Education Department Newsletter
Volume 4, Number 2 – Spring, 2009

On Saturday, May 9, some 3,000 people gathered at the Chattanooga Convention Center for the annual commencement exercises, the culmination of the work and effort of hundreds of Covenant College students. Among the Education Department highlights this year at graduation are the following:

• Over 60 BSECE graduates, faculty, family, and friends gathered at Porker’s Barbeque on Friday evening to celebrate with cohorts 6 and 7 as they finished the BSECE program. Kiersten Hoeflinger and Amy Gilbert spoke about their experiences.
• Over 100 M.Ed. graduates, faculty, family, and friends gathered early Saturday morning at the Convention Center for the annual breakfast celebration. Among the highlights was a powerful testimony from Laura Grammer who has been fighting cancer for over a year, but was able to finish the program. Classmate Katy Harmon intentionally delayed her graduation for a whole year in order to encourage Laura along the way and graduate with her. Mark Redfern gave the M.Ed. graduate testimony.
• A total of 64 Education Department students completed their programs and received diplomas on May 9, a new high total for us! Here are the categories:
  • 21 Master of Education (Educational Leadership, Integrated Curriculum)
  • 19 Bachelor of Arts (Early Childhood, Middle Grades, Secondary)
  • 24 Bachelor of Science (Early Childhood)

Shawna Spano (B.A., 2008) student teaching
at Silverdale Baptist Academy

Faculty Happenings

Jack Beckman, along with colleagues at Gardner Webb University and Redeemer College, received a $50,000 grant from the Social Studies and Humanities Research Council of Canada for developing a digital archive to preserve the writings of Charlotte Mason. This is the second grant the team has received, and Dr. Beckman will be spending part of the summer in England beginning the process of translation and transformation of documents into digital format. Once completed, the “digital mirror” will be housed at Gardner Webb University in North Carolina.

Rebecca Pennington continues her work in the doctoral program at UTC, and delivered a paper, Preservice Teacher Portfolios: How do they mediate reflection? at the AERA Annual Meeting in San Diego in April.

Professor Emeritus Bob Ashlock received the 10th edition of his Error Patterns in Computation: Using Error Patterns to Help Each Student Learn in January. In continual print since 1972, Bob’s work has been a standard for math educators for over three decades. Bob continues to teach in our BSECE and M.Ed. programs, served as a consultant for Lakeland Christian School this spring, and delivered a presentation (John Wilson and his ideas – relevant for today: A personal perspective) at Berry College in March. Praise the Lord with us for his long, productive, and influential career.

Donna Phillips also continues working on her doctorate at UTC. Her dissertation, “Exploring the Value of Electronic Discourse for the Purpose of Cultural Competency Development” was approved in February. Donna also completed Board of Examiner training for the State of Georgia and helped to plan the annual Georgia Field Director’s Spring Conference hosted at Oglethorpe University.

Bruce Young completed a chapter on “Constructivism” for the upcoming book, Faith-based Education that Constructs.

Phil Horton, who has a respected record of service with the Georgia Professional Standards Commission, was recently nominated by the GaPSC for Board of Examiners Chair training.

Jim Drexler conducted an in-service program for the Christian Schools of Florida in February. He also spoke at the annual Alumni Dinner at Westminster Christian Academy in Huntsville, contributed an educational leadership column to the Spring edition of Christian School Education, conducted a one-day workshop in Glendora, California, and served as a consultant to the Education Department of Redeemer College in Ontario, Canada.

Steve Kaufmann spent the spring semester in New York City on a sabbatical devoted to reading, research, and writing. A few days after he returned to Lookout Mountain in May, he and his wife Mary took nine students to the International Christian School in Budapest, Hungary, for a May term teaching practicum.

Students and Graduates in the News

Sue Tameling (M.Ed., 1997), has been named the new Junior High/Senior High Principal at Bellevue Christian School in Washington. Previously, Sue has served at schools in Missouri, Michigan, and Florida. In the press release from Bellevue, they noted that, “Sue brings a passion for Christian education to her leadership and a strong understanding of curricula, alongside a proven ability to maintain and grow instructional and academic programs of excellence for high school and junior high school students.”

