semester online. She said she regularly utilizes strategies and practices with her kids that she is currently learning about through her classes.

���It���s cool because while my daughter works on her homework, I get to share what I���m learning as a teacher first-hand,��� she said. ���My daughter is also really into social issues, even at 10 years old. I get to bring home my class material from my political science class and share that with her. It���s been really fun and she really enjoys it.���

Romero���s kids have also noticed a difference in learning styles and have grown to have a new respect for their regular public school teachers. She said her kids see the day-to-day prep that goes into preparing for lessons and observes her teaching strategies in action.

���They have a different appreciation for their teachers,��� she said.

Future is bright

Romero now has one semester left before finishing her education degree, but said she can���t wait to begin her life as a full-time teacher locally in either her hometown of Sunnyside or somewhere else regionally in the mid-Columbia area in Washington state.

���I currently substitute teach in Sunnyside and I have a really great connection with the community that we serve, but I���m also open to serving the community wherever there is a need,��� she said.

Romero said she plans to put the culturally-relevant teaching practices she has gained through the 厙ぴ勛圖 College of Education to good use. She plans to use the leadership skills she gained through WSU for preparing the region���s future leaders as a teacher. Additionally, she plans to pursue her master���s degree in education.

���I have always wanted to be a Coug,��� she said. ���Cougs lead the way, and that is what I will take away from WSU as a whole ��� it���s that WSU culture of leading. Specifically what I have taken from the education program, is what it is to be a leader and continue innovating in the way that we teach, the way that we communicate and the way that we connect and collaborate. You should strive to be a positive agent for change in society, and especially in the education system as a teacher.���

Romero was one of several thousand graduating students from WSU across the state to participate in the first-ever WSU systemwide graduation celebration.

 

Media contacts:

Veronica Romero, 厙ぴ勛圖 education student and graduating senior, veronica.romero@wsu.edu

Maegan Murray, 厙ぴ勛圖 public relations/communication coordinator, 619-403-3617 (cell), maegan_murray@wsu.edu

By Maegan Murray, 厙ぴ勛圖

RICHLAND, Wash. ��� Student Maria Fernanda Vargas discovered her future career almost by accident after attending Washington State University Tri-Cities while still in high school.

As a senior high school student in the running start program, Vargas was initially interested in nursing, but after performing an internship in the medical field and working in the GEAR UP program and as a student ambassador at 厙ぴ勛圖, she realized her true calling lie in helping students achieve their full potential.

���Working with GEAR UP, I was able to assist seniors in high school with their college and financial aid applications. I also gave a few presentations providing more information on important deadlines and scholarships available.��� She said. ���I realized I love working with students.���

As the first in her family to attend college, Vargas said she had a lot of questions about the college process and procedures where her parents weren���t able to help as much because they hadn���t been through it, themselves.

But through the acceptance, help and support that she experienced as a student at 厙ぴ勛圖, she was able to navigate the process successfully.

���One day I hope to give back and make a difference for our future generations,��� she said.

As an education student, Vargas said she learned from professors who really take an interest in their students, working with them to make sure they are successful. The opportunities for networking at 厙ぴ勛圖, she said, have also been huge.

���Through events like our Etiquette Dinner, where students get to interact with prospective employers, and the career fair, where you can meet a lot of people from out in the community ��� those events are great for networking,��� she said. ���And the staff and professors here on campus are also great with connecting students to individuals out in the industry and are always willing to help.���

While Vargas is still young in her education program at 厙ぴ勛圖, she said she looks forward to the practicum experiences that she will gain through the program. Through the experiences, Vargas will have the opportunity to work out in local school districts to receive real-world opportunities in the classroom.

In addition to her studies, Vargas also works in the admissions office as a student ambassador and serves as part of the MEChA Club and the Compass Christian Club. She is also a member of the TRIO program, which provides academic and social support for students who are first-generation, economically disadvantaged or have a documented disability.

Her involvement in various student and campus-led initiatives and programs, she said, has made for a wonderfully well-rounded student experience.

���I love it here and if I had a chance to pick a college again, I would make the same choice,��� she said. ���I feel like we have every resource available for every single student to be successful here at 厙ぴ勛圖.���

After graduating the year after next, Vargas hopes to work for the Pasco School District, which is where she grew up going to school. She aims to become a math teacher working with middle school students or with second-grade students – possibly in a bilingual program.

