Q: How would you describe your priorities in your first year as dean?

A: GSE is an amazing place. There are lots of talented faculty and staff. My focus has been on creating a great foundation for the work that still lies ahead. When I met with the staff and the faculty, I shared with them my top three priorities that are easy to remember. Priority number one, students first. Priority number two, students first. Priority number three, students first.

Q: How are you planning to increase student enrollment?

A: We have amazing programs, and we want to make sure that students have the opportunity to be trained by our exemplary faculty. One such program is our accelerated master’s program. We have a value proposition that the quality and the rigor they’re going to get here is unmatched. In the accelerated master’s program, undergraduate students are able to enroll in graduate courses during their senior year and those courses count towards their undergraduate degree and towards teacher certification. In the end, students save a year’s worth of tuition as they finish their Master of Science in Teaching plus teacher certification in one additional year beyond the completion of the undergraduate degree.

Fordham undergraduates understand this to be a great value. Students who graduate from Fordham are proud to be Fordham graduates. So, we want to serve students who are currently in our undergraduate programs and who realize the benefits of continuing their education to earn their graduate degree and teacher certification from us in just one more year. I have worked with one of our clinical faculty to try and grow it, and we’re definitely moving in the right direction. I see us reaching 150 students in about three years. 

Q: How are you working to diversify the student body and the faculty?

A: We implemented a system that allows us to track the diversity of the applicant pool so that we know whether we’re being successful in recruiting a sufficient number of diverse faculty from underrepresented groups. We are continuing to work on plans to launch a doctoral fellowship for Ph.D. candidates who aspire to be faculty in higher ed. We’re a doctoral training institution that is training tomorrow’s faculty. Why can’t we create systems that make it possible for students of color, students from underrepresented groups, or students who are committed to working with diverse communities, to earn these Ph.D.’s at Fordham and to go and work as faculty?

Q: What do you feel has changed the most for teachers in the last 15 years?

A: The biggest and most recent impact has been the consequences of COVID. Most teachers went through their preparation programs and were equipped to teach in traditional modalities—that is, in person, face-to-face. COVID forced every teacher to teach their students remotely. That goes along the lines of what has really changed for teachers, which is the overwhelming influence that technology has had on teaching and learning. Whereas teachers 10, 15 years ago, focused most of their efforts on in-class, in-person experiences, teachers today are dedicating a whole lot of time to having a web presence or email responses. Our programs have to adapt to ensure that we train teachers who are prepared to address the varied needs of the students they serve and are able to thrive in today’s schools

Q: How would you describe the state of teacher satisfaction today?

A: There is a segment of the teaching force is under tremendous pressure from political influences that are encroaching on teachers’ ability to teach their students. A survey from April 2022 called the Merrimack College Teacher Survey found that 56% of teachers are satisfied or very satisfied with being a teacher. But not all is well, many still feel that their salary is not fair, which goes to the issue of public funding for education and the need to focus on teacher compensation. What’s interesting is, some teachers are also more satisfied than others. Male teachers tend to be more satisfied than female teachers with their compensation, and secondary teachers or high school teachers are more satisfied than elementary teachers. 

Teachers often feel overwhelmed not just by the time that they spend teaching, but all of the other demands as well. In fact, the Merrimack survey noted that Black teachers, more so than white or Hispanic teachers, spend more time working outside of the classroom. That’s because of community engagement, and making connections with parents through after school activities.

Q: What role do you see GSE playing in addressing this problem?

A: One of the things that we’re involved in is advocacy in trying to ensure that teacher compensation is fair and equitable. Local districts have to contend with state allocations for funding, and until those issues are addressed at the state and national levels, those pervasive kinds of challenges will remain. In addition to advocacy to increase public funding for school teachers, we’re also preparing teachers who understand that many of us choose the career not because of the pay, but because of the impact that it’s going to have on others. This in no way implies that we believe that teachers should be paid less. We believe that teachers deserve compensation that is commensurate with their level of training as professionals. Current levels of teacher compensation need to increase to retain and attract the best talent out there.

Q: It seems like with nonprofit jobs, the word vocation gets used as a justification to pay a smaller salary. Do you agree?