Matt Jelley (B.A., 2004), is one of the leaders of a new and innovative program at Dade County Middle School called Project Synergy. The goal of the program is to bring back an emphasis on hands-on, problem-based education, and allow students who may not excel in the traditional classroom to market their own ideas by creating partnerships with businesses, other educational institutions, and the Chamber of Commerce. Their work has been featured on T.V. and in numerous newspaper articles, and has been commended by the Governor of Georgia.

David Swader (B.S., 2007) was elected to the Dade County Board of Education in 2008, by garnering 63% of the votes.

Future Teacher Scholarship

For the third year in a row, the Education Department was able to offer scholarships and grants to incoming B.A. students who want to become teachers. For the past three Januarys, the Department has welcomed dozens of high school seniors to campus for three days of interviews and other activities. The top winner for 2009 is Anna Harrison, a graduate of Asheville Christian Academy in North Carolina, who plans to study Early Childhood Education. The 36 finalists this past January came from 14 different states, represented public, private, and home schools, and the average ACT (28.0) and SAT (1853) scores of the group were impressive.

Future Teacher Scholarship finalists
participating in a group activity in January

Messages from the Trenches

We often receive letters and notes from our former students, as well as compliments from principals who are thankful for graduates. We are thankful to the Lord for these encouraging words. Please send us notes and updates, but for now, enjoy the following:

From Bill Alexander (M.Ed., 2009): “I chose Covenant because of the set-up of the program and because of its academic reputation. I did not want to pay for a degree from a degree mill; I wanted to earn a degree from a quality program. The academic rigor at Covenant never disappointed and I will always be proud to call myself a graduate of the M.Ed program at Covenant. I feel as though I have earned a quality degree that represents the reputation of a great academic institution. In my three years at Covenant I have grown in ways that I could not have imagined, both personally and professionally. I have grown in my understanding of God's Kingdom. I have grown in my understanding of how to lead and be a part of a quality Christ-centered educational endeavor. I have learned what it means to create a vibrant, Christ-centered learning community, and I have met friends that I will keep for a lifetime. Covenant College challenged me and has, in my opinion, made me a much better person. For that I say thank you to the entire faculty. The experience has been one that I will treasure for the remainder of my days.”

From Wade Tapp (B.A., 2008): “My first year has been a success in many respects, and this is certainly a direct reflection of the grace that God has shown me through your instruction. Certainly I was grateful for your teaching during my time as a student, but as a teacher, I am even more thankful for the care and concern that you showed to me as I attempt to apply and live out that training with which I have been blessed. I am sure that this is only one of many letters you have received over the years that extols your quality work as professional educators.”

From a local public school principal: “Susan has conducted herself professionally from the moment she began as a classroom teacher. She is very knowledgeable in best practice strategies and practices. We have truly enjoyed every Covenant student! They are well prepared. Thanks.”

From a recent BSECE graduate: “I would just like to say thank you! I am so proud to have had the opportunity to be a part of this program. I can honestly say it has had a positive impact in my life in many ways. I am an official kindergarten teacher and have also rededicated my life to the Lord four months ago. You guys are terrific and I will miss you! Keep doing what you do best. Thanks for all your help."

From a public school guidance counselor: “Don't know how much feedback you actually get, but Covenant is doing an awesome job of preparing teachers! (They) are all excellent, engaging, enlightened, organized, caring, and highly committed. Thank you.”

From a former M.Ed. student: “Every class I have taken at Covenant has improved my teaching in some way. This is my sixth year officially teaching. Every year I work out more kinks and improve my teaching. Even so, Covenant has added greatly to my classroom in general. I would recommend Covenant's M.Ed. program to anyone - especially a teacher of foreign languages.”

From another local principal: “Your students come to us with an understanding of standards-based curriculum, guided reading, and workshop principles. They’re reliable, capable, respectful, and demonstrate a great deal of care for our students.”