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Education

Mission

Founded in the Catholic tradition and committed to the Dominican ideals of truth, academic excellence and openness to diverse worldviews, the School of Education and Human Services of Molloy University provides a value-centered experience that embraces intellectual, ethical, spiritual and social development in an environment where academic freedom, a spirit of inquiry and respect for each individual’s worth and dignity prevail. The School of Education and Human Services is committed to the preparation of outstanding teaching Professionals with the dispositions, skills and knowledge required to meet the needs of all students they have the privilege to teach. It is the responsibility and goal of the faculty to guide teacher candidates through pedagogically valid and intensely challenging learning and service experiences that empower them to serve as leaders in schools and communities. Faculty recognize that effective teachers have a solid foundation in the liberal arts and sciences, aligned with national, state and institutional teaching and learning standards.

This Conceptual Framework relates directly to Molloy University’s Strategic Plan and is supported by the four pillars of Dominican: prayer, study, preaching and community. These are interpreted as:

  • Spirituality and reflection
  • Research and teaching
  • Service
  • Community

Shared Vision

The Molloy University School of Education and Human Services faculty has derived its vision for the exemplary teacher from the University’s mission statement, the four pillars of the Dominican tradition (spirituality and reflection, research and teaching, service and community), comments and input from the Division's Advisory Boards.

The teaching professionals who complete Molloy’s teacher preparation programs are distinguished by their ability to exemplify and promote core values in their own teaching. These values include:

  • Belief that all children can learn
  • Embracing and celebrating differences in learning styles, and values diversity and personal identity
  • Embracing responsibilities and duties associated with democracy
  • Evaluating and reflecting on professional practice to make informed decisions regarding the use of technology in support of student learning and considering the social, ethical, legal and human issues surrounding the use of technology in the PK-12 schools and applying those principals in practice
  • Approaching intellectual pursuits with integrity and open-mindedness, and valuing educational theory and research to reflect productively on one's own practice
  • Celebrating pluralism and independence, and reflects upon and evaluates the effects of social justice and injustice
  • Valuing and nurturing students' intellectual and social growth and the pursuit of wisdom
  • Assuming appropriate risk in advocating for students and others, and reflecting on professional practice to make informed decisions regarding the support of student learning
  • Demonstrating enthusiasm and passion for teaching and learning, and commitment to students and their learning
  • Valuing assessment, which includes analysis and reflection to improve practice
  • Celebrating respect for self, family, educative institutions and community; valuing and encouraging independence and community including a spirit of cooperation; and embracing and sustaining a safe and nurturing learning environment
  • Appreciating personal and professional empowerment and sense of self efficacy, and valuing skepticism, inquiry and higher order thinking.

For the Molloy community, teaching, when performed with integrity and compassion, is both spiritual and transformative.

Molloy teachers are characterized by their depth and breadth of knowledge in the academic content areas and in professional education, their ability to engage others as a community of learners, their enthusiasm for teaching and their commitment to become reflective practitioners, as well as life-long learners. Therefore, the Molloy graduate can be described as a values-based professional helping students or groups of students to: clarify for themselves the nature of their own questions, in terms they can pursue; interpret their findings, in relation to other knowledge they have generated; and pursue a course of action grounded in study, contemplation and reflection.

To meet this vision, the School of Education and Human Services seeks to:

  • Identify, recruit and retain faculty who are eager to represent, support and promote the shared vision and purpose of the Education Program
  • Collaborate with arts and sciences faculty, who are committed to these proficiencies, in developing a strong content foundation for teacher candidates
  • Partner with PreK-12 schools to collaboratively design teacher education programs, coursework and field experiences
  • Develop comprehensive opportunities for our candidates to assimilate the core values as they become exemplary teachers of knowledge, skills and values/dispositions
  • Regularly assess core values and the programs based on them for continued growth and excellence
  • Utilize the appropriate technology for data collection and strategic planning
  • Embrace diversity and the quest for social justice
  • Integrate relevant and responsible technology into all professional activities.

The program goals of the School of Education and Human Services are categorized as the knowledge, skills and dispositions that affect student learning outcomes. Molloy University School of Education and Human Services' signature assignments and assessments are aligned with New York State Education Department Standards for Teacher performance as well as the specific standards of the following Specialized Professional Associations (SPAs): National Association for the Education of Young Children (NAEYC), American Council on the Teaching of Foreign Language (ACTFL), National Council of Teachers of English (NCTE), National Council of Teachers of Mathematics (NCTM), National Council for the Social Studies (NCSS), National Science Teachers Association (NSTA), Council for Exceptional Children (CEC) and Teachers of Speakers to Other Languages (TESOL). Molloy University is currently pursuing accreditation of its educator preparation programs by the Association for Advancing Quality in Educator Preparation (AAQEP). Pursuant to §52.21 of the Regulations of the Commissioner of Education, the educator preparation programs offered by Molloy University are considered to be continuously accredited for purposes of meeting the New York state requirement that all such programs maintain continuous accreditation.

Purpose

The purpose of the Molloy University School of Education and Human Services is to provide rigorous teacher preparation programs to carefully selected, highly qualified teacher candidates. Faculty hold high standards for each aspect of the program, including selection of faculty, curriculum content, admissions requirements, diverse field experiences and collaboration with arts and sciences faculty and with public and private schools. Assuring high standards among faculty will ensure that Molloy graduates teachers who have the necessary skills, strategies and competencies to teach to New York State’s Learning Standards. Specifically, the School of Education and Human Services' goals are:

  • To maintain the backing of college administrators to ensure continued support for the requirements of the program.
  • To recruit and accept strong and diverse members of the faculty and student body.
  • To collaborate with the arts and sciences faculty in developing a strong content foundation for education students.
  • To collaborate with public and private schools for the improvement of teaching and learning Birth-Grade 2, 1-6, 7-12, and at the college-level.
  • To provide rigorous learning opportunities, including course work and field experiences, which result in highly qualified teacher candidates.
  • To continually assess programs and services to maintain excellence and continued growth.