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Hi everyone! My name is Amber Dutton and I am a fourth-grade ELA teacher in Holyoke, MA and just had my first child this August. This is my 8th year teaching, and I am just beginning the doctoral program. I have a Master's and Initial Licensure in Reading Specialist. I truly enjoy teaching reading and writing in elementary school, but am looking forward to using my future doctoral degree in district-level positions or higher education opportunities as well. I am interested in researching how students' social-emotional learning can be used to support academic learning. I find one of the number one issues in our school systems across the country is a lack of equity in resources, accessibility, and expectations. I am looking forward to furthering my research methods.

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My name is Andrada and I am a second year doctoral student at AIC (7th trimester). Before that, I spent another 2 and a half years here, working on my master's degree. I am off to a very late start this trimester, due to some personal/medical issues. I am in the dissertation writing phase, and my understanding of the dissertation process is only limited to my exposure to some senior schoolmates at AIC who have been through this process before me, and have been kind enough to share some of the highlights. Also, a few close friends who have done this before me, and have shared not only their body of work, but their greatest struggles, as well. In terms of tools necessary to complete my "doctorate" journey, I would say that I could use a bit more planning and preparation. I have been falling behind in school, as I am working full-time (as a community mental health clinician), while trying to complete my doctorate – not an easy task. Also, my frame of mind has not been the very best lately, as I am also confronted with a series of medical issues that are making it really hard for me to stay on task. My energy level is lower than usual, and I often feel defeated, which is affecting my overall performance. But I have passion for my chosen topic, and I enjoy writing, so I will try to focus more on that.

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Hello Everyone! My name is Tara Popec and I am in my sixth semester here at AIC ( almost done) with the Educational Leadership and Supervision Doctoral Program. I currently am a teacher at a Charter School. I have been working for 8.5 years as a Special Education English Teacher for grades 3, 4, and 5.

I choose to enroll in the doctoral program to advanced into a higher position as a principal. I always like to challenge myself and hold to high expectations. This has been a goal of mine since my first year of college. My passion in being a principal is to have students flourish in their educational journey and as well as establishing an effective administrative team.

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Hi everyone, my name is Alex and I work as the Dean of Students at American International College. I am looking forward to learning more about educational research so I am more prepared for the dissertation process when we get to that point in this program. One aspect of education that I would like to work on changing is access and affordability. Working at AIC I see many students who have to stop out due to affordability challenges. I am interested in finding innovating ways to help students better understand the financial aid process and pay for their education.

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Hi everyone! My name is Amelia McGhee. I began my career as a school counselor with Elementary and Middle school population. I switched things up and  I now work as a mental health counselor in the inner city. My interest in research is not fully in the educational system. My dissertation will be focused on the treatment for adults struggling with substance use and mental illness. However, while working in schools I saw a lack of resources and treatment programs for students. After many programs have shut down or "restructured", child and adolescent mental health treatment has almost ceased to exist. I would be interested in learning more about incorporating social emotional learning into the school curriculum as a way to prevent the need for inpatient level since there aren't many units around my area and how providers can work with educators for student success.

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My name is Latrenda McMillian. I have been a Social Worker for 21 years and I am in my 5th year as an elementary school counselor. My interest in educational research has definitely been shifting, as this is the start of my second year with the program with the teaching and learning concentration. I am very interested in adding to the research on the impact of trauma as it relates to education disengagement and the protective factors needed for resilience. I am also interested in exploring innovative teaching strategies that are trauma-informed and successfully improve the overall school climate. I am looking forward to all the learning opportunities with all of you!

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Hi Everyone,
My name is Lianne Bradley. My interest in educational research pertains to middle school and specifically motivation for school, involvement in school, and achievement at the middle school level. Originally I planned to start right with the students and getting their perceptions. However, the more I learn about educational leadership, the more I realize that a lot of the motivation begins at the teacher and administrator level. If I could change anything in the education system, it would be lack of support/encouragement for teachers I have seen from admin, parents and in some cases students. I think that building a positive school climate starts with teacher buy in and excitement, and I have seen a lack of that specifically at the middle school level.

