Food, says Carolyn Pluim, is more than fuel – especially when it comes to school. Pluim is a widely published researcher and author on the topic of school lunch – and, as part of her work, she is able to set a
Read moreLynn Gibson co-authors children’s book with son, plans more ‘tiny hero’ stories
Lynn Gibson, clinical assistant professor in the NIU Department of Leadership, Educational Psychology and Foundations, has co-authored and published a children’s book with her son, Bryn Sheedy Gibson. “How Elfie the Owl Saved Christmas – A Tiny Hero’s Tale,” the first in
Read moreYear 14: Double-alum Jason Dietz savors role as Sundling Middle School principal
When Jason Dietz started teaching fourth-grade, he immediately thought that he’d found his forever home. The place was Mundelein, the year was 1998 and Dietz had just completed a fresh-out-of-college stint working in a middle school as a program assistant for special
Read moreFour-time alumna Monica Schroeder ready, eager to become North Shore 112’s first Latina superintendent July 1, 2026
Monica Schroeder grew up attending a private school in the Rogers Park neighborhood of Chicago and then parochial and public schools in north-suburban Skokie. She was a first-generation American with bilingual parents who immigrated to this country as teens; her father, Raul
Read moreAspiring Superintendents Forum offers tips for gaining, thriving in leader roles
How do superintendents establish good working relationships with the school boards they serve? How do they prioritize their to-do lists? How do they continue their professional development while on the job – or tend to their personal well-being? Such questions and more
Read moreLEPF celebrates 62 summer graduates
Sixty-two professionals are now ready to advance their careers with degrees earned this summer from the NIU Department of Leadership, Educational Psychology and Foundations (LEPF). Among the new alumni are 25 educators prepared as school principals, 15 from the Rockford cohort and
Read moreMerritt speaker Megan J. Laverty to talk on importance of engaging children, students in discussions of philosophy
Megan J. Laverty remembers the moment when life delivered an unexpected turn. She was a philosopher, working at the University of Melbourne in her native Australia and pursuing her Ph.D. in that exact field at the University of New South Wales. “Everything
Read moreA person in the world: Educate Global students transformed by Indonesia visit
Nicholas Koronkiewicz was born and raised in Bolingbrook, the only place he’s called home. Just coming to the cornfields of DeKalb as a transfer student in the Department of Computer Science supplied some stranger-in-a-strange-land sensations for suburban Koronkiewicz, who soon declared a
Read moreCongratulations!
Congratulations to these members of the NIU College of Education family! Peter Chomentowski, associate professor in the Department of Kinesiology and Physical Education, has been named the 2024-25 Provost Fellow in Faculty Affairs. This program is designed for faculty members interested in
Read moreEd.S. student Bridget Belcastro named Illinois Elementary Principal of the Year
Bridget Belcastro can’t forget the conversation. She was majoring in English at NIU, eager to become a teacher, and heard something thoroughly laughable as she and some classmates carpooled to Jefferson High School in Rockford. “I was a junior or a senior
Read moreGraham 227 turns into conference room with funds from Marguerite F. Key gift
NIU College of Education students, faculty and staff in the have a new space available for multiple purposes, thanks to the Department of Leadership, Educational Psychology and Foundations. Graham Hall 227 – the Educational Leadership Conference Room – is now renovated and
Read moreBlowing in the wind: Hidetada Shimizu to retire with his rebellious spirit intact
Born in 1960 to parents from the so-called Greatest Generation, Hidetada Shimizu grew up surrounded by values that were shaped by both the before and the after of World War II. Shimizu lived in the countryside of Takasaki, Japan, where his father,
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