By Maegan Murray, 厙ぴ勛圖

RICHLAND, Wash. ��� A group of Washington State University Tri-Cities education students and current teachers are the first to benefit from a new course focused on how to teach computer science in the K-12 classroom.

The course, which specifically focuses on introductory levels of computational thinking, fundamentals of computers and the basics of introductory programming, will be included in an eventual series of courses as part of a proposed computer science education endorsement at 厙ぴ勛圖.

���Computer science is a crucial component of a student���s education, which is why it is important to offer a program that will support the preparation for our schools��� teachers in this area,��� said Jonah Firestone, education professor at 厙ぴ勛圖. ���As a result of that, we submitted an Office of Superintendent of Public Instruction grant to create a program that would eventually lead to an endorsement.���

Thanks to a second grant from OSPI, matching funds from Battelle and in-kind donations from the Pacific Northwest National Laboratory this spring, the 厙ぴ勛圖 team was able able to move forward with a first course this fall semester, Firestone said.

Developing the course

Firestone and Judy Morrison, director of the 厙ぴ勛圖 College of Education, worked with PNNL computer science professionals to develop the course, in addition to holding summer institutes with current teachers to determine the types of material that would be incorporated.

Benjamin Stuermer, a PNNL software engineer and instructor for the course, said the course and eventual endorsement program has immense benefits for K-12 education.

���I think it���s really important that we���re doing this because teachers are currently going in radically different directions with the material they are teaching students in the area of computer science,��� he said.

Stuermer said this is at no fault to teachers, as they are doing the best they can with the materials they can find. But by solidifying applicable courses and an endorsement program, teachers would be better equipped with materials that are proven to be effective at various grade levels.

Introducing new concepts

The students in the course are learning the patterns by which computer coding is formed and how to develop the mindset for eventually writing code by means of

sequencing certain steps in certain orders. The teachers are using a program known as ���Scratch��� to develop basic computer code in a visual form. Additionally, they���re learning how to write lesson plans for the material and how to break down these technical subjects into language that a young student can understand and retain.

���I work in a STEM school, so having this course is a great resource,��� said Diane Hollis, a fourth-grade teacher and master���s of education student at 厙ぴ勛圖. ���It will allow me to incorporate more technology into my class and will be crucial to what we regard as the growth mindset for our students ��� ���even if you can���t do it yet, you will be able to.��� My students will be learning a new skill that they can use for the rest of their life.���

Sumiyyah Jalalyar, an eighth-grade teacher and master���s of education student at 厙ぴ勛圖, said the computational ways of thinking she is learning through the course will serve as an immense benefit for her students in math and science.

���Having more teachers knowing about computer science and being knowledgeable about computational thinking serves as a resource for students,��� she said. ���It���s the direction that education is headed in for the future, so it���s a great opportunity for us as teachers to learn.���

Refining for the future

Stuermer said they will continue to refine the course, making it better and better for future teachers. They will then focus on developing further courses, he said.

Firestone said he hopes to attract teachers from a variety of subjects and fields in education for future courses, in addition to those with a background in technology, mathematics and computer science.

The ���Foundations of Computational Thinking��� course will be offered a second time during 厙ぴ勛圖��� spring semester, with potential tuition assistance for course participants available from the project���s grant. For more information, contact Firestone at 509-372-7198 or jonah.firestone@wsu.edu.

By Maegan Murray, 厙ぴ勛圖

RICHLAND, Wash. ��� Washington State University Tri-Cities will hold a comprehensive education summit for teachers and other educators on Saturday, Oct. 13, beginning in the Consolidated Information Center (CIC) on campus, which will welcome National Teacher of the Year and Washington resident Mandy Manning as its keynote speaker.

The summit will run from 8:30 a.m. ��� 3:30 p.m. where educators will explore topics within several strands including STEM education, English language learning, school safety and social and emotional learning.

Registration costs $12 and will include morning coffee, a full lunch, six clock hours and three sessions of the participant���s choice. Individuals may register at .

