Departments plan development of own school
Campus Times
April 16, 1999
The Education Department and the Educational Management Department are
joining forces to establish the School of Education and Leadership at the
University of La Verne. The process is expected to be finalized next year
with the appointment of a dean for whom the search is under way.
"We have very strong departments," said Dr. Tom Harvey, coordinating
dean of the School of Educational Management.
"By bringing them together, we put a focus on education and leadership,
and we will be able to sell it better to donors and granters," he said.
Dr. Harvey said the Education Department had been thinking about an
expansion "for a number of years." He said ULV President Stephen
Morgan was the driving force behind it.
A separate, larger school "adds to the prestige" of the university
and the teacher education program said Dr. Peggy Redman, associate professor
of education and director of teacher education program.
Dr. Redman said that many institutions the size of ULV have separate
schools of education.
She said the change is not going to impact undergraduate students in
terms of the classes they take and the education they receive. Like the
Education Department, the School of Education and Leadership will follow
the state guidelines for teacher education.
However, the Education Department, which already offers a large variety
of programs, including teacher education, child development programs counseling
and special education programs, will benefit from the expansion.
There are considerable advantages. The most visible one is the new Roger
Barkley building. Redman said students benefit from the new and bigger classrooms
and from the fact that it is all in one place.
"It's nice having the counselors [all in the same building]; it's
easier to get a hold of them," said Jamie Buigues, a senior diversified
major.
Other departments also profit from the new building since they get to
share the classrooms. Many education classes do not start before 4 p.m.,
so other classes can be taught in the building earlier in the afternoon.
Another advantage the new school will provide for diversified students,
Dr. Redman said, is the connections they are able to establish with educational
management students. These students tend to work for school administrations
and assist fellow ULV alumni in getting a job.
A search committee for a prospective dean has not yet been established.
"It will probably be established in September," Dr. Harvey
said, adding that the search may be nationwide. "There's a Jan. 1 deadline."
"But it will probably [focus] on California because that's our
domain of interest," Dr. Harvey said.
A doctorate and experience in education are two of the basic requirements
an applicant would have to fulfill.
"But also things like creativity are going to be important,"
Dr. Harvey said. "He is going to represent the University to the outside
world."
