Dr. Hannah Holl

1. Tell me about yourself. What is your educational background and where have you worked previously?

I started as an elementary physical education teacher in Lewisburg, PA as a long term sub. In that position, we integrated health into physical education, which is a lot of what I do here at SRU. I earned my teaching certificate at Lockhaven University and did some public school teaching, then went on to get my Masters and my Doctorate in Curriculum and Instruction at IUP. During my Doctorate, I worked with preschool children on creating healthier nutrition and physical activity habits, so my research and dissertation was on school based activities for preschool children. That’s what brought me to my career here where I prepare future teachers to make a difference with physical activity and healthy eating through schools.

 

2. What attracted you to Slippery Rock University, and in particular, the College of Education?

I was a temporary faculty at IUP when I was looking for a tenure track position and there were a couple of openings at IUP and SRU. Through attending state and national conferences, I had seen other Slippery Rock professors presenting. One of the things that they did really well was get students involved with research and the presentations. I was interested in that way of teaching and learning where the student is a big part of their learning experience, which is now called project based learning. That’s really what attracted me to Slippery Rock, seeing what other SRU professors in the COE were doing out in the field. I kind of looked up to them and thought I really wanted to work there because they were active in research and presentations. 

 

In addition, the Slippery Rock students are just good! I can remember applying for jobs in K-12 schools and knowing that I’d be up for jobs against SRU graduates because I knew that their training was state of the art and rigorous. I never went here as a student but I always knew that it was a quality school for education.

 

3. What is your favorite course to teach? 

I absolutely love what I do and love every course that I teach, but lately a course that I have really been enjoying teaching is Social and Emotional Wellness. It’s a relatively new class and part of the School Wellness Education curriculum that we created about five years ago when we saw that there was a need in schools to really help students feel better socially, emotionally, and to develop coping strategies that can help them handle life’s stressors. The class is fun and relevant and in this program. A lot of the strategies taught are through activity, but there are also some classroom based strategies that help students connect with each other, help them self-reflect, and help them know that there are tools to empower themselves. Then when stressors do come up in their lives, they don’t have to feel defeated since they have some skills to be able to face their stressors and cope better. So while I really love all my classes, Social and Emotional Wellness is one that is so relevant and important. 

 

4. What is your favorite aspect of working in School Wellness Education?

My favorite aspect is that I am teaching real world stuff. If you look at the health and wellness of society today, a lot of adults use physical activity to cope with stress and as a way to manage their blood pressure. We as teachers in schools have the opportunity to use physical and health education as the vehicle to give people these skills to stay healthy and well.

At the end of the day, I feel like I am helping people live better. And honestly, our profession was not always that way. Physical and health education used to be more based on “can you do push ups or run a mile”, and that has shifted now to “how can you be a healthier better human and what skills can we work on to help you get there”.

I also love working with the students. They come in passionate and excited with all of these ideas. A lot of times, I learn from them when they get to do peer teaching or teaching in the field.

 

5. What were you like as a college student?

As a college student, I was always curious and wanting to learn more. I went to classes with an open mind and that's really what drove me to keep going to get a Master’s and Doctorate degree. I could see that in this field, there was so much more to learn. I think that’s common with any area in the field of health or education. As soon as you learn one thing, either that fact changes or there's a new strategy or idea that builds on it. I like the aspect that I can go to class and really get something out of it. I was a pretty average student though. I was not an overachieving student who earned awards in all areas. I was a good student, just not one of those students who everybody always remembers. I was a good example that all students can be successful!

 

6. What do you know now that you wish you would have known as a college student?

I wish I would have known how valuable some of the opportunities were. I did go to classes curious and I took some opportunities to go to conferences and workshops, such as the state convention to see other speakers. However, I wish I would have known then that it's really an honor to be able to be a college student and to have the opportunity to seize every opportunity, not just some of them.

Dr. Laura Strong

1. What is your educational background and where have you worked previously?

I took a non-traditional route after high school by joining the

Army. I started out as an enlisted soldier--a veterinary

technician, and went to college part-time. I then got an

ROTC scholarship so I was let out of my enlisted obligation

early and received my Bachelor’s degree in Oklahoma at

Cameron University, in Secondary English. At that time, I

became a commissioned officer in the Medical Service Corps.

Eventually, I held many administrative and leadership

positions, including working in a dual role as a unit

administrator for the Army Reserves before resigning from

the Army after 12 years. In my heart, I still desired to teach.

