2009 Glenn A. Niemeyer Outstanding Undergraduate Student Award

Angela Lohman is Niemeyer Undergraduate Winner

Angela Lohman graduated from GVSU in December 2009 with a B.A. degree in English and an elementary teaching certificate.

"There is nothing about teaching I don't like. In my Pre-K teaching, I loved the kids' enthusiasm and their natural love for learning. In my current 4th grade class, it's so exciting to watch them bloom as students and as people," says Angela Lohman, recipient of the 2009 Glenn A. Niemeyer Outstanding Undergraduate Student Award.

The Niemeyer Awards are the most prestigious academic awards given annually by the University. They honor faculty and students who strive for excellence in all aspects of their educational experience.

Angela's other honors include the GVSU English Department 2008 Book Award and the GVSU Outstanding Elementary Teacher Award.

2009 GVSU Outstanding Community Service Award Winner

Barbara J. Reinken,GVSU College of Education
2009 Outstanding Community Service Award Winner

Barbara J. Reinken,Associate Professor of Education, was honored for her life long passion for literacy and community service. Her professional life has included work as a classroom teacher, a Title I reading teacher, a reading resource teacher and an elementary school principal.

Reinken joined the GVSU COE faculty in 1996. In addition to teaching duties in the Reading/Language Arts program, she founded the GVSU Summer Literacy Center at Godfrey-Lee School, co-chaired the Michigan Department of Education state review of initial certification reading programs,and was one of three GVSU faculty members appointed to the University NCA Study Team task force in 2005. This work led to GVSU's accreditation award.
Dr. Reinken is the only faculty member to have been awarded both the GVSU University Service Award (2006) and the University Community Service Award (2009).

COE Awarded Exemplary Status

The College of Education was named an Exemplary Performance Teacher Preparation Unit for a third year by the Michigan Board of Education. In accordance with HEA Title II requirements, the COE earned 68 out of 70 points in six areas:

• State test pass rates


• Candidate surveys of perceived readiness to teach


• Program completion within six years


• Program review and accreditation status


• Candidate diversity


• Student preparation in high-need subject areas

COE Convocation Grand Marshal - April 2009

Dr. David Coffey, Ph.D,. is currently an Associate Professor in Mathematics where he teaches a variety of courses for College of Education teacher candidates. He joined the Grand Valley faculty in 2000. In the fall of 2009, Dr. Coffey will begin the first joint faculty appointment between the Collge of Education and the College of Liberal Arts and Science. This will be a three-year commitment to teaching courses, engaging in scholarship, and supporting service between the two colleges. Dr. Coffey is excited about this unique opportunity to work more closely with the COE faculty, staff and students.

COE Outstanding Administrator Award, April 24, 2009

The COE Alumni Association honored Margarita Cotto Hernandez, M.Ed., with the COE Outstanding Alumni Administrator Award at the April 24, COE Convocation ceremony. Hernandez earned B.S. and M.Ed. degrees from Grand Valley State University and fulfilled a life-long dream to become a teacher. In 1990 she became the principal at Burton Elementary School where she has worked for the past 19 years. She is the recipient of numerous awards: the Hispanic Heritage Educator Award, 2006, the Martin Luther King, Cesar Chavez, Rosa Park (GRPS) Award, 2002, and the Milken Family Foundation National Educator Award, 1990.

GVSU Outstanding Teacher Award Winner - Dr. Pottorff

Don Pottorff, Ph.D., was awarded the GVSU Outstanding Teacher Award for the 2008-09 academic year. He has been a professor at Grand Valley State University in the College of Education Reading/Language Arts program since 1987. He has taught 11 different courses in that curriculum. His areas of special interest include childrens and adolescent literature, diagnostic and remedial procedures and developmental literacy. Dr.Pottorff has authored numerous published articles and several books of poems. He won the 2001 GVSU Pew Teaching Excellence Award, the 1999 GVSU Alumni Association Outstanding Educator Award,and the 1987 Department of Defense Overseas Schools Superior Teaching Performance Award. Although he retired in December 2008 from GVSU and concluded 43 years in education, he has returned to South Korea to teach at the Taejon Christian International School.

