NYS Commissioner of Education and Regent Visit Brooklyn Campus

March 17, 2011

BROOKLYN, NY - March 18, 2011 - On Friday March 12, St. Josephs Dillon Child Study Center hosted New York State Commissioner of Education Dr. David Steiner and New York State Regent Dr. Lester Young to discuss the child study and secondary education programs on the Brooklyn Campus. 

"The roots of this visit stemmed from my experience as a superintendant in the neighborhood for 11 years, said Dr. Young. "During my tenure there, I was always very impressed with the quality, poise and professionalism of St. Josephs student-teachers, and when Dr. Steiner was discussing the problems the state faced in training teachers, well, I told him that they were doing an excellent job at St. Josephs and that he should pay them a visit.

During his visit, Dr. Steiner heard from several faculty, administrators and students about the unique approach St. Josephs takes in preparing its students for careers as educators. Several faculty spoke of how teaching programs at St. Josephs require far more study in their concentration field and begin their classroom observation and practicum hours earlier than students at other colleges. A principal from P.S. 255, Ms. Linda Singer, stated that St. Josephs student teachers were in "a class by themselves and of how highly regarded and sought-after they were following graduation. Following this, two St. Josephs students discussed their experiences while student teaching and noted how what they had learned in class prepared them for the challenges that they encountered.

After hearing from the students, Dr. Steiner listed the challenges that came with reforming the K-12 educational system: the development of standards-based curricula, the improvement of our current assessments, fair and rigorous accountability for our teachers and principals, and a new direction for teacher preparation based on rich clinical experience. In regard to this last item, he complimented the "models and methods used here at St. Josephs. There are a lot of good lessons that could be learned from what you are doing here, and I thank you for your hard work.

"We are honored by Dr. Steiners visit, and it is gratifying to hear that our programs are keeping with the highest standards of teacher preparation, said Sister Elizabeth Hill, president. "Im also very grateful for the wonderful work our child study and secondary education faculty and administrators do on a daily basis in preparing our students to excel as educators."