At IUP, I went back to school to earn my Master’s in Teaching

English with certification. Later, I received a Doctorate in

Curriculum & Instruction. I taught in the Professional Studies

department at IUP from 2010-2020. This included courses in

Early Childhood, supervision of student teachers, masters in

education, masters in Literacy, some doctorate level

courses, and grant-funded opportunities with Fulbright

scholars. I loved working with International teachers from

around the globe! And now, this is the beginning of my third

year at the Rock! 

 

2. What attracted you to Slippery Rock University and the College of Education? 

I went through my doctoral program with Dr. Amodei, so

we’ve known each other since 2008. She mentioned to me

when there were some faculty needs in 2019 and it was just

the right moment in time for me to change directions.

Switching to SRU gave me something to look forward to, a

fresh start! Before then, I had several opportunities to come

up to SRU and serve on the panel for the Action Research

projects. It was always great to see the quality of teachers

emerging at the COE! 

 

3. What is your favorite course to teach? 

ELEC 285, Integrating Creative Expression Through the Arts.

My dissertation research focused on creativity in Higher Ed

and it’s been an interest for me all the way around, at every

grade level. 

 

4. What is your favorite aspect of working in Early Childhood Education? 

A second love of mine is student teaching supervision. I get

to go into early childhood classrooms and not only watch the

growth of my student teachers, but see the progress of all

those young learners. Especially in fall, when they’re starting

a brand new year, I particularly enjoy observing in

Kindergarten. They don’t have routines and rules that

they’re accustomed to yet, and then by the time I see my

student teacher at the end of a placement, all of those little

ones have come so far, too! 

Also, my background is in secondary English, and I am so

connected to language and language development. Early

childhood gives me insights into language early on as it is

really developing, and I’m able to observe progress and

collect data on where that is going to go in the future. 

 

5. What were you like as a college student? 

In one word: busy! I didn’t do college “traditionally”, and for

me it was about focusing on the mission, both in a military

way and in a driven, “get it done” kind of way. I did have fun

still, but I was very committed to the mission. One of the

reasons I joined the service was to earn money for college,

so I knew what I wanted and I was going for it! 

 

6. What do you know now that you wish you would have known as a college student? 

One of the biggest things that I wish I had known was that we

all learn differently and at our own pace. Even though I was

driven, I feel like I was comparing myself to others, and

there’s no use in that. As a young person, you still care a

little too much about what other people think. I was always

trying to explain or justify myself to others. When I was

getting my Master’s and my certification, I was in my 30s and

I began to relax more and realize that it’s not a race. We’re

all in this together!

Dr. Michael Ignelzi

1. Tell me about yourself. What is your educational background and where have you worked previously?

I am a native Californian who grew up in Southern California.  I moved to the East Coast to attend graduate school settling in Pittsburgh after I accepted a faculty position at Slippery Rock University over 26 years ago.  An interesting, fun fact – my father grew up in Pittsburgh and moved out to California as a young man and two of my adult daughters now live in San Francisco.  So apparently, each successive generation in my family relocates from Pittsburgh to California or California to Pittsburgh.  I completed my undergraduate degree at the University of California, Riverside in Psychology, my M.A. in Student Affairs at Ohio State University, and my Ed.D. in Human Development and Psychology at Harvard University.  Before becoming a faculty member I worked as a Resident Director at the University of California; Davis, Director of Residence Life at Menlo College (Northern California); and Dean of Students at Wells College (upstate New York).  I have the distinction of being one of the few men to ever serve as Dean of Students at an all womens’ higher education institution.  When not teaching or doing research, I am an avid Major League Baseball fan (I follow the Pirates and the LA Angels), a music and film buff, and a doting grandfather.

 

2. What attracted you to Slippery Rock University, and in particular, the College of Education?

When I finished my doctorate at Harvard, I knew I wanted to teach in a graduate program educating students to work as Student Affairs educators.  The College of Education at Slippery Rock had a growing Master’s program in Student Affairs, but no full-time faculty members.  I was intrigued with the opportunity to be the first tenure track faculty member in the program, and to be able to further build and grow a relatively young graduate program.  Over 26 years later, with the help of a number of good faculty colleagues, we have built a solid, respected Student Affairs M.A. program that places students in key leadership positions at colleges and universities across the country every year.