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I am so happy to "meet" all of you and share this semester together!
My name is Dina Ditmar, and I am the Assistant Director of Undergraduate Nursing and Assistant Professor right here at AIC!  I love my work, and gain so much fulfillment from working with my peers and students.  Growing new nurses is how I have chosen to best contribute to my profession at this point in my career.
I am very interested in student engagement, especially after the return to in person learning after the emergent transition to remote teaching and learning during the COVID-19 global pandemic.  Having experienced it myself, I feel that perhaps perceptions and needs may have changed during and after a potentially traumatic experience.
If I could change anything about the current education system, if I could dream, it would be to make education affordable for all, if not free- then, everyone could literally be whatever they truly wished they could be.  Or, we could decide, hey, I want to go and learn something new now- what a dream!
We tell our children and the young people around us that they should aim high, they can "be whatever they want to be!"  Wouldn't be great if it was really true??
Looking forward to a great fall semester together!

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Hello, my name is Shelby Gauthier. In the domain of education, my interest pertains to the influence social media has on student achievement. Specifically, the application Tiktok, which in 2019 had overtaken all others as the most widely used social media application (Devakumar & Swathi, 2020). I never anticipated my intended theoretical research to move in this direction. Initially, I had been interested in other topics frankly more abundant in the available literature.

Nevertheless, working as an educator in the classroom the last few years, especially post-peak of COVID-19, the significance of the application to the student body was notable. Research on the effects of social media applications on students continues to surface. For example, the application has been linked to bullying among classmates (Rajbhandary, 2022). I find it interesting to know if student behaviors change, whether in or outside of the classroom.

Resources
Devakumar, C., & Swathi, G. K. (2020). A STUDY TO ANALYSE THE IMPACT OF THE TIKTOK APP ON STUDENTS’ ACADEMICS AND PSYCHOLOGY. International Journal of Emerging Technologies and Innovative Research, 7(3), 1039–1043. https://www.jetir.org/view?paper=JETIR2003153

Rajbhandary, A. (2022, January 16). How spending too much time on TikTok affects your mental health. TheList.com. Retrieved July 24, 2022, from https://www.thelist.com/735654/how-spending-too-much-time-on-tiktok-affects-your-mental-health/

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My name is Jeff Mason and I just began my 6th year as a Chemistry teacher at a local public high school!  My current research interests revolve around guided inquiry learning and how it impacts the development of critical thinking skills in high school students.  I did research on this topic during my Masters program and I want to deepen this research.  Critical thinking skills are some of the most vital skills in science and I hope that this research will provide strong practices to help develop these skills.  As for what I would change, I would change the structure of PD days in my district. I find that 90% of PD days have sessions that do not do much to help develop my practice, which makes them feel like a waste of time. I would like to see more hands-on sessions where teachers can try a new method, get peer feedback, and hone their materials to deepen their pedagogical proficiency.

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My name is Dara Gillis and I am currently in my third week as a new Assistant Principal of Special Education! Lots of late nights and early mornings. My current interest within quantitative research right now are parental interviews in how their experience within the Special Education world was positive and negative and why. I hear too many stories about how parents have to jump through hoops just to make sure that their student gets what they deserve. I want to dive deeper into that and try and get into the root cause of why it is so difficult for parents.

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Good Day Cohort Fellows. I am Althea Michel, MSN, RN, assistant professor of nursing at American International College. In the six years in this role, it has occurred to me that an educator could amplify their effectiveness as a teacher with love. More significant learning will happen if the educator loves teaching and the students. If I could change anything in the educational system, I would add regular professional development sessions that would focus on how to infuse love into the classroom.

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Hello, my name is Melissa Blanchette.  I am a third grade teacher in Worcester.  I began my doctoral journey to research executive function in elementary aged children, specifically relating to the alignment of EF function with the Common Core Standards. If I could change anything in the educational system, I would love to see teachers more open to differentiation and scaffolding in the general education classrooms. Not sure if this goal would require additional PD to help teachers understand the natural development of the children's abilities. 

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Hello, my name is Melissa Blanchette.  I am a third grade teacher in Worcester.  I began my doctoral journey to research executive function in elementary aged children, specifically relating to the alignment of EF function with the Common Core Standards. If I could change anything in the educational system, I would love to see teachers more open to differentiation and scaffolding in the general education classrooms. Not sure if this goal would require additional PD to help teachers understand the natural development of the children's abilities. 