The events of this past year have magnified differences in our culture, and produced conflict – but active efforts, including protest, can lead to reform. In many ways, this idea animates all of the activities we undertake at Deans for Impact. We believe in the power of helping existing and future educators practice better pedagogy with all students, so that over time, our work – and the work of so many others – will join together such that the stark racial segregation we witnessed during one school visit will seem an unconscionable aberration, rather than an accepted norm.

Tom Philion is the dean of the College of Education at Chicago’s Roosevelt University, which was founded in 1945 with a mission of making higher education available to all students who qualify academically, regardless of their backgrounds. Roosevelt is the second most diverse college in Illinois, and about 45 percent of the university’s students are the first in their families to attend college. We spoke to Tom recently about how his personal experiences have influenced his approach to educator preparation and why he joined Deans for Impact.

Michael Hillis is the dean of the Graduate School of Education at California Lutheran University, a private, liberal-arts university located in Southern California. In its 25-year history, the Graduate School has prepared more than 8,000 professionals in K-12 and higher education, and currently offers 10 graduate programs through the departments of Learning and Teaching, Counselor Education, and Educational Leadership. We spoke to him recently about why he joined Deans for Impact and his passion for transforming teacher preparation.

Dr. Andrea Kent is the dean of the University of South Alabama’s College of Education and Professional Studies, which is the largest teacher-preparation program on the Gulf Coast. The College enrolls about 2,100 students across 15 academic programs at five degree levels, ranging from the baccalaureate to the doctoral degree. Dr. Kent was a fellow in the inaugural cohort of Deans for Impact’s Impact Academy. We spoke to her recently about why she joined Deans for Impact and why, to her, teacher preparation is personal.

Anthony Graham is the dean of the College of Education at North Carolina A&T State University, which is the country’s largest Historically Black College and University (HBCU). The College enrolls about 1,250 students in its undergraduate and graduate programs and has about 50 full-time tenure-track faculty. Dr. Graham was a fellow in the inaugural cohort of Deans for Impact’s Impact Academy. We spoke to him recently about why he joined Deans for Impact and how his own educational experiences influence his approach to educator preparation.

Today marks a day both bittersweet and joyous here in Austin, as Dr. Cassandra Herring formally launches the Branch Alliance for Educator Diversity (BranchED), a new organization devoted to building capacity at educator-preparation programs within minority-serving institutions (MSIs).

From our inception in 2015, Deans for Impact has faced a self-imposed problem. We have deliberately chosen to limit our core membership to no more than 30 leaders of educator-preparation programs at any one time.

2016 was an interesting year to be sure. But here at Deans for Impact, we had a lot to be proud of: our involvement in the release of the new Title II…

Welcome to Total Makeover: Deans for Impact Website Edition! As frequent visitors know, things are looking different around here. That’s because…

“You have no place in the classroom. You should leave the academy.”

That’s what an older, white professor said to my wife Liliana last week…