 

3. What is your favorite course to teach? Why?

I actually have three favorite courses that I developed and now regularly teach – Lifespan Development and two semesters of a course on College Student Learning and Development.  I had the wonderful opportunity to take courses from, do research with, and teach with a number of renowned developmental psychologists while at Harvard (Erik Erikson, Lawrence Kohlberg, Carol Gilligan, Robert Kegan), and I enjoy teaching students about the value and utility of applying developmental theory to the work of Student Affairs and Counseling.  Student learning and development should be the central mission of colleges and universities, so it is critical that higher education professionals and counselors know how to support students in that development.

 

4. What is your favorite aspect of working in Counseling and Development?

The favorite aspect of my job is working with talented, caring students who want to make positive contributions to the lives of others, and having some small part in giving those students the tools to meet their professional goals and aspirations in their chosen helping profession.  I also enjoy having the opportunity to engage in interesting research with my colleagues.  Dr. Don Strano and I are currently conducting cross-cultural research, interviewing higher education institution professionals in Western Europe exploring how they provide essential student affairs and counseling services to their students.

 

5. What were you like as a college student?

I loved my undergraduate college years!  I immersed myself in the college experience, particularly in the co-curriculum.  I worked at the campus radio station, I was a member of two rock bands, and I served on and was President of the Campus Programming Board.  I remember myself as fun, invested in my friends, and a somewhat better than average student.

 

6. What do you know now that you wish you would have known as a college student?

I wish I would have better known that we grow most in life from taking reasonable risks even if the outcome is not what we had hoped for.  We learn most from our challenges (and often mistakes) in life, so we shouldn’t try as hard to avoid them.  When an interesting opportunity presents itself, even if it scares us, we should try and find a way to say yes.

Dr. Randall Nichols

1. Tell me about yourself. What is your educational background and where have you worked previously? 

I was born and raised in Titusville, Pennsylvania. I received my undergraduate degree and my Master's degree here at Slippery Rock, and I received my doctorate from West Virginia University. Prior to coming to SRU, I worked for Penn State University. I worked at the Beaver campus and their main campus back and forth for five years. This is now my 25th year here at SRU!

2. What attracted you to Slippery Rock University, and in particular, the College of Education?

When I was hired, we were actually in the College of Health and Human Services. What attracted me to Slippery Rock was the opportunity at the time that exercise science and sports management were in our department. I had a wide range of experiences from Penn State University that fit in a number of different places here at Slippery Rock. Since then I completed my doctorate in pedagogy from West Virginia University, so that line aligned more with the College of Education. That kind of put me more in the health and physical education, school wellness education, and teacher prep program. Since then it became its own department, and sports management also became its own separate department. My education and background led me more towards the teacher prep program that we had here. Once those departments left our department, we were moved to the College of Education, which was a better fit.

3. What is your favorite course to teach? Why?

My favorite course to teach is probably the assessment and promotion class. The point of the class is how to assess learning both formatively and summatively, and then also how to promote learning. It's one of the most important courses because once a student learns how to assess learning, it empowers them in that they are actually teaching something that they can see. The time and effort they put into their lesson planning and the lesson delivery is actually having an impact and students are learning. That is the most enjoyable course for me. As for the promotion part of that, once you're confident that you are teaching something and students are learning, then you can promote what's happening in your courses. You can promote yourself as an effective teacher. There’s a lot of confidence that comes from being able to assess learning and to be able to prove that learning is actually happening.

4. What is your favorite aspect of working in Physical and Health Education?

My favorite aspect of working in physical and health education is the school wellness education program. We revised what most people think of as Health and PE teacher education to school wellness education, and I really enjoy being a part of that program! It gives a different vision of what a Health and PE teacher can and should be in a school. It's about health and wellness. It’s about empowering people to become healthy and well and less about games and sports.

5. What were you like as a college student?

I was on the baseball team here and I was a pretty serious student. I graduated with a pretty good GPA and just took most of my courses professionally and seriously. I can't say I was that as a high school student, I was a little bit different as a high school student than I was as a college student. But a light bulb went off for some reason, somewhere along the way, in terms of being a college student where I became much more serious about what I was learning, how I was learning and why I was learning.

6. What do you know now that you wish you would have known as a college student?

I wish I would have known a lot more about what, how, and why I was learning. Most importantly, why. Now that I look back, I don't see the why of some things that were part of me being a college student. I wish I had paid a little bit more attention to what I was doing, how I was doing it, and why I was doing it, and spent more time on the things that were really important.