From the Dean
- Home
- About Fulton Education
- From the Dean
A proposed academic reorganization announced January 23 promises to advance ASU's multidisciplinary research initiatives geared to bring about practical solutions for educating learners of all ages and cultures and for preparing the next generation of educators and scholars.
With the receipt of a recommendation by the University Senate and approval of the Arizona Board of Regents, the proposed reorganization would establish the Mary Lou Fulton Institute and Graduate School of Education - a renewed entity dedicated to studying and improving the enterprise of education locally, nationally and globally. All bachelor's and master's-level teacher education degree programs will be consolidated and administered by the College of Teacher Education and Leadership across ASU's four campuses under the plan.
Since its inception in 1885 as a teacher's college, Arizona State University has remained deeply committed to fostering quality teaching and learning for all students. The proposed reorganization affirms ASU's commitment to education by evolving the mission of its original school to focus solely on studying and solving the most critical education challenges of our time and to preparing leaders and scholars who will share in this endeavor now and in the future.
I can think of no better-prepared faculty than ours to embrace this bold and exciting mission. Our diverse community of scholars is dedicated to advancing a research agenda driven by thoughtful, multidisciplinary collaborations designed to transform education and deliver the solutions most urgently needed by our society today and in the future. We are pushing the frontiers of research and inquiry so that all learners may acquire a deeper understanding of math, science, technology, cultures, languages, justice, and ultimately the larger world around them.
Increasingly, the most significant social and scientific advancements are the result of research initiatives that cut across traditional disciplinary and organizational boundaries, bolstering intellectual synergy and decreasing the time it takes to apply new knowledge and discoveries. The Mary Lou Fulton Institute will transcend such boundaries, sustaining and strengthening ASU's commitment to engaging in use-inspired research that has the potential to solve human problems and enhance the quality of life for the citizens of Arizona and beyond.
ASU's commitment to supporting teachers and the children and families they serve must extend far beyond our academic programs in teacher education and leadership. Externally funded programs and research studies led by multidisciplinary faculty research teams from across the university are broadening ASU's positive impact on pre-K-12 curriculum and instruction, particularly within the science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) subject areas, where innovation is most urgent. Through our work we are helping to shape how teachers teach and improve their practice over time in order to ensure their students' achievement and success.
We are preparing leaders and scholars in the field who, as graduates, are increasingly at the table when transformational decisions impacting education are made. Our students - particularly those studying at the doctoral level - actively participate in the research endeavors in which our faculty are engaged, and experience opportunities to make significant contributions to the creation, discovery and propagation of new knowledge within the field of education. Building upon our forward momentum, the Fulton Graduate School of Education will create a dynamic and unique setting in which to guide, mentor, and support students in doctoral and master's degree programs leading to careers in teaching and research, school leadership, counseling, school and educational psychology, language and literacy, education policy and many other fields. This concentrated focus on graduate education and scholarship promises to elevate ASU's position among the premier institutions in which to study and conduct research, and it will undoubtedly attract more of the best and most intellectually curious students and education scholars to ASU.
I'm confident, that the proposed merger of all ASU teacher education programs under the auspices of the College of Teacher Education and Leadership will strengthen opportunities for students wishing to become teachers. And, at the same time, the creation of the Mary Lou Fulton Institute and Graduate School of Education will bolster intellectual connections among scholars across ASU and create previously unimaginable opportunities for students pursuing advanced degrees in education.
I encourage you to please visit the links provided on this page to learn more about the proposed ASU academic reorganization. And, I invite you to please visit our website often so that you may follow closely the successes that are in store for the Fulton School now and in the years to come.
Sincerely,
George W. Hynd
Dean