Dean's Weekly Newsletter 11-14-2025

Published November 14, 2025

Dear Colleagues,

 

As we move into a very full November with Board of Trustees meetings, campus events, and ongoing academic activities, I am pleased to share several updates from across the College of Education. 

 

Here are this week's headlines:

  1. Introducing Andy Pannell
  2. Rochelle Green featured in NAESP Principal Magazine
  3. Fall Distinguished Speaker
  4. Practicum 1 Students Support Slade Elementary
  5. Tenure and Promotion Reviews
  6. Open Forum and Strategic Plan Meetings
  7. Learning Styles Is a Myth Event
  8. Wyoming Rural Teacher Corps School Visit
  9. UW Showcase and Teach Wyoming
  10. Mark Your Calendars: Dean’s Recognition Ceremony
  11. Trustees Education Initiative Showcase
  12. Wyoming Excellence Chair in Mathematics Education Job Talks
  13. Winter Commencement
  14. Next Dean's Weekly Newsletter on December 5

 

Introducing Andy Pannell: We are delighted to welcome Andy Pannell to the College of Education! Andy serves as the Civic Education Program Manager and State Coordinator for Wyoming We the People and Project Citizen, where he leads statewide initiatives that strengthen civic knowledge, inquiry skills, and constitutional understanding among teachers and students.The Civic Education Program is generously funded by the John P. Ellbogen Foundation and was previously housed in the American Heritage Center. Given the program’s strong alignment with our mission and statewide work, it is now housed within the College of Education.Andy began his career in Colorado as an ESL teacher before returning to Wyoming and teaching at the elementary level, later moving into middle school math, science, and social studies. He is also proud to have served as the head coach of the Laramie High School boys' soccer team for 20 seasons. Andy holds all his degrees from the University of Wyoming, including a Bachelor’s in Elementary Education, a Master of Science in Middle Level Mathematics from the Science and Math Teaching Center, and an Educational Leadership certification. He is dedicated to expanding professional learning for educators, elevating civic engagement opportunities for students across the state, and fostering the next generation of informed, active citizens. Welcome to the College, Andy!

 

Rochelle Green featured in NAESP Principal Magazine: Rochelle Green, director of the Organizational Leadership Program at UW Casper and an associate lecturer in the School of Teacher Education, has an article featured in the November/December 2025 issue of NAESP’s Principal Magazine. Her piece, “You Don’t Have to Be Loud to Make Magic,” highlights practical strategies for supporting introverted educators and helping quieter staff make meaningful contributions. You can read the article here: https://www.naesp.org/resource/you-dont-have-to-be-loud-to-make-magic/

 

Fall Distinguished Speaker: The College of Education will host Dr. Peter Afflerbach on November 14 from 1:00 to 2:15 PM in the Union Family Ballroom. Dr. Afflerbach, Professor Emeritus at the University of Maryland, is a leading scholar in literacy whose work focuses on reading comprehension, assessment, and metacognition. His talk, “Teaching Readers, Not Reading: Complementing Strategy and Skill With Reader-Focused Instruction,” is open to faculty, staff, and students.

 

Practicum 1 Students Support Slade Elementary: Slade Elementary Principal Heather Moro shared a warm note of appreciation for our Practicum 1 students, who recently assisted with the school’s Dia de los Muertos exhibit. She highlighted how kind and helpful our students were and extended an open invitation for them to stop by and see the final display in person. We are grateful to Sarah Rundall for coordinating this placement and for sharing the picture and message for the newsletter.

 

Tenure and Promotion Reviews: Cases for tenure and promotion in the College of Education have gone before the College Reappointment, Tenure, and Promotion Committee, and ballots are currently being collected. These cases will move to the Dean’s Office for final review in December. College of Education faculty can also expect to receive notifications about their annual reviews in December, with submissions due in the early spring semester and finalized in March. More information about requirements and a detailed timeline will be shared soon.

The timeline for staff performance evaluations follows a similar schedule. Staff and supervisors are encouraged to begin preparing for annual evaluations. Reference guides for completing evaluations in the WyoCloud system are available here: https://uwyo.teamdynamix.com/TDClient/1940/Portal/KB/?CategoryID=12973

Open Forum and Strategic Plan Meetings: Associate Deans Alan Buss hosted two engagement meetings this week with support from Jake Orr, Project Coordinator. An open forum was held on Wednesday, followed by a staff-focused strategic plan meeting on Thursday. Thank you to all faculty and staff who attended and contributed thoughtful questions and input.