A: Of course, but that’s not an excuse. Just because it’s a vocation does not mean that you underpay individuals who are choosing to go in that career. It should be appropriately respected and compensated, because teaching is foundational for all other careers. The preparation of teachers will ensure that we have individuals who are well prepared to earn business, science, or law degrees. It was a teacher who taught those students how to read. It was a teacher who taught them basic mathematics. It was a teacher who inspired them to pursue whatever their dreams are. Teachers should not end up in a situation where they have to take second and third jobs just to keep their job. Lawyers don’t do that. Brokers on Wall Street don’t do that. Why do we expect teachers to do that?

Q: Can you expand a little bit upon how the needs of students have changed, particularly with respect to what they need from teachers and counselors when it comes to mental health? How has GSE been confronting this issue?

The socio emotional health of students is a very real need, and it’s been there all along. It has just come more up to the forefront because of the sort of dramatic increase in school violence. I worked with kids with significant emotional behavioral disorders. I know that those needs have been there all along; it’s just that now those kids have access to weapons of war. Teachers also have to contend with issues like cyberbullying.

Our Center for Educational Partnerships offers ongoing professional development for equipping existing teachers to support the social-emotional health of their students. That’s a huge component in our pre-service preparation. It’s always been in our program, but now it’s emphasized even more so. 

Q: What advantage does GSE have over other schools by virtue of being part of a Jesuit university?

Our curriculum is grounded on principles of equity and social justice and and in the Jesuit tradition of cura personalis. We aim to train teachers who address the needs of their students a whole person. There is so much potential in every child, and our professors understand that our teachers are driven by those Jesuit principles of seeking justice and using education as a way to transform individuals and families and communities. St. Ignatius, the founder of the Society of Jesus, was committed to seeking truth and in doing so, trying to create a more just world that addressed inequities and unfairness. I believe that every teacher that we prepare is always seeking truth and justice. 

The reason we place teachers [in field placements]in high need schools is that’s where our teachers are needed the most, and that’s where we believe they can make the biggest impact. Part of the reason is in some ways is to inoculate GSE students to the harsh realities of what’s out there in schools while they’re receiving support. We’re preparing candidates for the what the real world is like, where they’re most likely to end up, but also most importantly, where they’re going to have the biggest impact on students who need them. 

We need a teaching force that understands the challenges of school districts that are diverse and have high needs, and that is committed for the long term. Those students deserve the stability and the support of long-term teachers, not just those who are putting in their “time in” before moving onto wealthier districts. That’s what St. Ignatius would want you to do.

Q: Any final thoughts as you begin your second year? 

A: It’s been just a pleasure getting to meet the faculty, my colleagues and my peers. I feel really welcome and supported. I couldn’t ask for a better situation to be in.

“You persevered during the perfect storm” of the COVID-19 pandemic and a national reckoning with racial inequities, José Luis Alvarado, Ph.D., dean of the Graduate School of Education (GSE), told them during the May 23 ceremony on the University’s Rose Hill campus.

“The path you chose was tough, yet the skills you developed—resourcefulness, tenacity, resilience, and patience—will serve you well in your professional career. … As GSE alumni,” he added, “you are equipped with the tools to promote a just society and to advance educational and social equity.”

For Ever Ramirez, the sense of solidarity Alvarado described was palpable.

“All these people right here who I’m graduating with—they’re my people,” said Ramirez, who earned a master’s degree in school counseling. “I know everyone here is going to support me.”

Ramirez, who started as a part-time student in the program, will begin working as a counselor at Tompkins Square Middle School in Manhattan this fall. “It’s been four long years, and it’s not just [about]me. It’s the people who have been helping me through it: my parents, my fiancée. They’re honestly more excited than I am.”

A ‘Sympathetic and Caring’ Faculty

Several graduates noted how Fordham faculty members not only imparted their expertise in the classroom but also acted as mentors who provided space for making connections, even as classes shifted to meeting online.

“The professors were so sympathetic and caring about our days, so there was a lot of catching up on our weeks” during online sessions, said Coleen Clarke, an assistant teacher at an early childhood center in the Bronx who graduated from the curriculum and teaching master’s program. “I loved all of my professors, each and every one of them. I gained so much from all of them.”

For Teresa Garofalow, online classes were part of the plan from the outset. She graduated from the online master’s program in childhood special education, earning an M.S.T. and certification in both childhood education and teaching students with disabilities in childhood. But she said that faculty support was essential in making things go smoothly.