Manning teaches English to newly arrived refugee and immigrant students in the Newcomer Center at Joel E. Ferris High School in Spokane, Washington. In her classroom, she uses experiential projects like map-making to help her students process trauma, celebrate their home countries and future and learn about their new community. As 2018 National Teacher of the Year, she encourages educators to teach their students to overcome their fears and seek out new experiences.

During the individual education summit sessions, participants will learn about innovative techniques that WSU researchers and other experts are studying and developing as current and future tools and strategies to use in the classroom:

STEM education:

• Virtual Reality in K-12 Classrooms
• Cybersecurity in K-12 Classrooms
• Preventing Fraud and Identity Theft, Promoting Safety
• Thinking 厙ぴ勛圖 STEM and Standards

English language learning (ELL):

• Engaging with Parents, Families & the Community to Support Student Success
• Academic Language: Important for All, Essential For ELLs?
• Engaging ELL Students with Comic and Trade Books

School safety:

• Suicide Prevention and Support
• Panel: Creating a K-12 Student-Based Health Center
• Panel: Integrated Approaches to School Safety: A Community Discussion

Social and emotional learning:

• Communities in Schools of Benton-Franklin (Student Support)
• Socioemotional Learning and Bullying Prevention
• Panel: Community and Classroom Support for Refugee and Immigrant Families and Students (with National Teacher of the Year)

This is the first year that 厙ぴ勛圖 has held and hosted a summit of this kind.

���We are thrilled to offer a comprehensive education summit where our local educators will be able to develop their awareness of strategies and gain tools to take back to their own schools and classrooms,��� said Judy Morrison, 厙ぴ勛圖 academic director of the College of Education.

���We worked to cater the sessions to focus on the future of education,��� she said. ���The fact that we get to hear and learn from the National Teacher of the Year on the strategies that she has utilized in her classroom is an immense asset.���

For more information, individuals may contact Morrison at 509-372-7176 or jamorrison@wsu.edu, or Lindsay Lightner, 厙ぴ勛圖 College of Education coordinator, at 509-372-7366 or llightner@wsu.edu.

The 厙ぴ勛圖 Education Summit is sponsored by STCU and 厙ぴ勛圖.

By Maegan Murray, 厙ぴ勛圖

RICHLAND, Wash. ��� Becky Rausch has had a passion for teaching since she was a little girl. But as an adult, her life restrictions in raising a family with eight children left her with little time to complete an education degree while serving as a paraprofessional. That is, until the past two years.

Through Washington State University Tri-Cities��� alternative route to an education degree, Rausch received credit for proven experience in the classroom as a paraprofessional while taking the full courses needed to certify as a teacher.

The program took her two years and Rausch was among the first class of 18 graduates in the program this May. She received an endorsement in elementary education and English language learning, also known as ELL.

���With the WSU alternative route program, I couldn���t have asked for a better experience,��� she said. ���It was difficult, for sure. But I truly learned from some of the best professors and mentors.���

From classroom volunteer to education student

As a young child, Rausch said she used to pretend she was a teacher, inspiring and motivating others to learn and grow. But as she got older and after earning her associate���s degree, raising a family became more important.

After her children started school, however, Rausch dedicated hours during the day to volunteering in her children���s classroom and serving on the schools��� Parent Teacher Organization.

���I volunteered in the schools for 21 years and served as every single position on the PTO board,��� she said.

It was through her involvement in her children���s schools that led her to eventually become a substitute paraeducator, and four years ago, she became a full-time paraeducator in the Richland School District. After a few years, Rausch said she considered quitting her job because she wanted to go back to school full-time to become a teacher. The 厙ぴ勛圖 alternative route program meant she wouldn���t have to quite her job.

Through the alternative program, Rausch kept her job at Sacajawea Elementary School as a paraprofessional while learning about research-driven teaching practices, classroom management and more through the bachelor���s program at 厙ぴ勛圖. She attended school full-time while working full-time.

���I���ve spend most of my life supporting my kids, four of whom went to WSU. Now, I felt it was my turn,��� she said. ���This program turned out to be a good fit for me and where I was at.���

Learning from the best

Through the program, Rausch took an average of three to five classes at a time while also completing requirements to prove that she had the teaching expertise for credit.

