School of Education honors area school superintendents

Liberty University’s School of Education hosted its first Superintendent’s Luncheon at the Barrick-Falwell Lodge at Liberty Mountain Snowflex Centre on Tuesday, Oct. 15. Superintendents from area school systems were invited, including Amherst, Appomattox, Bedford, Botetourt, Campbell, Nelson, Pittsylvania, and Roanoke counties as well as Liberty Christian Academy in Lynchburg and the cities of Danville, Lynchburg, Roanoke, and Salem.

The superintendents, or their representatives, were honored with plaques for their cooperation in making mentoring opportunities available for Liberty’s student teacher candidates. Liberty has more than 1,000 students in practicums and more than 200 in student teaching placements in local schools each year.

Dr. Ron Hawkins, vice president for Academic Affairs and vice provost, greeted the guests.

“We are very proud of our School of Education because they do things with excellence, and we are delighted and thankful that you have decided to partner with us,” he told them.

The event also helped facilitate dialogue between K-12 school leaders and the School of Education.

“We appreciate you opening your doors to our students, and we also hope that we can continue being a benefit to you as we come into your classrooms,” said Dr. Karen Parker, dean of the School of Education. “We are partners working together to improve education and would like to see that continue well into the future.”

Parker shared a quick overview of the programs offered within Liberty’s School of Education.

“Our conceptual framework is that we prepare our professionals to know, implement, and believe based on the principle of God’s Word,” she said. “Our mission is to develop competent professionals with a biblical worldview to teach at both Christian and public schools.”

• The School of Education offers programs to prepare undergraduate and graduate students for careers in teaching, counseling, and leadership in school settings, as well as programs in the area of Sport Management. The Teacher Licensure Program is accredited by the National Council for Accreditation of Teacher Education (NCATE). Graduates also leave the degree program with a certificate from the Association of Christian Schools International (ACSI) and a teaching license from the Virginia Department of Education (VA DOE) and are eligible for public or private school instruction.