“I loved my adviser, Annie George-Puskar,” said Garofalow, who works at a private school that emphasizes applied behavior analysis. “She was really easy to get a hold of and talk to with any issue I had. She became my

adviser mid-program, which was honestly really helpful, because I felt I was a little lost. She was a huge help in getting me in the right direction.”

An Accelerated Path to the Classroom

The diploma ceremony marked the second Fordham graduation in three years for Jazmin Nazario.

Three years ago, as a Fordham junior, the Red Hook, Brooklyn, native enrolled in the Graduate School of Education’s accelerated master’s in teaching program. She had been serving as an AP calculus instructor in Fordham’s STEP program, and she knew she wanted to become a math teacher. Nazario began taking graduate courses while completing her bachelor’s degree at Fordham College at Lincoln Center in 2020. That same year, she joined the faculty at Icahn Charter School 6 in the Bronx, where she teaches math to seventh- and eighth-graders.

“What was nice about the accelerated program was Fordham was already familiar to me,” Nazario said, noting that she had the chance to work with her graduate adviser, Alesia Moldavan, Ph.D., as an undergraduate researcher. “It didn’t feel like I had to start over. I already had familiar faces, so it was like keeping it going instead of starting from scratch.”

Bridging a ‘Gap of Inequity’ in Mental Health Services

Ricardo Perez, who graduated from GSE’s bilingual school psychology advanced certificate program, said that one of his professors—Yi Ding, Ph.D.—became a familiar face as soon as he looked into attending Fordham.

“She was at my open house,” Perez said of Ding. “She was actually the person who sold me on Fordham. I credit her with my decision to go here. She’s also been a huge pillar of support. She recommended I apply for scholarships [that I got], so I’m in a great position because of her.”

Perez is currently interning at P.S. 142 Amalia Castro on Manhattan’s Lower East Side, and he is applying to full-time positions as a bilingual school psychologist for the fall. He said he was motivated to become a school psychologist because of his experiences with a younger brother with autism and because of his own childhood ADHD diagnosis. While completing childhood clinical psychology internships as an undergrad at NYU, he realized he wanted to work in a public school. Doing so would offer him a greater opportunity to serve children who have fewer resources, he said.

“The first point of mental health contact is schools, public schools specifically. I wanted to bridge that gap of inequity in mental health services.”

In the Service of Others

Better serving children—a goal at the heart of so much of the work being done by GSE students, faculty, and graduates—was the reason that Melissa Szymanski enrolled in the school’s doctoral program in educational leadership, administration, and policy.

“I consider myself the lead learner of my organization,” said Szymanski, an assistant superintendent for curriculum and instruction in Westchester County, New York. “So everything that I’ve done through this program is really in service to my own learning, in contribution to my organization, and in support of the children.”

That sense of service and dedication is what made Joseph M. McShane, president of Fordham, refer to the graduates as “brave oddities.”

“More precisely, you are saving and heroic oddities,” he said in his address to graduates. “You are not in a profession that you will spend your lives in for either money or glory. Rather, you are a reckless bunch who put the welfare of those in your care above your own. … I am jealous of the students whom you will teach.”

Today, she’s working in the Nanuet, New York, school system, teaching remedial math and remote lessons to students who have to quarantine for Covid. She credits the Graduate School of Education’s (GSE) accelerated master’s program with making it possible. Because she earned 12 graduate-level credits her senior year as an undergraduate, she graduated with a Master of Science in Teaching in childhood education and special education in 2021.

“I’m really blessed, because Fordham is what stuck out on my resume, and doing the five-year program was always mentioned in every interview I did,” she said.

“People would say, ‘How did you do your master’s so quickly?’”

Because she committed to the program at the end of her first year, Giglio was able to begin interning at schools immediately, working as an undergraduate in pre-k, second, third, and fourth-grade classes. She also met with an adviser from GSE for a seminar every few weeks to talk about her progress.

In her senior year, she began splitting her time between the Lincoln Center campus, where GSE classes are offered, and the Rose Hill campus, where she finished out her undergraduate requirements. She credits her adviser, Arlene A. Moliterno, Ph.D., a clinical professor of curriculum and teaching who recently retired, with helping her, especially during the pandemic.

