Student Achievements

We are proud to announce the achievements of the following ESS students:

Joanna Mageney, ESS '07, is one of six students whose essays were published on the on-line version of the College of Arts and Letters' Journal of Undergraduate Research. Joanna's essay was entitled, "Understanding Under-Involvement: The Educational Decisions of Motivated Low-SES Parents." Additionally, Joanna will present her research on parental involvement at the annual meeting of the National Council of Teachers of English in New York In November, 2007. Joanna has co-authored a new book with Stuart Greene and April Lidinsky: "From Inquiry to Academic Writing: A Text and Reader" (2008, Bedford/St. Martin's Press).

Erin Westcott, ESS '06, created a movie for her senior seminar class with Prof. Clark Power. Erin based her project, "Educating to Class Under the Dome," on Jean Anyon's research identifying four distince types of schools. View Erin's project by clicking on the link below.

Educating to Class Under the Dome video

Sarah Wear, '05, has been working as an accountant for Ernst & Young in Chicago since graduation from ND. She has kept her interest in education alive by serving as a mentor for HighSight, a program that provides academic support, college admissions prep and leadership opportunities to more than 100 students who attend private high schools in Chicago thanks to HighSight scholarships.  Sarah has also found great opportunities through teaching Junior Achievement courses in the Chicago public schools and volunteering with St. Ann's School in Chicago.  St. Ann's is a Magnificat School - an affiliate of Notre Dame's Institute for Educational Initiatives.

Annie Moses, an ESS graduate, has co-authored a new book: "Beyond Bedtime Stories: A Parent's Guide to Promoting Reading, Writing, and Other Literacy Skills from Birth to Age 5," published by Scholastic Teaching Resources. The co-authors are V. Susan Bennett-Armistead and Nell K. Duke. Annie is currently pursuing a PhD at Michigan State University.

Julia Monczunski, an ESS graduate, recently won a regional Murrow award for a radio story that she wrote about soldiers returning from Iraq. The award was given in the "hard news feature" category for small-market radio stations in Minnesota, Wisconsin, North Dakota and South Dakota.

Leonor Avila, magna cum laude psychology and ESS '05, is enrolled in the School Psychology PhD program at Texas A & M University. In conjunction with her studies, she is a graduate assistant to Dr. Jorge Gonzalez in Project World (Worlds of Oral Reading and Language Development). The purpose of this project is to find evidence of the effectiveness of a preschool curriculum designed to bridge the vocabulary and comprehension gap that exists for many disadvantaged children, in particular, Hispanic preschoolers who comprise the most vulnerable group of children in Texas.

Mary Murphy, ESS '04, works for an organization called Share Our Strength, a national nonprofit that inspires and organizes individuals and businesses to share their strengths to help end hunger. Share Our Strength raises funds in innovative ways - from holding volunteer-led special events across the country to developing cause-related marketing ventures and corporate partnerships. Mary is the Executive Assistant to the Executive Director.

Bridget Dever Ammon, ESS '02, completed her Master's degree in Clinical Child/School Psychology in 2004. She is now working on a PhD in the Combined Program in Education and Psychology at the University of Michigan. Bridget is involved in a large, multi-wave, multi-site study of students' motivation.