LSU Lutrill & Pearl Payne School of Education Faculty Demonstrate Expertise at Association of Teacher Educators Conference

BATON ROUGE, LA — Program faculty from the Lutrill & Pearl Payne School of Education (SOE) collaborated and presented at the Association of Teacher Educators (ATE) National Conference held in New Orleans from March 7-12, 2025. The ATE conference, a venue to promote advocacy, justice, leadership, and professionalism in teacher education​, was a national convening of teaching professionals, teacher educators, and leaders. The conference theme of "Advocacy: Advancing, Transforming, and Energizing our Commitments to Education" supported the research and practice of several SOE faculty and doctoral students who collectively focused on deepening the knowledge base of both teacher educators and leaders while addressing challenging issues facing the field in an effort geared toward improving professional development and practice.

Faculty from SOE’s PK-12 Educational Leadership program, Henderson Lewis, Jr., PhD, and Margaret-Mary Sulentic Dowell, PhD, co-presented a generative session titled, “Shifting the National Narrative While Advocating for the Profession: Perspectives on Teacher Education Reforms.” Sulentic Dowell also co-presented with two recent School of Education graduates, Alexandra Chenevert, PhD, (2024 graduate) in a timely session titled, “Supporting the Growth of K-12 English Learners in Louisiana Public Schools: Advancing our Commitment to All Students” and Kirsten Hickingbottom, PhD, (2024 graduate) in an informative session, “Enhancing Writing by Increasing Metacognitive Skills Through Socratic Seminars in High Poverty Middle School Classrooms.” Lewis also partnered with two current doctoral students, Veysel Atunel (Educational Technology) in a provocative session titled, “Advocating for AI-Ready Educators: Transforming Teacher Preparation Through Leadership Insight” and Stacy-Ann Campbell (PK-12 Educational Leadership), in a dynamic presentation, "Reimagining Education: Unlocking the Power of Learning Pods for the Future of Student Success."

Kerri Tobin, PhD, whose corpus of scholarship focuses on the effects of poverty on all facets of education and the specific impacts of homelessness, presented an innovation session on “Homelessness in the Classroom: Teaching Students Who Don’t have a Place to Sleep.” Tobin co-published a recent article about Germany’s Second Chance Schools that complemented her presentation: Fischer, M., & Tobin, K. (2024). Educating Youth Who Don’t Have a Place to Sleep. Phi Delta Kappan, 106(3), 23-27 (available in LSU Library digital holdings).

Tom Ricks, PhD, whose research centers on mathematics and science education teaching and learning and teacher preparation, presented a thought-provoking session, “Advocating for Bureaucratic Restraint in Educational Reform.” Ricks has long championed the reconfiguration of bureaucratic structures that impede educators and hamper education.

Hayley Lindner, doctoral candidate in Curriculum and Instruction also shared her expertise in an inspiring session titled, “PD or not PD: Moving Toward a Holistic Understanding of Teacher Development,” which closely aligns to Lindner’s promising dissertation topic.

Rounding out the effort by the SOE faculty and graduate students was a co-crafted presentation by Jennifer Cook, EdD, who is SOE’s Office of Professional Experience Coordinator and Certification Coordinator and Margaret Weston Piccoli, PhD, an assistant professor of professional practice who specializes in world language education and English as a second language. Cook and Piccoli collaborated on an inventive and original session, “Building English Learners’ Background Knowledge to Teach Changes in the Pontchartrain Basin Due to Climate Change.”

These topics exemplify the depth and breadth of scholarly productivity and expertise of the Lutrill & Pearl Payne School of Education faculty and graduate students and highlight the mentoring many faculty provide to doctoral students. “Our engagement at this conference is yet another example of our commitment to education here in Louisiana and beyond,” said Eugene Kennedy, PhD, Interim Director of the Lutrill & Pearl Payne School of Education.

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About Lutrill and Pearl Payne LSU School of Education (SOE)
A school of the College of Human Sciences & Education, the SOE offers undergraduate programs for students who want to pursue a career as a pre-kindergarten through 12th grade teacher or acquire dual certification in both traditional elementary and special education classrooms. Besides providing graduate certification in Instructional Coaching, educational technology, and urban & community education, the SOE offers a writing pedagogy minor, and a master’s degree in arts, arts in teaching, education (MEd), education in counseling (MEd), certificate of education specialist (EdS) and PhD. The School’s mission is to prepare educational professionals to be leaders, practitioners, and scholars knowledgeable in contemporary educational issues. 

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About LSU College of Human Sciences & Education (CHSE) 
The College of Human Sciences & Education (CHSE) is a nationally accredited division of Louisiana State University. The college is comprised of the School of Education, the School of Information Studies, the School of Kinesiology the School of Leadership & Human Resource Development, and the School of Social Work. CHSE has two model demonstration schools, the Early Childhood Education Laboratory Preschool, enrolling birth to age four and the University Laboratory School enrolling Kindergarten through grade 12. The college also has four centers and institutes: the Early Childhood Education Institute, the Healthy Aging Research Center, the Leadership Development Institute, and Social Research & Evaluation Center. The college is committed to achieving the highest standards in teaching, research, and service and is committed to improving quality of life across the lifespan. 

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