Inspire, Summer 2005

Newest M.Ed. Grads Congratulations to the five newest master of education (M.Ed.) graduates of Cedarville University! Three of them recently shared their reasons for choosing Cedarville’s M.Ed. program and what they gained from the experience. Teresea Baumann Teresea teaches sixth grade at Xenia Elementary Christian School (Ohio), which is part of Dayton Christian Schools, Inc. She resides in Xenia. I chose Cedarville because it is convenient to my location, it has an excellent education faculty, and Dayton Christian Schools was supportive of my going there. My favorite thing from taking classes was meeting lots of other teachers from all over the place. It was almost like going to summer camp. Instant good friendships were formed each time I took a class. It made a great support system as we all worked our way through the various courses. Margaret Grigorenko Peggy lives in Cedarville and is an intervention specialist at Cedarville Middle School. As a teacher, I had been taking master’s level classes for about 20 years, but was committed to raising my four children. Since our children were in the “leaving home” stage and the Cedarville program was literally around the corner, it was an opportunity that I could not pass up. In addition, my undergraduate work in education had been at a secular university, and I was excited to add a Christian dimension to my graduate studies. The best thing about this program was its flexibility. Classes met on weekends and during the summer, so I was able to honor my family, work, and ministry commitments while earning my degree. In addition, each class had a paper/project component that allowed me to research or apply pertinent aspects of each course to my teaching situation. The highlight was definitely the thesis, in which I was able to research and implement language training for low-achieving students, resulting in amazing improvement in their proficiency scores. This has motivated me to continue my studies in a Ph.D. program. 12 Summer 2005 Ethan Hodge ’02 Ethan teaches seventh grade general and enriched (honors) social studies classes at Springboro Junior High School (Ohio) and lives in Carlisle. I chose Cedarville’s M.Ed. program for several reasons. Having earned my B.A. degree at Cedarville in history and political science and integrated social studies education, I already knew that Cedarville’s academic programs were exceptional. I wanted the same excellent instruction and personable professors for my graduate work. I really liked the Saturday/summer modular class schedule; the program is tailored to meet the needs of busy professionals. This is a big difference between Cedarville’s program and the state university where I took several classes. Last, but certainly not least, I wanted to earn my graduate degree from an institution that is committed to teaching from a Christian worldview. I searched for a graduate program that would stretch me intellectually and challenge me with new ideas; Cedarville’s program certainly fits that description. Cedarville’s M.Ed. program taught me to think deeper about previously unquestioned assumptions and to consider everything I do as a teacher in light of my walk as a Christian. The program gave me a desire to continually improve myself and to continue learning. The academic quality of the program has served me well, both as a teacher and as a student. I have been accepted into Regent University’s Doctor of Education (Ed.D.) program, and, Lord willing, I will begin my doctoral coursework at Regent this summer. If you need to maintain certification, augment your professional development, or earn an M.Ed., Cedarville University graduate programs can help. Visit www.cedarville. edu/graduate for more information. (Left to Right) Teresea Baumann ’05 M.Ed., Margaret Grigorenko ’05 M.Ed., Ethan Hodge ’02, ’05 M.Ed., Kelly Victor ’05 M.Ed., Gretchen Wilhelm ’05 M.Ed.