Grand Valley State University's College of Education (COE) is an ideal choice for undergraduate and graduate programs in the fields of education, teaching, and counseling. Offering courses since 1964, the college provides high quality programs with small class sizes. With a commitment to educational principles such as active learning, interaction of theory and practice, and learning relevancy, the College of Education offers students the type of personalized attention needed to become leaders in their fields.

The College of Education partners closely with three TRIO programs at Grand Valley State University: TRIO Teacher Preparation Student Support Services, TRIO Educational Talent Search, and TRIO Upward Bound. These three federally funded programs provide support and guidance to students in the local area; each program works with a specific group of students, from middle school through college.

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College governance at Grand Valley State University’s College of Education (COE) is led by the Dean. The Dean works directly with faculty and staff on the COE Leadership Team to manage the college. Reporting to the Dean are three main college groups: (1) Faculty Council, (2) Affiliate & Visiting Faculty Council, and (3) Staff Council.

Faculty Council houses a number of committees and the COE’s four academic departments. The following four committees report to Faculty Council: (1) Scholarships, Awards, and Merit Committee (SAM), (2) College Advanced Programs, Policies, and Practices Committee (C-APPPC), (3) College Personnel Committee (CPC), and (4) College Curriculum Committee (CCC).

Also reporting to the Faculty Council is the Teacher Education Council (TEC).

Each of the COE’s four academic departments are represented in Faculty Council and report to the College Personnel Committee (CPC) and College Curriculum Committee (CCC). The four academic departments are (1) Educational Foundations, (2) Educational Leadership and Counseling, (3) Literacy and Technology, and (4) Teaching and Learning.

Grand Valley State University’s College of Education (COE) is led by the Dean (S. Soman). Working in the Dean’s Office are:

• Administrative Assistant (S. Evans)
• Assistant to the Dean for Academic Scheduling and Enrollment (S. Bierlein)
• Assistant Dean of Budget and Finances (K. Humphrey)
• Associate Dean of Accreditation and Assessment and Director of Teacher Education (A. Schelling)
• and Associate Dean of Community Impact (J. Shinsky).

The COE has four academic departments and two service units that report to the Dean’s Office. The four academic departments are:

• Educational Foundations, chaired by M. Bair
• Educational Leadership and Counseling, chaired by C. Meyer-Looze
• Literacy and Technology, chaired by S. Lancaster
• and Teaching and Learning, chaired by E. Schiller.

The COE’s two service units are:

• Center for Educational Partnerships, directed by D. Bair
• and the Student Information and Services Center, directed by A. Thelen. This unit works closely with the Associate Dean (A. Schelling).