When our Owls soar, they are not alone - they lift the community on their wings. Research, experiential learning, and community engagement span across disciplines in the field. Below is a sampling of some of our award-winning Owls making an impact here and beyond. 

CEHD Alumni Honored with Lindback Awards for Distinguished Principals and Teachers 

For the 2023-24 academic year, 16 distinguished CEHD alumni working in the School District of Philadelphia public schools were recognized for their excellence in teaching and leadership. These Owl honorees are listed below, and were celebrated in a Philadelphia Inquirer article earlier this year. 
Sarah Apt, '13 
Heather Chero, '18 
Veronica Davies, '04 
Mike DeMeno, '03 
Joanne Donahue, '98 
Frances Eisenberg, '81 
Licinio Ferreira, '01 
Silvia Hortelano-Peleaz, '19 
Marlon Jones, '17 
Lisa Levin, '86 
Dana McNeal, '95 
Alexis McNear, '23 
Marc Reason, graduate student 
Deborah Rimkunas, '07 
Matthew Stine, '08 
Jade Tuff, '08 

Temple University 2023 Faculty Award Winners

James P. Byrnes, professor of psychological studies in education, Lindback Distinguished Teaching Award
"Dr. Byrnes was profoundly instrumental in adding to my skill set as a budding public health social worker and researcher. I am honored to boast Dr. Byrnes contributed to my professional identity in ways that will surely benefit and guide me for the rest of my life. He created a classroom atmosphere that was student-centered and student-driven, which elevated my academic experience. He challenged me and others to be responsible, culturally sensitive and ethical critical thinkers and researchers…" -former student

Aidan T. Brett, adjunct associate professor in teaching and learning, Part-time Faculty Excellence in Teaching and Instruction Award
"[Students] are uniform in their praise for how engaging and interactive the course is, for Dr. Brett's meticulous organization, for his timely and copious feedback, for the rigor of his expectations and the support he provides students so that they can meet those rigorous demands, and especially for the way he helps his students bring research and theory into effective practice." -colleague  

Art Dowdy, Matt Tincani, W. Joel Schneider and Jason Travers 

These four CEHD faculty members recently won an award from Wiley, with co-authors Corey Peltier and Donald A. Hantula, for publishing one of the top-cited papers in the Journal of Applied Behavior Analysis. More at https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1002/jaba.862.

Jennifer Johnson receives Racial Equity in STEM Education (HER Racial Equity) National Science Foundation Grant 
Johnson, an associate professor in policy, organizational and leadership studies, and a team including researchers from George Mason University, Salem State University, the Woods Hole Partnership Education Program and the University of South Carolina, received a three-year, $2.3 million National Science Foundation grant for their project, titled Advancing Collaborations for Equity in Marine and Climate Sciences. The three-year project will examine what processes are employed for developing equity-driven and anti-racist educational collaborations, infrastructures, and pathways in marine and climate science.

Jessica Reinhardt 

Reinhardt, an associate professor of practice, is the inaugural recipient of the Council of Directors of School Psychology Programs Emerging Leaders Award. 

Barbara Wasik and Annemarie Hindman 

The pair, along with JeanMarie Farrow, won the Katharine G. Butler Trailblazer Award from the Topics in Language Disorders Journal for their article titled "Teacher-Child Conversations in Preschool: Insights into How Teacher Feedback Supports Language Development," published in the October-December 2022 issue. 

Joe DuCette and Val Williams 

CEHD's longest-serving faculty and staff members were honored on the field during Temple Football's home opener on Sept. 16 at Lincoln Financial Field. 

Leadership Academy Participants 

Leadership Academy, presented by Temple University Human Resources, has returned this year and CEHD is well-represented with four staff members participating. They include: Rachel Berger, Juliet Curci, Janet Distel and Sarah Stapleton. 

The Intergenerational Center, Lindy Award recipient for Excellence in Partnership regarding Community Digital Literacy Programming 

The award highlights a collaborative partnership between a school and University. The Intergenerational Center's Digital Literacy program works with Potter Thomas Elementary and WD Kelley Elementary to provide digital skills training. Free technology is also distributed inside the school building to caregivers and community members. This is made possible through collaboration with Temple University's Center for Digital Equity, which provides digital expertise and equipment. The program enables caregivers to gain skills to help support their students' education. 

Spotlight on Students and Recent Graduates

Cassy Pressimone Beckowski received a Doctoral Dissertation Completion Grant from Temple University's Graduate School for the fall 2023 semester. Her dissertation is a qualitative case study of three institutions that have made a public commitment to first-generation student success, investigating how the institutions are enacting that commitment, what constituents - including students, staff, faculty, administrators and others - are involved in that work, how first-generation student success efforts connect to broader institutional culture and efforts to promote student success, and, crucially, how first-generation students are navigating and experiencing college at these institutions. 
 

Emily Duddy received the Phi Kappa Delta Scholarship. The organization provides one or more scholarships annually for graduate or undergraduate students enrolled in the CEHD who demonstrate high academic achievement and who have financial need, with preference given to those who have demonstrated service, leadership and/or research in education.
 

Stephanie Joseph and Stephanie Miodus received the Presidential Citation for APA Division 46 Society for Media Psychology and Technology. 
 

James LeGette received the Otto and Della Englert Scholarship, a prestigious scholarship for high-achieving students in the special education program. He is also a member of the Philadelphia Eagles cheerleading squad and received the Spirit Award from the organization.
 

Aenya Ulke is participating in the NASP-ERT Minority Scholarship Program.