Fall 2015 NEWSLETTER

Board of DirectorsChairSue Johnson, Ed.D.

Vice ChairMary Louise Labrucherie, Ed.D.

Secretary/TreasurerKevin Wilkeson

DirectorsSelene AmancioLing-Ling Chang Dean Conklin, Ed.D.Sharon Hilles, Ph.D.Dean, College of Letters,Arts & Social Sciences

Nancy Hurlbut, Ph.D.,Interim Dean, College of Education & Integrative Studies

John HuynhBrian Jersky, Ph.D.Dean, College of Science

Ronald Leon, Ed.D.Dan Lewis, Ph.D.Sarah Ludwick Betty Ortiz,Board Member Emerita

Maria Pando-Tarozzi Dorothy Roberts Nick SalernoBetty TangRobert Voors, Ed.D.

PIE’s mission is to support excellence in the preparation of future teachers at CalPoly Pomona and, in collaboration with stakeholders, to develop and/or promotecommunity-based programs that strengthen the education of the region’s students.

(continued on page 2)

Table of ContentsThe PIE Fellowship Prepared Me for the Job Market 2PIE Fellowship Leads to Full-Time Job 3

The Cal Poly Pomona Education Job Fair Was a Success! 3

PIE Welcomes New Interim Dean of the College of Education & Integrative Studies 4

The Incredible Joy of Successfully Completing a Three-Year Journey 5

PIE Welcomes Two New Board Members 7

Fall 2015 Calendar of Events 8

Winter 2016 Calendar of Events 8

Chair’s MessagePartners in Education (PIE) has many successes to celebrate aswe enter our 12th year of supporting students, faculty, and staff atthe university by advocating for quality education and educationaldevelopment at Cal Poly Pomona and in the surroundingcommunity. As we reflect on the past, we are pleased to celebrateour impact on the lives of students, faculty, and staff as we planfor the future and continue to support the teachers of tomorrow.

The success of the Sponsor a Future Teacher program is one wayPIE has made a difference not only in the lives of Cal PolyPomona students, but in the lives of countless elementary,middle, and high school students throughout the region.

Sponsor a Future Teacher provides financial assistance to students during their two-quarter classroom teaching assignments. Since its inception, the program has provided fellowships to 115 future teachers, allowing them to focus their energies in theirbeloved profession.

In a survey of scholarship opportunities available for teacher candidates, we learned thatthe PIE fellowship is the only scholarship of its kind in the California State Universitysystem and elsewhere. Where most scholarships offset tuition or the cost of books andsupplies, the PIE fellowship is designed to encourage teacher candidates to quit or scaleback their outside work hours in order to concentrate on the most important part of their

Sue JohnsonPIE Chair of the Board

teacher-education program: the in-classroom experience of working with students under thesupervision of a mentor teacher and a university supervisor.

These PIE fellowships have made the difference between students continuing their teacher educationand completing the credential program or not being able to pursue their career any further. But, mostimportantly, it has made a difference for countless children who will continue to be influenced by each of our recipients for years to come. Three of our 2015 PIE Fellows have expressed what this fellowshiphas meant to them on the following pages of this newsletter. All three have begun their dreams withteaching positions in our communities.

As we plan for 2015-16, the PIE Board is committed to raising funds for an additional eight fellowships.We are indebted to those who have contributed to our success in so many ways. Without the supportof our partners and donors, none of this would be possible. We thank you for your tremendoussupport. Our successes are YOUR successes. As we plan for the future of education, Partners inEducation hopes to continue to make a tremendous impact on the Cal Poly Pomona community.

2

Chair’s Message (continued from page 1)

The PIE Fellowship Prepared Me for theJob Marketby Vianey Perez

Through the PIE fellowship and Cal Poly Pomona’s Teacher Education JobFair, I was able to obtain an incredible opportunity. In February, I learned thatthere was going to be a job fair on campus. I decided to attend and left myinformation with several of the local school districts. Three weeks later, theEtiwanda School District called me to schedule an interview. Prior to theinterview, I attended the College of Education & Integrative Studies (CEIS)annual HR Panel. This event helped me learn more about teacher interviewsand resume expectations. A few weeks after the interview, I received anunexpected, but amazing, phone call: the school district had offered me theposition!

I am a special education teacher at West Heritage Elementary. I teach first-,second- and third-grade students who have moderate to severe disabilities.As the days go on, I continue learning and growing as a professional, and Icould not be happier. Thank you Partners in Education for giving me theopportunity to fully dedicate myself to clinical practice and to Cal PolyPomona’s Career Center for making all of this possible.

Vianey Perezis a 2015 Partners inEducation Fellowship recipient.

