The Academic Minute from 8.19 – 8.23
Monday
Jeff Frank – St. Lawrence University
Thinking Philosophically about Screentime in Schools
Jeff Frank is a philosopher of education. He is a professor of education at St. Lawrence University, and the inaugural director of St. Lawrence’s Center for Innovation in Teaching and Assessment.
Tuesday
Alexis Redding – Harvard University
You Have Less Time Than You Think to Prepare Students for Success
Alexis Redding is a developmental psychologist whose work focuses on the college experience and what students need to thrive. She is the Faculty Co-Chair of the Higher Education Concentration at the Harvard Graduate School of Education where she also teaches courses in student development, student affairs, and research methods for higher education. In 2024, she also became Faculty Chair of a new Professional Education course at HGSE: Mental Health in Higher Education: A Theory-to-Practice Approach for Student Well-Being.
Wednesday
Ebony Aya – Macalester College
The Experiences of Black Women in Higher Education
Ebony Aya is a recent PhD graduate of the University of Minnesota in Curriculum and Instruction, with minors in Culture and Teaching and African American and African Studies. In her work she focuses on the experiences of Black women in higher education. She is also a program manager for the Jan Serie Center at Macalester College and professor in Women, Gender, and Sexuality Studies where she teaches on Black feminism. Additionally, Ebony is the founder of the Aya Collective and recently launched the Aya Collective’s first anthology, Let the Black Women Say Ase’ (2022), in addition to authoring the Gospel According to a Black Woman (2020) and Incomplete Stories: On Loss, Love, and Hope (2023).
Thursday
Danielle Clevenger – University of Wisconsin
What’s Wrong With Active Learning?
Danielle (Dani) Clevenger is currently a Philosophy Ph.D. candidate at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. Her research spans a number of sub-disciplines in philosophy including philosophy of science, philosophy of cognitive science, and philosophy of education. She is strongly committed to producing impact-oriented research that can contribute to current dialogues about important social issues. She is also a Gullickson Scholar of Teaching and Learning and works with College of Letters & Science to design innovative new trainings and ongoing development for teaching assistants to help them develop as effective, equitable, and empathetic teachers. Her work is heavily influenced by her time at Eastern Michigan University where she received a B.S. in psychology and B.A. in dance in addition to her first M.A. in philosophy.
Friday
Melissa Beck Wells – Empire State University
Enhancing Teacher Retention and Personal Satisfaction
Melissa Beck Wells is a lifelong educator, formally a special educator in the New York City public schools. She holds her doctoral degree in Special Education, and is a faculty member at SUNY Empire State University. She has four children, all of whom are her favorite child.
