["Pomp & Circumstance" by Edward Elgar plays] Hello. I’m Robert Floden, Dean
of the College of Education. The hooding ceremony for doctoral graduates is
a long and cherished tradition in our college. We take this moment to reflect on the
incredible accomplishments of scholars during their time at Michigan State University and to celebrate the new and challenging
responsibilities they will soon take on. We wish that we could be honoring our new Ph.D.
recipients in person this spring. Althoug
h the COVID-19 pandemic continues to pose challenges,
we hope that you and your loved ones are staying healthy and safe and that you will enjoy this
commemorative video to honor your achievements. The College of Education takes pride in its
graduates and we hope you will take pride in the quality of the highly ranked programs you
are completing. The college is widely respected because of the faculty, staff, students, and
alumni who represent it so well around the world. As doctoral students
, you have been key
contributors the missions of our college and, more importantly, you are ones who
will carry this work into the future. The pandemic has made apparent
that the challenges you will face, and the ways you will overcome them,
are difficult to predict. I’m proud of what you have already accomplished and feel
confident that the future is in good hands. Thank you for all you have done for our college
community, and the ways you will go on to help your own schools, colleges, an
d
communities in powerful ways. Thank you and Go Green. Let us now recognize candidates
in the Department of Counseling, Educational Psychology, and Special Education, chaired by Dr. Cary Roseth. First, we honor those graduating
from the Ph.D. program in Educational Psychology
and Educational Technology. • K. Bret Staudt Willet Bret came to MSU through the Serious Games
Certificate and stayed to complete the Master of Arts in Educational Technology. He then
started the EPET Ph.D. program,
where his teaching feedback, service record, and success
in academic publishing has been impressive. He begins as a tenure-track Assistant Professor in
Instructional Systems and Learning Technologies at Florida State University this fall. Bret is
grateful for the unwavering support of his family during these past five years. He would also
like to thank his co-advisors, Matthew Koehler and Christine Greenhow, for their wisdom and guidance, and for Paul, for never letting him down. • Paul Reim
er Paul came to MSU with extensive experience as
a mathematics teacher and instructional coach. Early in his doctoral study, Paul shifted
his focus to early childhood teachers at the AIMS Center for Math and Science Education, a non-profit dedicated to improving STEAM education. Paul's work on a project to deepen Head Start
teachers' knowledge about children's mathematics and explore ways to support
children's mathematical development led to his dissertation research--an insightful
explorat
ion of the tensions and interplay between early childhood teachers' attempts to
support students' mathematical learning through instruction and play. Paul plans
to continue his work with the AIMS Center. He would like to thank his wife, Candi, for her
constant support; his children, for believing in him every step of the way; his advisor, Ralph,
for thoughtful guidance and direction; and his good friend and colleague, Bret, for sharing
the joys and struggles of the last five years. • Kathry
n M. Rich Katie came to MSU with extensive experience in
developing mathematics curriculum materials and supporting elementary teachers’ use of those
materials. With her co-advisor Aman Yadav, one strand of her work focused on
educating elementary teachers to integrate computational thinking within math and science
instruction as a part of the NSF-funded CT4EDU project. In her dissertation, she engaged her dual
interests in mathematics education and technology. She worked closely with six e
lementary teachers as they explored the promise of virtual manipulative materials for teaching challenging topics related
to fractions. After she defends her dissertation this summer, she will become a Senior Researcher
at the American Institutes of Research in Chicago. She would like to thank her dissertation
director, Dr. Jack Smith, members of her committee; her parents Joan and
Joe Rich, her sister, Laurie Rich; her virtual officemates, Sukanya and Phil;
and all her friends in the EPET
community. Swati Mehta Over the last six years, Swati has developed a
deep passion for her work on creating inclusivity, equity, and visibility of women and
people of color in computer science. Her dissertation work at the intersection of
race, gender, culture, and technology will inform how we broaden participation in computing
at the undergraduate level. In her research, she is examining how computer science
faculty can adapt a gender-inclusive culturally responsive computing approach
in
their courses. During her time at MSU, Swati has developed as a scholar and a teacher
and has pushed our thinking on issues of equity, diversity, and inclusivity in computer science
education. She would like to acknowledge her husband, an EPET PhD graduate, her advisor, and
her son for supporting her during the PhD journey. Now we recognize the candidate from the Ph.D.
program in Rehabilitation Counselor Education. Rosanne Renauer Rosanne is a seasoned and impactful leader
of the disabilit
y community in Michigan. After a thirty plus year career with the
state vocational rehabilitation agency, she remains dedicated to leadership, mentoring and
the pursuit of systems change through effective collaboration and full inclusion. Rosanne
led the statewide transition initiative for students with disabilities, among other systems
change efforts, and managed the agency’s resource and program development work emphasizing
policy, community partnerships, technology, customer services and
staff development. She had
a remarkable career before entering our program and performed exceptionally well
during her doctoral studies. She has an unquenchable thirst for learning and
has highly impacted our program and her colleagues with her incredible insight and kindness.