She is a special educationteacher at West HeritageElementary in the EtiwandaSchool District.

PIE Fellowship Leads to Full-Time Jobby Samantha Valadez

A world of opportunities has become available to me as a PIE fellowshiprecipient. After completing my first and second blocks of clinical practice in thespring and summer of 2015, I accepted a full-time teaching position with theWalnut Valley Unified School District. I completed my first block of clinicalpractice at the same school where I have become employed recently. The PIEfellowship meant I did not have to work while performing clinical practice. I wasable to fully concentrate on my studies. I made meaningful connections withpeople involved in education. As a result of this fellowship, I was able to beginwork as a fourth-grade teacher at the school of my dreams.

3

Samantha Valadez is a 2015 Partners inEducation Fellowshiprecipient.

She is teaching at Maple HillElementary in the WalnutValley Unified School District.

The Cal Poly Pomona Education Job FairWas a Success!by Stephanie Caldwell

I received my single-subject math credential from Cal Poly Pomona this pastJune, and I am pleased to say that I am a math teacher at Ayala High School. Ibelieve that this position became possible for me because I was able to meetwith a human resource representative from the Chino Valley Unified SchoolDistrict at the Cal Poly Pomona Education Job Fair. We spoke for a while at thejob fair and at the end of our conversation he gave me his card and instructedme to e-mail him once I applied to the district. I knew that teaching positionswere incredibly competitive so I applied to every open math position within a30-mile radius. I accepted every interview that was presented to me and indoing so, I was able to gain invaluable interview experience that I used to getmy current job. I would highly recommend to any future teachers that theyutilize the education events put on by Cal Poly Pomona.

Stephanie Caldwellis a 2015 Partners inEducation Fellowshiprecipient.

She is a math teacher at AyalaHigh School in the ChinoValley Unified School District.

4

PIE Welcomes New Interim Dean of the College ofEducation & Integrative Studies

Nancy Hurlbut, Ph.D., an associate dean with an extensivebackground in education and child development programs, becamethe interim dean of the College of Education & Integrative Studies(CEIS) on July 1.

Dr. Hurlbut joined Cal Poly Pomona as the associate dean of CEIS in2013. Previously, she was the interim dean of the College ofProfessional Studies, professor and chair of the Child DevelopmentDepartment, program leader of Liberal Studies Elementary Education,associate faculty director of Distance Education and theombudsperson at Humboldt State University. Dr. Hurlbut succeedsDean M.G. “Peggy” Kelly, who retired this past summer.

Former Provost Marten denBoer had this to say of Dr. Hurlbut: “I ampleased that Professor Hurlbut has agreed to serve the college andthe university as interim dean. She will maintain and build on thedevelopment of the college and its service to our students.”

Dr. Hurlbut earned her Ph.D. in life-span human development and educational psychology from theUniversity of Wisconsin, Madison. She received her M.A. in educational psychology, also from theUniversity of Wisconsin. She earned her B.A. in psychology at UC Berkeley.

“I am excited about the opportunity to advocate for faculty, staff, students, and our community partners,and to help build partnerships,” says Dr. Hurlbut. “My hope is to inspire others. To paraphrase JohnQuincy Adams, if my actions as interim dean inspire others to dream more, learn more, do more andbecome more, I have used this opportunity well.”

Besides serving as interim dean, chair, and professor at Humboldt State, she also served the state ofCalifornia on many early childhood education projects. She was the founding director of BaccalaureatePathways in Early Care and Education, one of the CSU faculty members on the Curriculum AlignmentProject, which is the foundation for the Early Childhood Education (ECE) Community College transferdegrees and the community college ECE Community for Academic Progress (CAP) courses, andworked with a group of 12 faculty members to develop a tool to map the California Early ChildhoodCompetencies onto coursework. She recently served on the statewide Special Education Taskforce andis currently a member of the Early Childhood Permit Panel, which is tasked with recommendingrevisions for the ECE permit to the California Commission on Teaching. She is a partner member of theLos Angeles County Early Childhood Workforce Consortium and the Los Angeles County’sPartnerships for Education, Articulation, and Coordination Through Higher Education.

Previously, Dr. Hurlbut was an associate professor and director of the Child Development Laboratory atOklahoma State University, a visiting associate professor at the University of North Carolina, assistantprofessor at the University of Alberta in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada, and a postdoctoral fellow at DukeUniversity Medical School.

(continued on page 5)

5

Dr. Hurlbut is a member of advisory boards in child development at the University of La Verne, Mt. SanAntonio College, and Rio Hondo College. She has written publications and presented at conferenceson early childhood education and child development. She is also a member of the AmericanAssociation of Colleges for Teacher Education, California Association for the Education of YoungChildren, California Community College Early Childhood Educators, the National Association for theEducation of Young Children, and the National Association of Early Childhood Teacher Education.