“When we were in her seminar, we could ask her any questions about the graduate classes we were taking. To have that support and to be able to ask questions of someone who you have already built a relationship with is amazing,” she said.

“The way Grad Ed does it is so great because it’s like stepping stones leading you to grad school and a master’s.”

Returning After a Break

Like Giglio, alumna Francesca Russo took graduate-level education classes her senior year. She graduated from Fordham College at Rose Hill with an undergraduate degree in English in 2018. But after graduation, the Yonkers native decided she wanted to enter the workforce for a few years before finishing her master’s. She worked full time for four years as a fundraiser for a private school, and then re-enrolled at GSE in September, carrying with her those graduate credits she earned her senior year. She is currently taking classes part-time and hopes to teach middle or high school.

“I think my path is something that seniors might not realize is an option for them. If teaching is something they’re interested in but are not really sure about, I would encourage them to look into the five-year program, because years down the line, should they want to return to the idea of being a teacher, they’ll already have credits under their belt,” she said.

“If you don’t return to teaching, it’s still beneficial to have 4000-level courses on your transcript when you’re an undergrad. Should you decide to become a teacher, it’s not too late as long as you come back in five years,” she said.

“I loved the professors I had when I was a senior. They were always available outside class, I’ve never had trouble getting in touch with one, through via phone calls or zooms.”

An Opportunity for Self-Discovery

Marilyn Bisberg, a professor in the Graduate School of Education who is the program coordinator for the accelerated master’s, said the program, which currently has 66 students enrolled in it, has been in existence for over a decade. It’s appealing because it saves students both time and money, but there are less obvious benefits as well, she said.

Students who enroll after their first year as an undergraduate can then spend their undergraduate years deciding what it means to them to be a teacher. By the time they enroll in graduate school, they already have a sense of what age range and grade levels they want to teach, whether they want to teach in special education serving students with disabilities, and what disabilities they want to specialize in.

“The seminar and the fieldwork really helps students tease that out. From my perspective, that’s the golden egg,” she said.

“For them to start thinking about this at this point is phenomenal. A byproduct of that is that they may actually feel more motivated and purposeful in their undergrad experience. Not only are they learning in the liberal arts experience, but they’re also looking at their teachers and asking, ‘How do they teach? How can I use this as a teacher?”

Plans for Expansion

José Luis Alvarado, Ph.D., the dean of the Graduate School of Education, hopes that more Fordham undergraduate students take advantage of the program.

“Students who graduate from Fordham are proud to be undergraduates. So, it’s about getting a student to realize the benefits of continuing with their education to earn teacher certification and a master’s degree at the Graduate School of Education. It’s rare that you can finish a master’s degree and certification in one year,” he said.

Ultimately, he wants to increase enrollment to the point where undergraduate students who are pursuing the same specialties will be in their own cohorts. Many undergraduates pursuing degrees such as psychology, for example, might have an interest in teaching as a career, and the accelerated master’s program can make their career goals a reality.

“Given the number of undergraduate students who are here, there’s a fair number of them who want to be teachers,” he said, adding that GSE plans to increase outreach to undergraduate students who wish to become teachers.

“Our challenge is to help undergraduate students who wish to become teachers and connect them with our accelerated master’s program to ensure they are able to realize their career goals in an efficient manner. That’s our job.”

From stories about his father, who immigrated to the United States from Mexico when Alvarado was 10, to paintings that Alvarado has created to pay homage to farmworkers he knew growing up, Alvarado made clear that raising people out of poverty through education is deeply personal for him.

“Teachers are the ones who are foundational to all disciplines. It is the teacher who taught the Pulitzer Prize-winning author how to write. It is that math teacher that taught that banker basic math facts,” he said in an hour-long conversation with William F. Baker, Ph.D., the Claudio Acquaviva Chair and director of the Bernard L. Schwartz Center for Media, Public Policy and Education at the Graduate School of Education.

“Teachers unlock hope. Hope that students have for themselves, and hope that families have for their children. It drew me because it’s a profession that’s grounded in hope.”

Alvarado joined Fordham in July, after serving as provost and vice president for academic affairs at Cal State Los Angeles, the founding dean of the College of Education at California State University Monterey Bay, and associate dean of the College of Education at San Diego State University.

