The People Behind STEP=UP
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Marie Tejero Hughes Project Co-director |
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Michelle Parker-Katz Project Co-director |
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Jaime Zurheide Research Assistant |
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Lisa Burke Graduate Assistant |
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Liming Wang Webmaster & Technical Support |
STEP=UP Staff
Dr. Marie Tejero Hughes and Dr. Michelle Parker-Katz have long recognized the need to help bridge the gap between pre-service teachers’ university experience and their first year in the classroom. They envisioned the STEP=UP program as a way to bridge that gap while also helping to address the critical shortage of qualified special education teachers in urban schools. In 2007, they expanded the program to also recruit doctoral students to fill much-needed faculty positions in teacher-preparation programs across the country.They would not be able to complete this work, however, without the assistance of a dedicated team of graduate assistants and student workers.
Lisa Burke and Jaime Zurheide are doctoral students who are working as graduate assistants for the STEP=UP program. They serve as support teams to the students, work on the field advisories and other professional development events, and assist with the team's research on teacher preparation for special educators.
Celina Pavon and Grant Mooney are undergraduate students at UIC who serve as office staff for the project.
Liming Wang is a doctoral student in department of Electrical Computer and Engineering. He is the project’s webmaster and technology coordinator.
Please feel free to contact any members of the award program team.
Connections to the Community
The project is also guided by input from the expert voices of our Advisory Board, which includes practicing teachers, family members of students with disabilities, state- and district-level school administrators and special education faculty members from across the greater Chicagoland area.