Her goals for CEIS for 2015-16 include supporting the college’s work on semester conversion,especially the work that is a catalyst for innovative programs that support student learning andadvance student success. She plans to work with the faculty to create opportunities and incentives forfaculty scholarships and for faculty seeking external funding. She plans to explore the opportunitiesfor community-based partnerships and ways to increase the Native American student enrollment inCEIS. During the year, she will support the completion of the approval process for the newundergraduate Early Childhood Studies program and the community college articulation for theprogram so that it can begin in fall 2016.

Partners in Education welcomes the opportunity to work with Dr. Hurlbut in support of future teachersand her goals for CEIS.

The Incredible Joy of Successfully Completing aThree-Year Journeyby Ronald Leon, retired co-director of the doctoral program in educational leadership

(continued on page 6)

Interim Dean (continued from page 4)

The Commencement ceremonies for the College of Education & Integrative Studies at Cal Poly Pomonawere held on Sunday, June 14. The joy and excitement on the faces of our first graduating cohort ofdoctoral students in educational leadership was something none of us in attendance will ever forget. Thejoy radiating from students as they neared completion of this rigorous 36-month program of coursework,including a dissertation, provided one of the happiest moments I have ever seen.

To paraphrase John Quincy Adams, if my actions as interimdean inspire others to dream more, learn more, do moreand become more, I have used this opportunity well.‘‘ ’’

6

Graduation is a regal event at Cal Poly Pomona and the transformation of the quad outside Building 6 isabout as dramatic as any stage setting for a major opera, rock concert, or special event. Portable trees,plants, huge satin banners, and fresh-cut flowers were everywhere, along with a sea of thousands of whitechairs for family and friends. Photographers, technicians and others roamed the audience taking picturesfrom every angle.

After introductory speeches, doctoral students were presented and hooded first (followed by master’s andthen bachelor’s recipients). The students’ dissertation chair, University President Soraya M. Coley, ProvostMarten denBoer, and Dean Peggy Kelly greeted each graduate. A large screen, like the ones at sportingevents, provided a great view for everyone.

Before the ceremony and at the dinner reception that followed for over 250 family and friends in theBronco Student Center, the pride, excitement, and elation of parents and family members wasunmistakable. Achieving the expectations of a doctoral program is not possible without the support offamily and loved ones. Cal Poly Pomona doctoral students are completing the most difficult challenge oftheir educational lives and joining the less than 3 percent of all Americans who have earned doctoraldegrees in their chosen field.

The first 15 graduates wrapped up their dissertations over this past summer with topics that included“Early Implementation of the Common Core,” “Influences that Contribute to the Academic Success of First-and Second-Generation Latino Immigrant Students,” “Building Internal Leadership Capacity Through theTeaching Assistant Principal Program,” “The Influence of Technology Teacher Leaders in Building Capacityfor Technology Integration in Schools,” “The Dimensions of Transformational Leaders in Urban SchoolLeaders,” and “Successfully Navigating Through College: The Voices of African American Males.”

As Dr. Coley shared in her welcome remarks, “Doctoral graduates will be among the leaders anddifference-makers of the future.” As the co-director of this doctoral program for the past three years, I andeveryone at Cal Poly Pomona are so proud at what we and this first cohort have achieved.

Three-Year Journey (continued from page 5)

The first graduating cohort of doctoral students in educational leadership. Top row from left: Reyes Luna, Christine Heinrichs, Laura Rodriguez, Kimberly Thompson, and BruceKennedy. Middle row from left: Ethel Anumba, Kathrine Morill-Shone, Teresa Pinedo, LeslieBarnes, Dianna Beltran, Maria Rios, and Janelle Woodward. Bottom row from left: TamathaWilliams, Mercedes Gutierrez, and Leakana Nhem.

Betty Tang became the co-founder and chief financial officer of CCI Group,Inc. in 1993. CCI Group is a California-based manufacturer and exporter ofcustomized automobiles with customers mainly in Japan, Taiwan, and China.She is a board member of the Regional Chamber of Commerce of SanGabriel Valley and is an advocate of stronger U.S. exports.

She also is the founder and CEO of the World Youth Education Foundation.She serves on the board of many organizations, including the Parent’sAssociation of Walnut, the Chinese American Association of Walnut, theDiamond Youth Symphony Orchestra, and the Love of Voice MusicFoundation. She is a member of the Coordinating Council of the WalnutValley Unified School District, General Federation Women’s Club of HaciendaHeights, Lincoln Club of San Gabriel Valley, and the Rotary Club of Walnut

Valley. She has received numerous community service awards for her volunteer work over the years.

