ANN ARBOR—The appointment of Karen Wixson as dean of the University of Michigan’s School of Education, effective Jan. 1, will be recommended to the U-M Board of Regents at its Dec. 16-17 meeting. Announcement of the recommendation was made Dec. 2 by Provost Nancy Cantor and President Lee C. Bollinger.

Wixson, who has served as interim dean of the School since She recently served as co-director of the federally funded Michigan English Language Arts Framework standards project, and continues her work on reading standards and assessments as a principal investigator for the U.S.Department of Education‘s Center for the Improvement of Early Reading Achievement.

“Dr. Wixson possesses the intellectual breadth and leadership qualities necessary to marshal the collective strengths of the School of Education and help it continue to build on its excellent reputation,” said Cantor. “The School has made significant progress under her leadership while interim dean, and the president and I are confident that this progress will continue.”

Cantor is particularly enthused about several initiatives Wixson hopes to launch in collaboration with the School’s faculty, including a greater focus on outreach activities and addressing the University’s own emphasis on innovations in teaching and learning at research universities.

Bollinger noted that Wixson is “an outstanding teacher and scholar in the fields of literacy and language arts education, and is highly regarded by her colleagues in the School and the wider community.

“I also appreciate and support her deep commitment to K-12 education through improved teacher training and the sharing of University research findings with classroom teachers, parents and community leaders.”

Wixson hopes also to increase the School’s visibility on campus and increase awareness of its major research initiatives, which draw heavily on field-based work and collaborative efforts involving disciplinary specialists, teachers and administrators.

The School was ranked eighth nationally by U.S. News and World Report in 1997, up from 22nd three years earlier.

“We may be one of the best kept secrets on campus,” Wixson said. “We have parts of five national research centers here, and have nationally recognized faculty focusing on critical educational issues, including early reading instruction, science and technology in urban schools, school reform, and teaching and learning in mathematics.”

Wixson noted that both educational research and teacher education “are likely to become increasingly collaborative, inter- and multidisciplinary, and focused on the needs of the disproportionate numbers of low-income students who are not achieving as we know they can.”

Part of Wixson’s vision for the School is “faculty working together to determine our future course. We’ve amassed an extraordinary faculty with a common mission, and we need to build the infrastructure that allows us to enact our shared vision and take our rightful place as a leader among leaders.”

A member of the faculty since 1980, Wixson was associate dean for graduate studies in the School in 1996-98.

She has published widely in the areas of literacy curriculum, instruction and assessment, including articles and chapters in the Handbook of Reading Research, Language Arts, Reading Research Quarterly, the American Education Research Journal and the Journal of Educational Psychology.

Wixson holds a B.S. degree in behavioral disabilities from the University of Wisconsin, an M.S. Ed. in learning disorders from the State University of New York-Binghamton and an M.S. and Ph.D. in reading education from Syracuse University.

Prior to receiving her doctorate, she was both a remedial reading and learning disabilities teacher.

Wixson’s honors include recognition as a distinguished alumna of SUNY-Binghamton and receipt of the U-M Class of ’23 Teaching Award and the Professional Service Award from the American Educational Research Association, which recognized her work in translating reading research into goals and assessments for the state of Michigan.

Her U-M service activities currently include serving on the Faculty Council of the Edward Ginsberg Center for Community Service and Learning, and on the Steering Committee of the America Reads Tutoring Program. She was a member of the Horace H. Rackham School of Graduate Studies Executive Board in 1991-94, and the Executive Committee of the Joint Program in English and Education and the Combined Program in Psychology and Education.

Wixson is a member of a number of national organizations, including the International Reading Association, American Educational Research Association and Association of Supervision and Curriculum Development, and is a fellow of the National Conference on Language and Literacy.

She also is a member of the Michigan Council of Teachers of English and the Michigan Reading Association.

Handbook of Reading ResearchAmerican Educational Research AssociationEdward Ginsberg Center for Community Service and LearningInternational Reading AssociationMichigan Council of Teachers of English