Rosanne would like to thank her daughter Chelsea, her advisor Dr. Michael Leahy, and the
faculty and colleagues in her program. Next here are the candidates from the
Ed.S. program in School Psychology. Katie Grenan
With her exceptional interpersonal skills,
commitment to youth who have been minoritized, and strong collaboration skills, Katie
will be an exceptional school psychologist. Katie completed her internship with Branch
Intermediate School District. When she reflects on her graduate school experience, she is
proudest of successfully completing her internship during COVID-19 and fostering relationships
with staff, students, and their families. Her fiancé, Aaron, her parents, Nancy and Jack,
and
her aunt, Liz, are celebrating with her. She would like to thank her friends,
family, and cohort for their love and support during graduate school. Next year,
she’ll be working with Ionia County I-S-D at the birth to three and elementary levels.
She is most excited about working with the Ionia County Early On team and learning a new
role working with babies and their families. Sarah Musson Sarah will excel as a school psychologist
because of her excellent problem-solving skills, natural cu
riosity, and her warmth and empathy.
While on internship with Branch Intermediate School District, she is most proud of her
work providing social skills interventions and coordinating phonemic awareness interventions.
She is celebrating this honor with her parents and fiancé. She would like to thank her
advisor, the school psychology faculty, her family, her cohort, and her fiancé for their
support and guidance over the last three years. Next year, she will continue working
with Branch ISD
at the Pre-K to 12 level. She is excited about building on the
initiatives that started this year. Kate Numbers With her exceptional critical thinking, kind
heart, and passion for service, Kate will be an outstanding school psychologist. She completed her
sought-after internship with the Heartland Area Education Agency in Iowa. Through her training,
she’s most proud of learning how a noncategorical system of special education eligibility works
in practice. (She thanks her MSU professors fo
r introducing the concept and inspiring her
Iowan adventure!) She thanks her parents, Leanne and Terry, for their support, patience, and
push to always keep learning. She also thanks her cohort-mates, Katie and Sarah, who helped her
maintain sanity during grad school. Finally, she thanks her school psychology professors
for their wisdom and guidance. Next year, she’ll remain in Iowa at Heartland, continuing
to learn about noncategorical eligibility and shepherding systems
change efforts to
completion. She looks forward to returning to Michigan and
working with her school psychology colleagues. Let us now recognize candidates in the Department
of Kinesiology, chaired by Dr. Alan Smith. Here are the candidates from the
Ph.D. program in Kinesiology. Morgan Anderson Morgan has been an incredible
teacher, and productive researcher, and has provided service to
the East Lansing community. In her short time at MSU, Morgan taught
three upper-level courses both on-line and face-to-fa
ce. She applies a strong initiative
and work ethic to her research. In fact, she has earned almost $25,000 in
funding for research fellowships and practicums, 12 publications, two book chapters, and almost 50 conference presentations. Morgan also has a strong line of research that focuses on sleep
and anxiety in college-age adults at baseline and post-concussion. She has completed all these tasks with the highest integrity, maturity, and moral principles. She would like to thank her family,
her advisor and mentor, Dr. Tracey Covassin, her committee members, and friends
and fellow AIR Labs labmates. Jill Kochanek Jill is a model of MSU’s land grant mission,
embodied across scholarship, teaching, and service to the community. She represents a
unique integration of teacher-scholar-practitioner in the fields of sport psychology and sport
coaching. Informed by her research interests on social justice, equity, and diversity in
sport, she is a passionate advocate for inclusive sport
environments. While she has already
demonstrated significant scholarly promise, with numerous first-authored publications,
her research-to-practice translational activities truly exemplify Jill's
ethos and her impact on the world. These qualities will be on display as she begins
her faculty career at Springfield College, directing their master’s program in Athletic
Leadership. She would like to thank her advisor Karl Erickson and faculty mentors, Andy Driska
and Dan Gould, for their suppor
t and wisdom, research "hub" members at the Institute for
the Study of Youth Sports, and her family. Thomas B. Birchmeier Tom came back to his home state of Michigan after
several years away working as an athletic trainer. He brought his clinical experience
and willingness to work hard with him. During his time at MSU, Tom obtained external
funding from regional and national foundations, published nine peer reviewed manuscripts
in top journals, and presented at numerous conferences with nat
ional and international
audiences. More importantly, Tom's work and his sense of empathy has brought positivity
to the lives of the patients in the lab, the students he has mentored, and his peers. Tom
will be starting a Department of Defense funded post-doctoral fellowship at the
University of North Carolina. He would like to thank Chris Kuenze, Tracey
Covassin, Shelby Baez, Rajiv Ranganathan, Andrew Schorfhaar, Caroline Lisee, and his family and
friends, especially his parents and grandp
arents. Ashley Nicole Triplett Ashley is a triple Spartan who embodies the
passion, commitment, and work ethic that make MSU the special place that it is. Ashley joined Dr.
