Program Rankings & Milestones

2023-24 Departmental Milestones

Curriculum & Instruction

• Welcomed two new faculty members to build on existing strengths in early childhood literacy and computer science education.
• Realigned teacher preparation programs to increase synergies and better support PreK-12 teacher education with a full-time program coordinator.
• Launched a new Trauma-Informed Practice and Pedagogy online master’s degree program and graduate certificate.

Education Policy, Organization & Leadership

• Recruited eight new faculty members to the department: six tenure-system faculty and two specialized faculty members.
• Launched new Instructional Design, Technology & Organization online master’s and doctoral degree programs and enrolled first students.
• Graduated a record number of students from the Online Ed.D. program.
• Department awarded the 2023 Larine Y. Cowan Make a Difference Award for Leadership in Diversity from the U. of I. Office of the Vice Chancellor for Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion.

Educational Psychology

• Welcomed four new faculty members to the department: two tenure-system faculty and two clinical faculty to support the M.S. in Mental Health Program.
• Graduated first cohort from M.S. in Mental Health Program.
• Department is operating nearly $13 million in external grants, including nearly $1.5 million in new grants.

Special Education

• Welcomed one new tenure-system faculty member and one postdoctoral researcher.
• Redesigned LBSI teacher preparation program.
• Graduated 12 Ph.D. students, one of the largest cohorts in years.
• Department was awarded over $15M in active grants from Illinois State Board of Education, Illinois Department of Human Services, Office of Special Education Programs, Institute of Education Sciences, National Science Foundation, and the National Institutes of Health.