College of Education and Human Development

Connect Magazine

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Working for the Northside

The Northside Job Creation Team (NJCT) has a clear-cut goal: to help bring sustainable jobs to North Minneapolis that pay a living wage and offer decent benefits. So far, it has succeeded in its task, and it wants to make sure that success...

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North Minneapolis art on building

Reflecting on Cambodia

In January 2024, nine CEHD faculty traveled to Southeast Asia to learn and engage with partners in the Kingdom of Cambodia. International Faculty Delegations are part of recent efforts by the Office of International Initiatives to promote cultural...

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Group sitting by the river at sunset

Striving toward educational equity

“The goal for us was to really marry practice and research,” says CEHD’s Executive Director of Educational Leadership Katie Pekel. “By that I mean putting practitioners and researchers in the same place and on a level footing.

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LEAD conference audience

Ahead of the pack

As an undergraduate pursuing a business and marketing education (BME) degree, Bryce Kelley knew that he set himself apart.

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The U of M sales team

Connect Magazine Connect Magazine

CEHD Connect Magazine is published in print three times a year and online by the University of Minnesota College of Education and Human Development for alumni, faculty, staff, and friends of the college.

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CEHD Connect SpSu2025 magazine cover, including 6 U of M athletes performing in sports on a smoky blue background with stadium lights.

Policy breakfast: accountability system for MN schools

In October, CEHD hosted more than 120 educational leaders and policy makers for a Policy Breakfast at the Historic Chateau Theatre in Rochester, Minnesota. University of Minnesota Chancellor Lori J.

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Panel members at the Policy Breakfast include (left to right) Minnesota Department of Education (MDE) Commissioner Willie Jett, CEHD Dean Michael C. Rodriguez, CEHD’s Executive Director of Educational Leadership Katie Pekel, and Superintendent of Rochester Public Schools Kent Pekel

Centering relationships and learning

A group of European school administrators visited CEHD for a week last fall as part of an educational exchange program that has been regularly taking place around the world since 2016. The International School Leaders Association (ISLA)...

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Group meeting of ISLA students

Welcome, new faculty!

CEHD is pleased to announce several new faculty members joining the college

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CEHD faculty members

Advancing black intellectualism

Among Dr. Josie R. Johnson’s greatest achievements at the University of Minnesota was the founding of the Common Ground Consortium (CGC). Through the guidance of Dr. Johnson, then-dean William Gardner, and Professor Jean King, the CGC was...

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Essie Johnson leading a meeting

‘A powerful experience’

A sold-out crowd of more than 400 educational leaders from across the state packed the McNamara Alumni Center in early August for the second annual Leading in Equity, Action, and Diversity (LEAD) for PreK-12 System Improvement conference. Each one...

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Audience at LEAD conference

Minnesota’s first lady of civil rights

By the time she arrived at the University of Minnesota in an official capacity in the late 1960s, Josie R. Johnson already had an extensive and impressive resume. She began early as an active participant in the civil rights movement while still a...

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Dr. Josie R. Johnson