Chris Kuenze’s lab a little later than expected but quickly made up for every second that she
had delayed and more. Whether it was applying her expertise and skill as an exercise physiologist to
help young patients make a return to sports after knee surgery, guiding undergraduate and graduate
students through some of the
toughest courses, or making sure the department softball
team was ready to take the field, Ashley always found a way to bring
joy and a sense of humor to her work. Ashley would like to thank her family friends,
AIR labmates, her advisor and her committee. Seungmin Lee Seung holds a M.S. in Sport Science
from Seoul National University; a M.S. in Kinesiology from
Michigan State University; and now a Ph.D. in Kinesiology from MSU.
Seung's award winning research has been funded by the North A
merican Society for the
Psychology of Sport and Physical Activity. Seung has authored or co-authored nearly two
dozen papers in high impact journals. He leaves the MSU College of Education with quite a legacy
of scholarship and collegiality and his advisor, Dr. Nicholas Myers, is certain that the best is
yet to come for him professionally and personally. Seung would like to thank his wife Mera Choi,
his parents, advisor and committee members. Seung and Mera will forever be part of the famil
y
that is the Department of Kinesiology at MSU. William Burghardt Bill entered the doctoral program after
completing his undergraduate and master’s degrees in Kinesiology at MSU. He has gained a
variety of experiences during his time at MSU, including completing the Certificate in College
Teaching. His research centers around sport/data science, and his dissertation topic relates
to modeling the relationship between workload and injuries in college football players. Bill
has done the Hercu
lean task of completing a PhD in three years while working full time
as a strength and conditioning coach in the Athletic Department and adding two children
to his family (to make three total). He will continue his work in sport science and plans to
continue collaboration with Kinesiology faculty. He would like to thank his wife Alaina Burghardt,
advisor Karin Pfeiffer, committee members Chris Kuenze and David Ferguson, Mark Dantonio, and the MSU athletic medicine staff and football players.
Emily Werner Emily brought an important and unique perspective to the Kinesiology PhD program. She is trained in exercise physiology, but also nutrition
and dietetics and is a Registered Dietitian. Her insights on nutritional aspects of
working with various exercising populations have added significantly to the department’s
research productivity. Emily has been an integral part and solid citizen of the PhD student group
and has done outstanding work helping younger students perform their ow
n research activities.
She has accepted a position as team dietitian for the Philadelphia 76ers of the NBA. She would
like to thank her parents Carl and Sharon Werner; her advisor Dr. Jim Pivarnik and his wife, Linda;
her siblings Charlie, Aimee, Molly and Lynne; and her previous advisors and friends that
have supported her through this journey. Madison C. Chandler Madison is interested in understanding
how health-oriented behaviors and related attributes modulate neural
processes related
to scholastic achievement. She served as the lead doctoral student
on a multi-site project with GoogleX, where she demonstrated an ability to integrate
competing perspectives while examining the utility of combining psychophysiological measures and
machine learning. She adjusted her dissertation in response to the pandemic by leveraging
a collaboration she had developed with another laboratory to utilize existing
datasets to provide novel insights into the relationships between fine motor s
kills,
writing, and high-level cognitive operations. Madison has published seven peer reviewed journal articles (with four as first author), and three additional first author manuscripts in review.
She has accepted a position as a Postdoctoral Researcher at the Matthew Gfeller Sport-Related
Traumatic Brain Injury Research Center at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.
She would like to thank her doctoral committee, the members of the Health Behaviors
& Cognition Lab, and her fam
ily! Emily Marie Wright
Emily’s research focuses on understanding how the youth sport experience influences
families, with the goal of helping families enjoy the youth sport experience and maximize
the benefits of participation for all parties. She is an excellent and highly productive
researcher, publishing numerous articles and making presentations during her time at MSU. Emily
has also been an exceptional doctoral student, fulfilling her duties as a research assistant
in the Institute fo
r the Study of Youth Sports and a teaching assistant in the Department of
Kinesiology. She received the All-University Excellence-in-Teaching citation, showing that
Emily is distinguished not only as a researcher but as a teacher. She will become an Assistant
Professor in the Department of Exercise and Sport Sciences at St. Benedict and
St. John's University in Minnesota. She would like to thank her advisors, her family
for all their support, and her fiancé, Zack. [Associate Dean Kristine B
owman:]
Wow. I am always impressed by the
accomplishments of our graduate students. As we have continued to experience the effects of a global pandemic, your contributions as scholars, teachers and community members
have been especially outstanding. I am Kristine Bowman, associate dean
for academic and student affairs. Congratulations on earning your doctoral degree, the highest achievement in your educational
journey, from the College of Education at MSU. We honor your commitments to expand
ing knowledge, to improving teaching and learning, and to transforming policy and practice in ways that
promote health, well-being, equity, and justice. We can’t wait to see how you
will continue making an impact during the next chapters in your careers. But first, we pause once more to thank
those who have supported you along the way. First, let us recognize the faculty members.
These individuals have encouraged and guided you through important challenges. We also
thank your family members
, friends, and colleagues, who have cheered you on and made
countless sacrifices leading up to this point. Now, you are part of the Spartan alumni family. We hope that you will stay connected
to the College of Education as you carry forth in your professional careers and
represent us so well throughout the world. Thank you so much and congratulations. Go Green! ["MSU Fight Song" plays]
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