Year: Second
Hometown: New Castle, PA
Undergraduate School: Penn State University
Undergraduate Program: B.S. - Psychology
About Me:
I am in my second year as a student in the School Psychology program at IUP. I am currently working on completing his certification courses. I completed my Master of Education degree in August 2011 and am presently teaching EDSP 102. I will begin my doctoral-level classes during the 2012 summer session. Last year, I worked as a graduate assistant for Dr. Joseph F. Kovaleski, director of the doctoral program in School Psychology. I graduated from Pennsylvania State University in University Park, Pa., in May 2009 with a bachelor’s degree in Psychology. While attending Penn State, I worked in a child development lab where I was involved with research on emotional development. During my work in the lab, a few of my responsibilities included collecting and coding data while training undergraduates on data collection and coding procedures. This experience along with my passion led me to the field of school psychology. My research interests involve RTI, effective teaching prinicples, and the effectivness of various system-level programs.
Why School Psychology?
I chose to study school psychology because I want to have an impact with today’s youth and be a part of something bigger than myself. This career will allow me to serve students directly through evaluations, and indirectly through a systemic service delivery system.
Why IUP?
One of the many reasons why I chose to study school psychology at IUP was because of the experienced faculty. They not only teach the material well, they also use personal experiences to make the information relevant. Other reasons include: research opportunities, graduate assistantship opportunities, and practicum experience. The practicum experience is provided through Department of Educational and School Psychology with an on-site psycho-educational clinic called the Child Study Center.
