Message from the Dean

Dear School of Education community,

This month marks National Native American Heritage Month, and this Nov. 25 is National Native American Heritage Day. These designations are an opportunity for us to celebrate and honor the contributions and achievements of Indigenous peoples, as well as their vibrant and diverse cultures, traditions and history. It is also an opportunity to deepen our efforts in self-educating, reflecting and listening to the current and past issues and challenges facing these vital members of our community.

The UCI School of Education and UC Irvine campus are on the homelands of the Acjachemen and Tongva peoples who, in the face of ongoing settler colonialism, continue to claim their place as stewards of their ancestral lands as they have for the past 8,000 years. Recognizing the land on which the School of Education sits is intended to honor the Indigenous peoples who are the original and current caretakers of this land, to encourage us to reflect on the genocide and forced removal of Indigenous people by colonizers, and to mindfully acknowledge our present place in colonialism.

I encourage our School of Education students, faculty, staff, alumni and friends to take the time to broaden their understanding and knowledge about the issues, achievements, sacrifices and resiliency of Indigenous peoples in the United States and beyond.

Selected resources:

• The History Project at UCI resources for teachers – historyproject.uci.edu/native-american-history-2
• Native American Heritage Month resources for teachers – nativeamericanheritagemonth.gov/for-teachers
• American Indian Chamber of Commerce of California – www.aicccal.org
• UCI American Indian Resource Program and outreach to the Native American community – Contact: Justine Medina (justinmm@uci.edu)
• U.S. Library of Congress Native American Heritage Month resources and virtual events – nativeamericanheritagemonth.gov
• Bureau of Indian Affairs, U.S. Department of the Interior – www.bia.gov/bia

It is through this deepened knowledge, understanding and partnership within our community and the communities we serve as educators and scholars, that we may lead the transformational change we hope to see in education and beyond.

Sincerely,

Frances Contreras

Dean and Professor

UCI School of Education

School News

Undergraduate Student Spotlight

National STEM Day

• Sandra Simpkins receives $1.5M NSF grant to study math and science motivation (Read more)
• WACUBO Service Project Raises $11,500 in STEM Kits, Athletic Equipment (Read more)
• Equity-focused book clubs allow aspiring teachers to ​reflect on identity, personal histories (Read more)
• Doctoral student awarded NSF GRFP Non-Academic Research Internship (Read more)

• OCEAN is making waves in its fifth year with graduate students, local schools (Read more)
• School of Education relaunches UC-CSU environmental, climate change literacy partnership (Read more)
• Doctoral student aims to increase Latinx interest in STEM fields through Graduate Research Fellowship (Read more)
• Researchers create educational moments at grocery store (Read more)

Upcoming Events

• Nov 19 – Korean American and Asian American Studies Curriculum Conference

• Dec 6 – CRLP Admin PLC Leadership Series

• Dec 8 – Reclaiming Student Agency to Develop Creative and Critical Readers and Writers

• Dec 8 – Elevating Voices of Educators

• Jan 17 – CRLP Admin PLC Leadership Series

Time Capsule

Memories of Becoming the School of Education

The School of Education began as the Office of Teacher Education in 1967 with three students in its inaugural class. It later grew into the Department of Education in 1991 and, in 2012, became the School of Education.

Pictured: A 1989 photo from the UC Irvine Libraries' University Archives of an Education teacher working with students in a classroom.