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News & Events
Spotlight on Students
Alumni Spotlight
CME Graduates are Educating Future Leaders
The Center for Multicultural Education at the UW has been a leader in research projects and activities designed to improve practice related to equity issues, intergroup relations, and the achievement of students of color. Their graduates are now educating teachers across the nation. The following graduates share their experiences at the Center, as well as their research interests.
Michael R. Hillis, Ph.D.
University of Washington, 1994
Associate Professor of Education,
Pacific Lutheran University
"The Center for Multicultural Education at the University of Washington was the most critical element in my development as a scholar, teacher, and advocate in my professional career. Having the opportunity to work as a research assistant to Professor James A. Banks in the Center for Multicultural Education, a teaching assistant during the summers to Professors Geneva Gay, Shirley Brice Heath, Carlos Ovando and Gloria Ladson-Billings, and the daily mentoring these individuals provided was indispensable. These experiences were formative not only in my growth, but also for my professional advancement."
Current Research/Practice Focus: "During the past eight years my work has focused on explaining why multicultural education is critical for all students in U.S. society. In this work, I have attempted to bridge the traditional conservative/liberal positions by arguing that multicultural education is more than a ‘liberal cause’ but epitomizes the basic democratic values of American society."
Lauri Johnson, Ph.D.
University of Washington, 1999
Assistant Professor, Department of Educational Leadership and Policy Studies,
State University of New York at Buffalo
"My experiences at the University of Washington have proved foundational in my intellectual grounding as a multiculturalist and my stance as an activist educator and researcher. I participated in challenging coursework with top scholars in multicultural education, gained valuable experience as a research assistant in the Center for Multicultural Education, and was encouraged and sustained throughout my graduate program by a diverse learning community of graduate students, scholars and classroom educators committed to transforming schools to provide equitable learning experiences for all students. I am proud to be a UW graduate in Multicultural Education who ‘stands on the shoulders’ of the pioneering multicultural scholars and educators who have come before."
Current Research/Practice Focus: "My current research aims to ‘push the boundaries’ of mainstream multicultural education beyond curriculum and pedagogical issues through historical and contemporary studies which examine educators’ conceptualizations of race, urban school reform, leadership for social justice, and the development and implementation of diversity policies."
Karen Gourd, Ph.D.
University of Washington, 1998
Assistant Professor, Department of Educational Studies, Knox College
"My experiences at the Center for Multicultural Education as a research assistant and student had a powerful influence on my development as a teacher educator and scholar. My teachers and mentors at the Center as well as the Center’s visiting scholars and faculty gave me an opportunity to interact with the leading scholars in the field and to participate in the major developments in the field. These scholars and researchers are still influencing my scholarship and teaching."
Current Research/Practice Focus: "Our current teacher education program is rooted in social justice. I have worked to give more explicit attention to multicultural education during the revisions of the program that have taken place since I have been on the Knox College faculty. I have co-facilitated workshops to help faculty move from positions of care and concern to positions of action in their classrooms."
Andre Branch, Ph.D.
University of Washington, 1999
Assistant Professor of Education, San Diego State University
"The Center for Multicultural Education and its faculty provided opportunities for me to work with leaders in the field of multicultural education on national research studies that continue to have significant influence on multicultural education reform in the United States. The various projects on which I participated in the Center for Multicultural Education ignited my own interest in ethnic identity development and multicultural education curriculum development in K-12 public schools and in higher education."
Current Research/Practice Focus: "With the aid of grant monies, I conduct research in two areas in public schools: the implementation of multicultural education in K-12 public schools and the efficacy of ethnic content knowledge in lesson plans across the curriculum."
Tyrone C. Howard, Ph.D.
University of Washington, 1998
Assistant Professor, Graduate School of Education & Information Studies,
University of California, Los Angeles
"Working with the Center served as an invaluable resource for my professional and intellectual growth. The information provided by guest lecturers was insightful and the multitude of publications were thought-provoking. This information enabled me to learn new forms of inquiry for examining issues pertaining to race, ethnicity, and gender in schools. Moreover, my ongoing work to increase access and equity in U.S. schools continues to be informed by work emanating from the Center."
Current Research/Practice Focus: "My research and scholarship are in the areas of multicultural education, improving urban schools, and social studies education. Much of my professional grounding results from my experience working with the Center for Multicultural Education and its faculty."
Michelle VanderVelde Woodfork, Ed.D.
University of Washington, 2002
School Coach and Professional Development Coordinator, Small Schools Project,
Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation
"Community–this is what the Center for Multicultural Education meant to me as a graduate student. The relationships that were formed and the learning that took place among the students and faculty who were associated with the Center are some of my most powerful learning experiences. The Center exposed me to the latest research and the key scholars in the field of multicultural education through courses, guest lectures, symposiums, conferences, and one-on-one contact in the halls, through e-mail, and over dinner. I cherish my graduate school experience for many personal and professional reasons."
Current Research/Practice Focus: "Currently, I am assisting principals and teachers as they implement their grants from the Gates Foundation to reform their schools so that all students have an opportunity to succeed. At the heart of my work and the small schools movement are issues of equity. I am facilitating these conversations with many educators and educational leaders so that historically disenfranchised students and their parents are better served by our public school systems."
(Photos: Tyrone Howard, top left; Lauri Johnson, top middle; Michelle VanderVelde Woodfork, top right; Andre Branch, bottom left; Karen Gourd, bottom middle; Michael Hillis, bottom right.)
Spotlight on Students