The conversation, which was organized by Fordham’s office of alumni relations, was a mix of questions from Baker as well as those submitted by attendees. In addition to sharing the reasons he got into education, Alvarado and Baker discussed current topics such as the recent politicization of the field of education.

Alvarado agreed it had become a problem, noting that just last month, the governor of Florida barred professors at the University of Florida from testifying about voting rights in a court case. Membership in the Flat Earth Society, he noted, is also on the rise.

“It’s a world that’s topsy turvy, and teachers I think, have to be the steady hand in all of that. Science, facts—teachers have to uphold those,” he said.

Alvarado was asked what it was like to embrace a private university after a career in public education. He noted that in addition to being impressed with Fordham’s dedication to cura personalis—care for the whole person, he also found it encouraging that GSE students, on average, find gainful employment sooner after graduation.

Asked how GSE is supporting Catholic education in New York City, Alvarado said that just a day earlier, they had held a recruitment event at a Catholic high school in the Bronx for teachers who have not yet earned their state teaching certification Catholic school teachers, he noted, receive a tuition discount at GSE.

When it comes to his priorities, Alvarado said he wants to make it easier for students of modest means to follow his own path, from high school to teaching certification. One of those plans involves establishing agreements that provide a way for students in community college (which Alvarado attended) to earn a bachelor’s and master’s degree and a teaching certificate in five years. He also encouraged alumni to reach out to help mentor first-generation students.

During the discussion of Alvarado’s art, attendees saw that some of his pieces reflect the beauty of the world, while others are meant to highlight the powerful and quiet dignity of the working person.

In Strawberry Pickers, a 36- by 42-inch canvas painting, he explained that he split the painting into six panels to show how field laborers sometimes live fractured lives.

“They may be seen as part of an expendable workforce in the fields, but they may be esteemed members of their community, where they’re respected in their church and they’re respected in their families,” he said.

Alvarado became emotional while recounting the experience of working as a landscaper’s assistant in high school. When he told his grandmother how he was embarrassed to picking up dog poop on the lawns of his rich classmates “who were frolicking in their pools,” she told him,
“To steal brings shame. There is no shame in hard work.”

“Much of the work I do tries to show the dignity of the work, and the potential. I think of my father. He only went to the school until the third grade in Mexico. He was a brilliant man. He never had opportunities. So, for me, every kid that I see in an inner-city school, I see a future doctor, a future teacher, a future banker,” he said.

“It’s about creating opportunities and acknowledging that even if someone doesn’t have two or three letters after their name, it doesn’t mean they’re any less of a human being. They have tremendous potential and worth, like anyone else.”

To watch a recording of the town hall, visit here.

Alvarado previously served as provost and vice president for academic affairs at Cal State Los Angeles, the founding dean of the College of Education at California State University Monterey Bay, and associate dean of the College of Education at San Diego State University. He developed the Teacher Pathway Program, a partnership between California State University Monterey Bay and community colleges in the Salinas Valley region that educates underserved first-generation college students predominantly from diverse backgrounds. At the College of Education at California State University Monterey Bay, he also cultivated a diverse community of students and faculty; over 70% of new faculty hires were from diverse, underrepresented backgrounds.

At Fordham, Alvarado is responsible for setting and implementing the vision of GSE, which offers more than 40 master’s, doctoral, and certificate programs in nearly three dozen fields of study. 

In a Q&A with Fordham News, he spoke about his humble beginnings and how they shaped him into an educational leader. 

You had a challenging childhood. What lessons did you learn? 

I was born in the city of Mexicali, Mexico, which borders southeastern California. As my siblings and I progressed in school, my parents who worked as farm laborers, felt that it was time to immigrate and try to escape poverty. In the U.S., our family of six first lived in a one-room shack. We struggled, but there was always a sense of love and togetherness. My mother worked in citrus packing sheds, where she packed grapefruit, oranges, and lemons. My father worked all sorts of crops. I learned my work ethic from my parents, who tried so hard to do better for us children. But growing up, I realized that working hard wasn’t sufficient. As hard as my parents worked, we were still poor. And as I saw the struggles that my two brothers faced—one of them involved in gangs and substance abuse—I knew I needed to do something different.

What set you on a path toward college? 

