Dean's Message

Teaching Inspires a Better World

“One child, one teacher, one book, one pen can change the world.”
-Malala Yousafzai

Wise beyond her years, Malala Yousafzai became the youngest Nobel Prize laureate for her advocacy for educational access. She nearly lost her life in the process. What she so astutely understood is the power of education to make the world a better place.

At California State University, Northridge’s Michael D. Eisner College of Education, we provide teacher education that is grounded in the leading-edge pedagogy and infused with the principles of social justice and inclusion. Students who earn degrees and certificates from CSUN’s Eisner College are prepared to thrive in today’s school environment — as teachers, school counselors or psychologists, marriage and family therapists, early childhood specialists, deaf and hard of hearing educators, or administrators.

Teaching is an incredibly rewarding — and impactful — profession. Where else can you shape young minds and experience the excitement of learning every day? Teachers are also very much in demand across California. A 2018 study from the Learning Policy Institute found that 80 percent of the districts across the state report a shortage of teachers.

With 27 different pathways to a credential, CSUN offers one of the most comprehensive and wide-ranging set of teacher education program options in the state. At CSUN, we excel at preparing teachers for success. Alumni are recognized at the highest levels. Rebecca Mieliwocki received the National Teacher of the Year award from President Obama, who also awarded Erica Lundy the Presidential Award for Excellence in Mathematics and Science Teaching. CSUN alumnae Erin Oxhorn-Gilpin and Isela Lieber were named California Teachers of the Year in 2018 and 2017, respectively. Every year, CSUN alumni fill the ranks of the Los Angeles Unified School District’s teachers of the year. This success is directly connected to the preparation and experiences CSUN students experience in our teacher education programs with our award-winning faculty.

I leave you with the words of the Dalai Lama: “Share your knowledge. It is a way to achieve immortality.”

I hope you will join us, become a teacher and inspire the next generation of students to realize a better world.

Sincerely,
Shari Tarver Behring, Ph.D.
Interim Dean
Michael D. Eisner College of Education