How Saint Mary’s College of California Is Empowering Students

Saint Mary's College of California's Kalmanovitz School of Education is a student-centered learning community that inspires excellence and innovation in counseling, teacher education, and leadership. Through the practice of shared inquiry, collaborative learning, and community engagement, they empower their students to lead change according to the principles of social justice and the common good.

As the interim dean of the Kalmanovitz School of Education, Mary Kay Moskal strives to support faculty in successfully enlightening their students each and every day. Learn more about everything the Kalmanovitz School of Education has to offer in this exclusive Patch one-on-one with Moskal:

Patch: How long have you been doing business in town?

Moskal: In 1967 the Department of Education was founded at Saint Mary’s and evolved into the School of Education in 1986. In 2006 we became the Kalmanovitz School of Education to honor the legacy of Paul and Lydia Kalmanovitz. Our departments include counseling, leadership, and teacher education. We house the Leadership Center, The Reading Recovery Center, and the Center for Environmental Literacy which includes the internationally known River of Words.

Patch: What attracted you to the line of work you’re in, and how did you get started?

Moskal: I decided to pursue teaching as a second career when I was in my 20s. I taught first-grade for 20 years in Chicago and its suburbs and became a reading specialist. In higher education I taught reading and writing to both aspiring and veteran teachers in addition to supervising reading specialist candidates and co-directing our Reading Clinic. When I stepped down as the Reading Program Director, I then served the Kalmanovitz School of Education as the Associate Dean and now I am serving as the Interim Dean.

Patch: If you had to sum up your business mission to a stranger in five words, what would those words be?

Moskal: Innovation and empowerment for social change.

Patch: What’s the biggest challenge or most difficult moment you’ve faced in your job?

Moskal: In preparing to be a dean, I thought I could read about the job to learn about its best practices. Interestingly, there wasn’t much for me to read. A dean mostly learns on the job, so the biggest challenge, but also the most rewarding part of being a dean, is learning something new each day.

Patch: What’s the most satisfying part of your job?

Moskal: Even though I am the interim dean, supporting educators to successfully teach struggling and striving readers, then stepping back and to watch them become successful, continues to be the most satisfying part of my job.

Patch: How would you say your business distinguishes itself from the others?

Moskal: The Kalmanovitz School of Education programs empower students to focus on the principles of social justice and the common good through shared inquiry, collaborative learning, and community engagement.

Patch: What’s the best piece of advice you’ve ever been given when it comes to success?

Moskal: The best advice I’ve been given is to listen well and engage in productive communication skills.

Patch: Are there any new projects or endeavors you’re working on that you’re extra excited about?

Moskal: For the first time in 56 years, a multiple-subject teaching credential can be earned in four years as an undergraduate, and the Kalmanovitz School of Education has partnered with Justice, Community, and Leadership in the undergraduate college to be one of the first to offer this credential in the state of California.

Patch: Do you have any events coming up in your community?

Moskal: New discoveries in neuroscience show that feelings and emotions are essential to understanding. To learn about The “Upside-down” Brain: You Don’t Think the Way You Think You Do event, please visit our News and Event page for upcoming events.

Patch: How can Patch readers learn more about your work and business?

Please visit the Kalmanovitz School of Education webpage. Connect with us on Facebook.

This Patch article is sponsored by Saint Mary’s College of California

Image Credit: Saint Mary’s College of California