In my junior year, I told my guidance counselor I wanted to go to college. She leaned back in her chair, looked at me, and said, ‘College is not for you. You should go to a trade school instead.’ My parents raised me to be respectful, so I didn’t say what I was thinking. But I thought, ‘You don’t know me. You don’t know what I’m capable of doing.’ I don’t believe anyone in my high school knew what I was capable of because they just saw another Mexican kid—a throwaway kid. 

My goal was to graduate from college, become a counselor, and take her job. I wasn’t prepared to attend a university because most of my high school experience was remedial. But in community college, I finally felt academically challenged. I fell in love with learning. And I realized that revenge wasn’t my motivator anymore. Whatever I became, I would be in a position to help others. 

You’ve lived and taught on the West Coast for a long time. What brought you to Fordham? 

I love teaching and working with students. But at this point in my career, I see my role as a facilitator: supporting the highest quality preparation for tomorrow’s educational leaders. I feel like I can make a greater impact by supporting the faculty who do that and the staff who support the programs. 

Fordham is an institution that lives by its values: a commitment to social justice, equity, human rights, and to serving underserved communities. I’ve lived my life professionally and personally in a way that aligns well with Fordham as an institution, and certainly the GSE. It felt right.

As dean of the Graduate School of Education, what are your main goals for the upcoming academic year? 

I am interested in engaging faculty and staff in strategic planning, increasing student enrollment, and diversifying our faculty and the students we serve. Research shows that students who are taught by teachers who reflect their ethnic and social backgrounds tend to do better academically. Having teachers who are well-prepared and experts in their field is necessary, no matter what. But when you also have teachers who also reflect the ethnic background and cultural experiences of their students, that’s an even better deal. 

How has being a first-generation college graduate changed your life? 

Education allowed me to break the cycle of poverty for myself and my children, who are both college graduates. They didn’t have to struggle the way our ancestors struggled. What I did is not just for me—it’s for every generation that comes afterwards. 

I wouldn’t be here without the help of so many people, especially my parents, Ignacio and Angela. They always supported me, even though they didn’t know quite what I was trying to do. We were really poor, but somehow my mother ended up with a credit card. The only reason she got it was to put gas in my car so I could drive to my community college. 

Being in education humbles you. You come to realize that people may not have a formal education, but that doesn’t mean they’re not smart. My father went to school until third grade, but he’s one of the smartest men I’ve ever known. He just never had the opportunity. Every day, I try to live up to his potential. 

This interview has been edited and condensed for clarity.

On a hot May afternoon, about 160 candidates walked in person, with their families and loved ones cheering from Edwards Parade. Following the graduates’ procession, Jane Bolgatz, Ph.D., associate dean for academic affairs and associate professor of curriculum and teaching at GSE, introduced Joseph M. McShane, S.J., president of Fordham, for an invocation, and GSE Interim Dean Akane Zusho, Ph.D., who addressed the graduates. Present in the crowd were Virginia Roach, Ed.D., former dean of GSE, and José Luis Alvarado, Ph.D., who will lead the school as dean beginning July 1.

“How we emerge from challenges helps to define who we are as human beings,” Zusho told the crowd, citing not only the COVID-19 pandemic but ongoing conversations around racial justice and education reform. “We need teachers, leaders, counselors, and psychologists who share in the fundamental belief that we can all learn and grow, and who can help their students, teachers, and clients live up to their fullest potential.

“Every student deserves to learn in an environment that encourages them to take risks, ask big questions, and make mistakes. Every student also deserves to know they are in a safe space where there is always a path to redemption through education, free of judgement. And that path begins with you.”

Students graduating across GSE’s degree and certificate programs echoed Zusho’s call for the need to change the world through education.

Brandon LaBella, who received a master’s degree in childhood education and is currently teaching fourth grade at Hillcrest Elementary School in Peekskill, New York, said that the M.S.T. program “made me feel so much more confident as a teacher. It’s incredible to be here surrounded by so many brilliant people, and I think everyone here is going to help make the world a better place.”

Speaking about what it’s been like to teach throughout the pandemic, LaBella added, “It’s been incredible to see the resilience of the students and all the teachers. It just gives me hope for the future that if we can take care of this, we can do anything.”

Darlyn Smith received her master’s in childhood special education through GSE’s online program and is currently teaching first grade at the Pingry School in Short Hills, New Jersey.