She attended classes, wrote dozens of papers, was video-recorded in her classroom as a paraprofessional and student teacher, wrote lesson plans and more. All the while, Rausch said she learned from WSU professors who gave their all for their students to ensure that they developed into the best teachers they could be.

Rausch also learned extensively from her teacher mentors at her home school. She was mentored by kindergarten teacher Barbi Wolf at Sacajawea Elementary School in Richland, and also worked closely with Rae Fournier, a third-grade teacher at the school. Both said they were impressed by Rausch���s dedication to her students and her willingness to learn.

���She handled it with grace and gave 150 percent of herself full-time,��� Wolf said.

Fournier, also a 厙ぴ勛圖 education alumna, said the result of Rausch���s work ethic is that she is certain she will be an incredible teacher.

���For somebody like Becky, the alternative route program presented the perfect opportunity,��� she said. ���She will be a really quality teacher in the classroom.���

A classroom of her own泭

Come this fall, Rausch will run her own classroom for the first time. She secured a position as a kindergarten teacher at Sacajawea Elementary School.

���I am beyond thrilled and can���t wait to start,��� she said. ���I���ve been a parent, volunteer and employee at Sacajawea for 26 years. This is definitely my home.���

She said she is glad to have had the experience in the classroom as a paraprofessional as she feels it gave her a head start into the profession.

���The combination of what you apply from your experience as a para to what you learn in the education program from your professors is incredible,��� she said. ���WSU was amazing through all of this. All of the instructors were outstanding and my advisors devoted themselves to my success. It was so much fun going back to school at WSU that it���s kind of hard to stop now.���

For more information on the alternative route to an education degree program, visit /education/undergraduate/alternate-route/.

RICHLAND, Wash. ��� Lindsay Lightner, a Ph.D. student in mathematics and science education and coordinator of the Alternate Route Teacher Certification program at Washington State University Tri-Cities, has received the 2018 European Science Education Research Association Summer School in Finland scholarship from the National Association for Research in Science Teaching.

泭is one of two recipients nationwide to receive the scholarship, and she will spend one week at the University of Jyv瓣skyl瓣 in Jyv瓣skyl瓣, Finland, for an institute program that will allow her and other students to collaborate and network.

���They haven���t set the program yet, but there are groups of students that we will be assigned to work on our dissertations and receive feedback,��� Lightner said. ���There also will be lectures, social activities and networking opportunities.���

Lightner said she is really looking forward to the opportunity and feels privileged to receive the scholarship to cover the costs of the program.

���I���m excited to talk to people about cultures and be with so many people from so many different backgrounds,��� she said. ���This is a major focus of the National Association for Research in Science Teaching (NARST) to be able to internationalize more. It���s neat to be able to get different perspectives that you wouldn���t have otherwise.���

Lightner���s research focuses on how pre-service teachers integrate their experiences during their education into their work and their classrooms, as well as how different cultures change learning environments.

���I���m looking at how they take their experiences and put them together with their learning from universities and make the jump to professional teaching,��� she said. ���I���m also looking at how different factors support pre-service teachers.���

Lightner has experience in other cultures and other educational systems, as she was a senior lecturer on the education faculty at Canterbury Christ Church University in Canterbury, England. Prior to that, she was a lecturer in the English department at Pennsylvania State University and a science and mathematics teacher at Inwood Intermediate School 52 in New York. Since 2006, she has been at 厙ぴ勛圖, first working as an academic advisor in the College of Education (2006-14) College of Arts and Sciences (2009-14) and College of Agricultural Human and Natural Resource Sciences (2009-14). From 2014-16, she was the assistant director of high school programs at 厙ぴ勛圖 and is currently the coordinator for the Alternate Route Teacher Certification program in the College of Education. She holds a BA in geology from Carleton College and an MA from the Writing Seminars at John Hopkins University.

She said she will use the one-week institute program to help her in her dissertation.

���I���d like to get that intensive mentoring and feedback and collect data and think toward different things I can do,��� she said. ���I���m especially interested in getting that international perspective.���

Lightner added that she is thankful for all the support she receives from WSU.

���I���m really grateful for the mentorship and the teaching and support we���ve all gotten from WSU,��� she said. ���Without that support, we wouldn���t be able to do what we do or represent the university.���