Jacque Melin Wins Golden Apple Award, April 2009

The Kent Readng Council, Kent County, MI, presents an annual Golden Apple award to persons currently making an impact in the field of education. This year COE faculty member Jacque Melin received a Golden Apple.
She was cited for her dedication to affecting the lives of students of all ages, as well as parents, teachers and administrators with her vision of how children and adults learn.

Jacque Melin is a COE faculty member and expert in the area of educational differentiation.

Outstanding Educator Award - April, 2009

June Schaible, M.Ed., received the COE Alumni Outstanding Educator Award at the April 24, 2009 College of Education Convocation. Schaible holds degrees from Grand Rapids Community College, the University of Wisconsin-Stout and Central Michigan University. In 1993 she joined the faculty of the Forest Hills Public School district as an LD teacher.

Working in the public schools has been very rewarding for her. She says she loves working with a very special population of students and is happy that there is never a dull moment. June attributes much of her success to her colleagues. "They are a very collaborative group of people who help to benefit all students as well as each others," she says.

Outstanding Service to the COE Alumni Board, April 2009

Priscilla Hill Gregels, M.A., was cited for her Outstanding Service to the Alumni Board at the COE Spring 2009 Convocation. During her career as a teacher she served on many curriculum revision teams, hiring committees and school improvement teams. Post-retirement, Gregels joined the COE staff, first as an adjunct and then as a field coordinator working with student teachers. She has given six years of dedicated service to the College of Education Alumni Board.

Ryan Willliams Wins First Year Teacher of the Year Award

Ryan Williams, a recent graduate of the COE Graduate Teacher Certification (GTC) program, was one of 10 finalist nominated for the First Year Teacher of the Year Award in Wake County Public Schools, Garner, NC.
In late April 2009, Williams was notified that he was one of two elementary teachers to win the award.

Originally from Southfield, MI, Williams earned his undergraduate degree at Albion College. In 2008 he enrolled at GVSU to earn an elementary teaching certificate in the COE GTC program.

His citation reads "Ryan Williams greatest strength is his ability to form positive connections with his students, helping them to gain confidence and succeed. By establishing the Helping Hands Mentoring Program he is able to build lifelong relationships with his students.

Sally Triant Honored as a COE Outstanding Adult Learner

Sally Triant was honored in April 2009 as Grand Valley's College of Education Outstanding Adult Learner. The Grand Rapids Area Higher Education Network (GRAHEN) awards this honor annually to students who excel at successfully juggling career, school, family and community responsibities.

In 2006, Triant enrolled at GVSU and earned at B.S. degree in integrated science. Then she enrolled in the COE Graduate Teacher Education (GTC) program, an intensive, one-year, full-time teacher training program for adults who hold degrees in a teachable major. She received her teaching certification in April 2009 and is only five classes away from earning her master's degree in education.

Her community service work includes: Blandford Environmental Education School, Goodwillie Environmental School (Forest Hills Public Schools), GVSU Community Garden Committee, MSU Extension Master Gardener Committee, Sweetwater Local Foods Market and Mixed Greens: Growing Kids Who Grow Gardens.

In the picture, Sally proudly displays a handful of carrots, an end-of-the season harvest from the community garden she and her husband started in downtown Grand Rapids.

Sheryl Vlietstra Wins Pew Teaching Excellence Award

Sheryl Vlietstra was awarded the Pew Teaching Excellence Award for Part-Time Faculty at the COE Spring 2009 Convocation. She joined the COE faculty in the fall of 2000 after earning a M.Ed. in GVSU's Gifted and Talented program. She teaches ED 330, Methods & Strategies of Elementary Teaching and ED 350, Current Practices in Elementary Education.

Vlietstra describes herself as student-centered teacher who prides herself on making long-lasting connections with her students. She keeps detailed information about each student and is able to give prospective employers specific examples of their teaching successes. She is proud of the fact that Coopersville Public Schools, for example, has hired six of her student assistants over the years.

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