“I’ve always wanted to be a teacher, since I was very young,” said Smith. “It’s a great feeling to be here and get to see all the friends that I had online and get to interact and celebrate this wonderful occasion.”

Others reflected on the personal journeys of their years in graduate school. Teddy Reeves received his administration and supervision Ph.D. in GSE’s church and non-public school leadership program, and he said that the research process, while challenging at times, was an essential complement to his work as the curator and co-lead of religion at the National Museum of African American History and Culture in Washington, D.C.

“It has been an amazing, difficult season of writing and researching and finding self,” Reeves reflected. “It’s labor intensive, but it’s a labor of love. It’s been great to mirror the work that I do professionally with the work I got to do at Fordham.”

Magalie Exavier-Alexis, who completed her Ed.D. in educational leadership, administration, and policy while working as a school principal in Brooklyn’s District 13, also noted the challenges of balancing classwork and research with full-time work and a family, but she had no doubt that it was worth the effort.

“I’ve always known that my goal is to cross this finish line,” she said of receiving her doctorate. “I am elated! There are no words to describe my elation and my jubilation.” ­

Many graduates opted to attend GSE’s virtual ceremony, held on Monday, May 24. View the ceremony below and on YouTube.

Dear Members of the Fordham Community,

Father McShane and I are pleased to announce the appointment of José Luis Alvarado, Ph.D., as dean of the Graduate School of Education, effective July 1, 2021. Dr. Alvarado brings a wealth of experience to the role, having served as provost and vice president for academic affairs at Cal State Los Angeles, the founding dean of the College of Education at California State University Monterey Bay, and associate dean of the College of Education at San Diego State University.

Dr. Alvarado earned a Ph.D. in education, with a specialization in special education, from the University of Virginia; an M.A. in special education from San Diego State University; and a B.A. in psychology from San Diego State University. He is a prolific scholar publishing in areas including education and multiculturalism, holistic learning approaches, approaches to students who have emotional and behavioral disorders, and the preparation of special education teachers. Supported by grants from the federal government and other sources, he has made it a central focus of his career to ensure that the educational system is responsive to those living in rural, diverse, and low-income communities. He has a well-established commitment to justice and equity that aligns perfectly with the mission of Fordham.

At California State University Monterey Bay, Dr. Alvarado helped establish accelerated credential programs for teachers in bilingual education and special education. He developed the Teacher Pathway Program as a novel partnership between California State University Monterey Bay and partner community colleges in the Salinas Valley region. Funded in part by philanthropic sources, the program educates local underserved students who are predominantly from diverse backgrounds, and who are the first from their families to attend college. The program has been hailed for demonstrating strong student retention and graduation rates. In building the College of Education, he cultivated a diverse community of students and faculty. Over 70% of new faculty hires were from diverse, underrepresented backgrounds.

Fordham’s Graduate School of Education offers more than 40 master’s, doctoral, and certificate programs in nearly three dozen fields of study. Faculty within the school are renowned teachers/scholars in educational leadership, counseling and counseling psychology, school psychology, and teacher education. As dean, Dr. Alvarado will serve as the chief academic officer of the Graduate School of Education, and bear responsibility for setting and implementing its vision.

Fordham is delighted to welcome an academic leader of Dr. Alvarado’s caliber. He has broad and deep administrative experience, from developing and communicating strategy to generating philanthropic support to promoting diversity, equity, and inclusion. His drive for excellence is rooted in his own life experience—he was a 10-year-old English learner himself, an immigrant son of impoverished parents who worked as farm laborers. As a first-generation college graduate, he is exceptionally devoted to the cause of educational access and opportunity. We look forward to his tenure at the helm of the Graduate School of Education.

We would like to thank the search committee, chaired by Faustino M. Cruz, Ph.D., dean of the Graduate School of Religion and Religious Education, for a comprehensive and inclusive national search. We likewise extend our heartfelt gratitude to Akane Zusho, Ph.D., professor of school psychology, who has admirably served as interim dean of the Graduate School of Education since July 2020.

Please join us in enthusiastically welcoming Dr. Alvarado to the Fordham community.

Sincerely,

Dennis C. Jacobs, Ph.D.
Provost and Senior Vice President, Academic Affairs