As the founder and president of Ascend Legacy Academy, an innovative boarding school for Black, male high schoolers, I was interested in pursuing my doctorate in educational leadership at the University of Delaware to hone my leadership skills, expand my network and research a topic that was applicable to my work in education.

UD’s M.Ed. in Teacher Leadership program has enabled me to grow as a leader while exploring an array of specialty areas. Being a “teacher leader” feels somewhat intangible when you enter the program, but by the time you leave you have a great skill set to engage in the work of being a teacher leader. 

The College of Education and Human Development staff has been very supportive during my time here, including through several life-threatening illnesses and major surgeries. Whether during times of turmoil or when things were going well, the support from my professors has been unmatched...Pursuing an M.Ed. in Exceptional Children and Youth has been a life-changing experience.

The friendliness and accessibility of UD's College of Education and Human Development faculty and staff, the M.Ed. program’s hybrid format, the opportunity for graduate assistantship experiences, the commitment and connection to the State’s K-12 education system, and the convenient location all drew me to UD.

The faculty in the School of Education’s Literacy group, especially with their backgrounds in special education and interest in writing research, was what drew me to pursue graduate study at the University of Delaware. I have learned so much from the opportunity to work alongside accomplished professors in research and teaching settings.

I adore my professors, especially in the mathematics education specialization. I work closely with Erica Litke, but I feel comfortable reaching out to all of the math ed faculty for advice. I've worked as a research assistant with Amanda Jansen which provided me the chance to write papers and present at conferences.

Since I am pursuing the M.Ed. while teaching fulltime, it is extremely helpful that the coursework is offered completely online—and that I can do it on my own schedule. I find the coursework in this program to be beneficial and applicable to my own classroom.

My assistantship allows me to engage in research on professional development and technology with Dr. Chrystalla Mouza and on research-based decision making in schools with Dr. Elizabeth Farley Ripple. This has afforded me the opportunity to submit multiple papers for publication and present at national and international conferences.

Pursuing a doctoral degree in sociocultural and community-based (SCA) education has allowed me to conceptualize ways to center my interests in both theory and practice. For me, this was one of the biggest draws to the SCA specialization within the PhD program in the School of Education.

Having researched infant-direct speech, emotion and cognition as an undergraduate Psychology major at the University of California – Merced, I chose to pursue a Ph.D. in Education at the University of Delaware. My work focuses on how social environments affect early language development.

I am passionate about connecting students to opportunities – whether that be academic programs or enrichment programs. The University of Delaware’s Ed.D. in Educational Leadership offers many opportunities to collaborate with accessible and engaged faculty members on various projects across fields.

After ten years teaching middle and high school mathematics in the Baltimore City Public School System, I decided to pursue my Ph.D. at UD. I believed that teaching the next generation of mathematics teachers would have a wider impact on improving learning for students in underserved communities.

After working as a research assistant as an undergraduate in a social psychology lab at UD, I decided that I wanted to pursue a career in research. I became interested in the Ph.D. program specializing in evaluation, measurement, and statistics when I was working as a research assistant on a mixed methods evaluation project.

Upon entering the program, I worked on a large, federally funded grant with Dr. Roberta Golinkoff to train preschoolers’ spatial thinking skills. During my first year, I was given the time and freedom to explore and identify my main research interest: the role of questions in children’s learning.

Teaching English overseas for several years inspired me to focus my career on teaching English as a Second Language (ESL). When I returned from South Korea, I enrolled in UD's Additional Certification in ESOL/Bilingual (ACE) Teacher’s Project to gain certification to teach in Delaware’s public schools.

After earning a bachelor’s degree in psychology from Wilmington University, I worked in the non-profit sector for four years where I gained valuable experience in communications and teaching. These skills, combined with my interest in technology, drew me to UD.

I recently completed the M.Ed. in Teacher Leadership at University of Delaware while working at a Maryland high school. The flexibility of this first-rate online program allowed me to earn a master’s degree while simultaneously teaching full-time and earning credits for my teaching re-certification. 

I’ve always been interested in working in education, so school psychology is a great career fit for me. I will be able to enhance students’ school performance while supporting their mental and emotional health needs. My goal is to work as a school psychologist in a Delaware K-12 school after graduation.

With an undergraduate degree in English and Religion, a master’s degree in Theological Studies, and four years as a high school English Language Arts teacher, I came to the UD because I wanted to be a part of the important sociocultural work being done in the School of Education.

As a graduate of UD's master of education program in Educational Technology, I appreciated the strong support that the School of Education provides its students. I knew UD would help me acquire professional skills in research, teaching, writing and provide me with opportunities to get involved.

I began the Ph.D. program in mathematics education at the University of Delaware after working with New York City public schools for over a decade, first as a high school mathematics teacher and then as an education administrator.

After teaching high school English language arts for five years, I chose to pursue a Ph.D. in Education at the University of Delaware to learn how to conduct intervention research focused on improving students’ reading and writing achievement.