She has a B.A. in Japanese literature and a minor in business and psychology from Dalian University ofForeign Language in China. She is fluent in Chinese, Japanese, and English. She supports PIE becauseschools are in need of good teachers. Her goal is to educate the community about the PIE program andget more support.

7

Selene Amancio is the principal at San Antonio Elementary School in the PomonaUnified School District. She is entering her third year at San Antonio Elementaryand was previously the principal at Kellogg Polytechnic Elementary. She hasworked for the Pomona Unified School District since 1999, and has provided ahigh-quality education for all students, but particularly for English-languagelearners, who make up the majority of students in Pomona schools. She iscommitted to providing a positive learning experience for all students by not onlyempowering them to be responsible citizens, but also to be academically andsocially successful.

The Los Angeles Bilingual Directors Association awarded her the 2013Outstanding Administrator’s Award. During that same year, her school alsoreceived the Title 1 Academic Achievement Award.

She has a Bachelor of Arts degree in liberal studies: bilingual—English and Spanish from Cal State LongBeach. She received her Master of Arts degree in education from Claremont Graduate School andadministrative credentials from Cal Poly Pomona. She would like to continue supporting Pomona andsurrounding communities through Partners in Education. She believes that providing learning opportunities tofuture educators will broaden their knowledge of current trends in schools. She hopes to contribute to PIE bysharing her knowledge of the communities in and around Pomona.

PIE Welcomes Two New Board MembersPartners in Education welcomes Selene Amancio and Betty Tang as the newest board members.

Consider a Gift to PIE!

Support for PIE comes in all shapes and sizes. No gift is too

large or too small. Each and every contribution matters. Our

primary objective is to provide $5,000 fellowships to students

who are preparing for their student teaching experience, one

of the most financially challenging periods in any teacher’s life.

Having to work full or part time while student-teaching is

extremely difficult, and in some cases, impossible to do. PIE

fellowships keep our best, financially neediest students in the

classroom at a time when they should be focused on that

experience. Help touch a life now and indirectly touch

hundreds if not thousands of students who will benefit from the

experience of these future teachers.

Consider a gift of $25 to $25,000 or more. Consider a gift-in-

kind that benefits our annual awards celebration or provides

supplies for student teachers. It is all good and it all makes a

difference! Gifts and inquiries should be sent to:

John Huynh, Director of Development

Cal Poly Pomona

Office of University Advancement

3801 W. Temple Ave., Pomona, CA 91768

Checks should be made payable to the Cal Poly Pomona

Foundation. For inquiries, please call 909-869-3236 or

e-mail pie@cpp.edu.

8

The PIE newsletter is published semiannually byPartners in Education and Cal Poly Pomona

Sue JohnsonPIE Chairman of the Board

Sue Johnson, Ronald Leon, Sarah Ludwick, and Dorothy RobertsManaging Editors

Michelle Martinez and Rebecca RatnamEditors

Gary C. Fong Proofreader

Duc Hong and Ani MarkarianGraphic DesignersTom ZasadzinskiPhotographer

All comments concerning this newsletter may be sent to John Huynh at pie@cpp.edu.

Partners in EducationUniversity Advancement

Cal Poly Pomona3801 W. Temple Avenue

Pomona, CA 91768

Make a difference by joining Partners in Education. For information on membership,

call 909-869-3236 or e-mail pie@cpp.edu.

Fall 2015 Calendar of EventsW.K. Kellogg Arabian Horse Center Tours& Horse ShowThe first Sunday of the month fromOctober through May Shows start at 2:00 p.m.W.K. Kellogg Arabian Horse Center

Winter 2016 Calendar of EventsTeacher Education Job FairFebruary 25, 2016 from 3:00 p.m. to 6:00 p.m.Ursa Major, Bronco Student Center

Experience the beauty andtradition of the Sunday ArabianHorse Show. The Sundayexhibitions of the beautifulArabian horse were started byuniversity benefactor W.K.Kellogg in 1926. Cal PolyPomona is privileged to carry onthis Southern California tradition.For more information, contactKelly Pina at (909) 869-4988.

The Cal Poly PomonaCareer Center’s TeacherEducation Job Fair allowsstudents to speak with avariety of employers inthe education field andlearn about employmentopportunities with schooldistricts and agencies,

different career paths, and how to prepare for theworkplace. The Teacher Education Job Fair providesstudents with a forum to network with employers, manyof whom are Cal Poly Pomona alumni, and to learn whateducation employers seek in job applicants. For moreinformation, contact career@cpp.edu.