Next week, Pete, Alan, and Jake will host college-wide Strategic Planning Meetings (B session) on Monday and Tuesday from 12–1 PM in Ed Annex 229 to finalize feedback on the College’s Strategic Plans.

 

Learning Styles Is a Myth Event: Joe Schroer’s “Learning Styles Is a Myth” event was a success, sparking thoughtful and substantive conversations about how people learn and retain information. The persistence of the learning styles myth runs deep in the education system, and Joe emphasized how equating learning with personal preferences can be detrimental to student growth. The connections formed with students during these discussions strengthened his resolve to continue engaging future teachers in conversations that challenge neuromyths and widely accepted fallacies in education. Joe Schroer is an Associate Lecturer in the School of Teacher Education.

 

Wyoming Rural Teacher Corps School Visit: Members of the Wyoming Rural Teacher Corps recently visited Clawson Elementary School in Horse Creek, WY. The visit was organized and led by a current Corps member who is student teaching at this eight-student school in Laramie County School District 1. Corps members from elementary education, secondary math education, and secondary ag education were able to experience the dynamics of a small rural classroom firsthand. They were especially struck by the close-knit school community and the mentor teacher’s skill in teaching eight students across multiple grade levels in a single classroom.

 

UW Showcase and Teach Wyoming: College of Education faculty and staff, in collaboration with the Wyoming School-University Partnership and UW Admissions, participated in Teach Wyoming Day last Friday and Saturday. The two-day event brought high school students interested in education careers to campus, where they stayed in the residence halls, explored career pathways in education, and engaged in hands-on learning activities. Our College of Education Student Ambassadors also presented at the event, and they did a wonderful job representing the College and connecting with future students. Teach Wyoming Day coincided with UW’s Showcase Saturday, giving prospective students additional opportunities to attend a resource fair, meet campus partners, and experience student life at UW.

 

 

Mark Your Calendars: Dean’s Recognition Ceremony: The College of Education will host the John P. “Jack” Ellbogen Dean’s Recognition Ceremony on December 5 from 5:30 PM to 8:30 PM in the Marian H. Rochelle Gateway Center. Students, staff, faculty, and friends of the College are invited to join us as we recognize recent College awards, celebrate student achievements, and reflect on another impactful semester. More information about how to RSVP will be shared soon.

 

Trustees Education Initiative Showcase: The Trustees Education Initiative Showcase, held in conjunction with next week’s Board of Trustees meetings, will highlight graduates and current students from our Career and Technical Education and Agricultural Education programs and will feature Wyoming’s statewide CTE and Ag Ed students, graduates, and advocates. The event will take place on November 19 at the UW Conference Center from 5:30–8:30 PM and is open to the public.

 

Wyoming Excellence Chair in Mathematics Education Job Talks: The School of Teacher Education invites the College community to attend job talk presentations for the four finalists for the Wyoming Excellence Chair in Mathematics Education. Candidates include Scott Chamberlin, Jessica Shumway, Lorraine Males, and Jeremy Zelkowski. Each will present on “Connecting Research and Practice to Serve WY PK–12 Math Education through Professional Learning, Collaboration, and Support.” Presentations will be held from 1:30–2:30 PM in ED 117 and via Zoom. More details are available in the attached flyers.

 

Winter Commencement: Winter Commencement will be held on December 13, and faculty are encouraged to attend in support of our graduating students. Additional details about the ceremony can be found here: https://www.uwyo.edu/commencement/index.html

 

Next Dean's Weekly Newsletter on December 5: Next week is the November Board of Trustees Meeting and the following week is Thanksgiving break, so I will send out my next Dean's Weekly Newsletter on December 5. Between now and then, if you would like to share any updates, please send them to me. 

 

I hope everyone has a restorative and enjoyable Thanksgiving break. Thank you for all you do for our students, our programs, and our College community. As we move into the holiday season, I wish you time for rest, connection, and renewal, and I look forward to continuing our work together in the weeks ahead.

 

Jenna