Leadership
Kathryn Chval, PhD | Dean Heading link
Kathryn B. Chval is the Dean of the College of Education and Professor of Mathematics Education at the University of Illinois Chicago (UIC). Chval began her career teaching in elementary schools. Her commitment to educational solutions in education is rooted in her early experiences in under-resourced schools in the US and her preparation at UIC. Her research focuses on effective preparation models and support structures for mathematics teachers, effective elementary mathematics teaching for multilingual learners, and curriculum standards and policies.
Prior to joining UIC, Chval served in a variety of leadership roles at the University of Missouri including the Joanne H. Hook Dean’s Chair in Educational Renewal, Associate Dean for Academic Affairs, and Co-Director of the Missouri Center for Mathematics and Science Teacher Education. She also served as the Acting Section Head for the Teacher Professional Continuum Program in the Division of Elementary, Secondary and Informal Science at the National Science Foundation (NSF). Early in her career, Dean Chval worked in the Department of Mathematics, Statistics, & Computer Science and the College of Education at UIC from 1989-2001 as the co-Director on mathematics curriculum development projects and systemic change projects funded by NSF and the Illinois State Board of Education while she earned her graduate degrees.
Loretta Foote Casey | Associate Dean for Administration Heading link
Casey, MPP, oversees fiscal affairs, personnel and space/facilities management; she has served the college for more than nine years. She received her undergraduate degree in Political Science at UIC and her Master of Public Policy degree at the University of Chicago. She serves on several campus committees and has worked at UIC for twenty years; Casey spent several years in the Office of Budgeting and Program Analysis in the Provost’s Office and also worked in the College of Urban Planning and Public Affairs.
Shelby Cosner, PhD | Director of The Center for Urban Education Leadership Heading link
Shelby Cosner is a Professor of Educational Organization and Leadership in the Department of Educational Policy Studies and the Director of the UIC Center for Urban Education Leadership (CUEL).
Decoteau Irby, PhD | Director of Call Me Mister Heading link
Decoteau Irby is an associate professor in the Department of Educational Policy Studies where he teaches and advises in the College’s Urban Education Leadership program area. He researches equity-focused school leadership as a lever to improve Black children’s academic and socio-emotional experiences and outcomes.
Norma Lopez-Reyna | Acting Co-Associate Dean for Academic Affairs Heading link
Norma Lopez-Reyna is the Acting Co-Associate Dean for Academic Affairs
Maria Luna-Duarte, PhD | Associate Dean for Student Success Heading link
Dr. María E. Luna-Duarte, grew up undocumented in Chicago until the age of 21. She pursued a bachelor’s degree in Sociology and a minor in Women and Gender Studies, and later a Master’s degree in Educational Leadership at Northeastern Illinois University. She completed her Ph.D. in Policy Studies in Urban Education from the University of Illinois at Chicago. Early in her career, she worked at the Consulate General of México in Chicago in their legal department. After a few years she transitioned to work as the Community Liaison for the Chicago ENLACE Partnership, a W.K. Kellogg Foundation grant to increase the educational attainment of Latinos from K-16. Upon the completion of the grant, she transitioned to work as the Coordinator of Student Support Services, at Northeastern Illinois University El Centro campus, was later promoted to Assistant Director and then Director. She was the director at Northeastern Illinois University El Centro for over twelve years and an adjunct faculty for the ENLACE Higher Education Program for the past four years. Currently, she serves as the Associate Dean of Student Success and Clinical Assistant Professor, Educational Policy Studies. Her moral principles are founded in hard work and dedication. Her mission is to transform the lives of minoritized populations to provide access and opportunities for higher education to be able to find their passion and become successful professionals.
Dan Maggin, PhD | Associate Dean for Research Heading link
Daniel Maggin‘s research and teaching addresses three areas related to the education of students with disabilities with a particular emphasis on supporting those students with and at risk for developing emotional and behavioral disorders. These areas include the use of various research synthesis methods to help with the identification of effective, school-based instructional and management practices; the training of school personnel to use a continuum of empirically supported assessment and intervention methods to develop individualized educational programs for students with disabilities; and the development and application of methods for promoting the use of research and evidence in schools to assist school personnel better support the individualized needs of students with disabilities.
Jennifer Olson, PhD | Acting Co-Associate Dean for Academic Affairs Heading link
Jennifer Olson is a Clinical Associate Professor in Curriculum and Instruction and Acting Co-Associate Dean of Academic Affairs in the College of Education. Jennifer began her career as a high school teacher in Chicago Public Schools; her approach to university teaching and commitment to urban education emerges from her teaching experiences. Jennifer’s teaching and scholarship focus on supporting teachers in cultivating critical awareness of urban schooling and developing culturally sustaining practices. Jennifer serves as the Secondary Education Program Coordinator, supporting UIC pre-service teachers and collaborating closely with CPS teachers and administrators.
Marc VanOverbeke, PhD | Associate Dean for Academic Affairs (on research leave 2022-2023) Heading link
Marc A. VanOverbeke is Associate Dean for Academic Affairs and Associate Professor in the Department of Educational Policy Studies in the College of Education at the University of Illinois at Chicago (UIC). In his administrative role, he focuses on curriculum, program development, faculty affairs, and assessment, among other responsibilities. His research, supported by the Spencer Foundation and the National Academy of Education, explores the history of education and education policy, and specifically examines the history of educational access and opportunity. His first book—The Standardization of American Schooling—considered the interconnectedness of secondary and higher education at the turn of the 20th century and the ways in which those connections influenced access to college. This book received the Linda Eisenmann Prize for Distinguished Scholarship from the History of Education Society. His current research continues this focus, and explores the history of state colleges, athletics, and the expansion of educational opportunity in the 1950s and 1960s. He received his Ph.D. from the University of Wisconsin, Madison and his M.A. from the University of Colorado, Boulder.
Andrea Vaughan | Interim Director, Center for Literacy Heading link
Andrea Vaughan is the Interim Director of the Center for Literacy (CFL) and a Visiting Research Assistant Professor in the College of Education at the University of Illinois at Chicago. Her research agenda explores literacy teaching and learning across in- and out-of-school contexts, including community-based learning settings across Chicago. Andrea leads research, programming, partnerships, and operations at CFL, and deeply values the opportunity to learn with and from learners, community partners, and a dedicated team of educators every day. Andrea has worked at CFL since 2017, and she earned a PhD in Literacy, Language, and Culture in 2021.