The Michigan State University College of Education Alumni Board enhances support and promotion for the college, as well as for faculty, current and future students and friends. The Board provides leadership and programs on behalf of the over 60,000 Spartan education and kinesiology alums. Board activities include hosting events like Get-A-Job and Study Snacks, supporting Homecoming traditions, providing student scholarships and hosting regional alumni receptions.
Board members serve three-year terms and meet at least four times annually, primarily in-person. Throughout the year, members participate in ad-hoc or standing working groups that support the annual priorities of the Board. Members determine the Board’s priorities in response to the needs of the Board, the college’s alums and the strategic vision of the college.
To nominate yourself or another College of Education alum as a potential member of the Board, please fill out the form here.
Please direct any questions about the Board or volunteer opportunities to College of Education alumni relations coordinator Ryan C. Smith.
B.A. ’89
Linkedin Profile
Affiliate Faculty of Instruction,
Grand Valley State University
Grand Rapids Metropolitan Area, MI
Bobbie Biby is an Affiliate Instructor at Grand Valley State University. She has over 25 years of teaching experience and for several years worked for the Education Professional Standards Board – Commonwealth of Kentucky, the accrediting agency of Kentucky teacher education programs. Bobbie believes, like so many others, that education is the great equalizer and that great teachers are vital in providing opportunities for all. She is a board member on the Dyslexia Correction Foundation. She participated on the School Improvement Team at Cummings Elementary and has served on a Michigan MEAP Standards Committee. Bobbie’s family is rich with Spartan pride and graduates, including her husband, Bruce (MSU ’88), and two of her three children, Megan (MSU ’15), Kip (FSU ’17), and Taylor (MSU ’17).
CEO,
Communities In Schools of Michigan
Lansing, MI
Mallory DePrekel is the CEO of Communities In Schools of Michigan, a statewide nonprofit that provides integrated student supports to 40,000+ students in Michigan. She is a 2010 graduate of the College of Education and a member of the original Urban Educators Cohort Program (UECP) cohort. Mallory currently lives in East Lansing with her husband and two young sons.
Assistant Professor, Department of Teacher Education
East Lansing, MI
Scott is a career educator—he has taught High School German in mid-Michigan, ran an after-school and summer program for elementary students in the Bay Area of California, taught English and Special Education on a rural island in the Philippines as a Peace Corps volunteer, and taught 4th and 5th grade in New Mexico near the Navajo Nation. Scott completed his Ph.D. in the CITE program at MSU in 2019, and has been working in the Department of Teacher Education as faculty ever since, where he works to help future teachers adopt explicitly anti-racist stances and practices to bring with them into their classrooms.
Secretary and Chief of Staff,
Michigan State University Board of Trustees
East Lansing, MI
Stefan Fletcher has served as the Secretary and Chief of Staff to the Board of Trustees since January 2023. In this role, Dr. Fletcher supports the Board in the fulfilment of its general supervisory responsibility for the university. Dr. Fletcher is the internal and external liaison and adviser to the Board with custodial and management responsibility for the Board’s bylaws, ordinances, policies, and other records
Dr. Fletcher holds a Bachelor of Science degree from the University of Wisconsin – Superior (UWS), a law degree from the Michigan State University (MSU) College of Law, and a Ph.D. from the Higher, Adult, and Lifelong Education program at MSU’s College of Education. Dr. Fletcher served in a variety of shared governance leadership roles while in Wisconsin and Michigan, including two terms as the Student Government Association President at UWS and four terms as the President of the MSU Council of Graduate Students. Before returning to MSU, Dr. Fletcher was the Director for Administrative Policies, Projects, and Academic Fellowships at the University of Wisconsin System Administration, overseeing systemwide policy and project management in addition to a fellowship program for advanced degree students. Dr. Fletcher currently serves as the chair-elect for the Association of College and University Policy Administrators (ACUPA), the organization for policy administrators in higher education. Dr. Fletcher joined the College of Education Alumni Board in October 2022.
Elementary Teacher,
Fitzgerald Public Schools
Warren, MI
Becky Girling is a fifth-grade teacher at Mound Park Elementary. She has been working with at-risk students during her professional career. In addition, she has been a mentor to new teachers in her district and a cooperative teacher for student teachers from various universities in Michigan. She has held many leadership positions across her district and helped design, implement and pilot new curriculum. Becky has won many awards over the years, including District Teacher of the Year and also a finalist for Elementary Teacher of the Year in Macomb County in 2019. Becky has been a club sponsor for a multitude of student programs. In addition to teaching, she has been a coach for the YMCA Girls on the Run and STRIDE programs for over a decade. She has been awarded many grants to help innovate her teaching and positively inspire student learning. Becky is passionate about teaching our youth that they have the ability to achieve greatness.
Retired Director of Adult Studies Program,
Virginia Wesleyan College
Norfolk, VA
After earning three degrees from the College of Education (B.A.- Elementary Education/Social Science; M.A.- Social and Philosophical Foundations of Education, Ed.S.- Curriculum), Rich’s career in the field began as a middle school teacher but most of his professional experience over 35+ years has centered on providing leadership for the development and delivery of adult/continuing education programs and services in a variety of administrative roles including serving as a Community Education Coordinator (East Lansing Public Schools and MSU), Director of Continuing Education (Tidewater Community College, Virginia Beach, Virginia), Director of the University of Virginia Regional Center (Hampton Roads, Virginia), and Director of Adult Studies at Virginia Wesleyan University (Norfolk, Virginia). Additionally, Rich has served as a board member and officer for several professional associations including the National Council for Community Services and Continuing Education and the National Coalition of Lifelong Learning Organizations as well as receiving appointments to various community non-profit boards related to advocacy and long-range planning for economic development, parks and recreation, vocational education, military education, aging/elderly concerns, and public broadcasting,
Now retired, Rich and his wife, Jill (a career K-12 science educator who also earned three degrees from the College of Education) have been long-time supporters of the University and the College through the Annual Fund (John Hannah Society) and started the first alumni club in the state of Virginia when they moved there from Michigan in 1980. Rich is honored to be a member of the College’s Alumni Advisory Board and to be able to support the board’s strategic planning initiatives in service to the students, alums and faculty who have contributed to the College’s long-standing and well-deserved high national rankings in so many program areas.
Senior IS Operations Consultant,
Baylor Scott & White Health
Dallas, TX
Vaughn Hubinger graduated from Michigan State University in 2017 with a Bachelor’s degree in Kinesiology. Vaughn has supplemented his degree with a passion for the health field, which has allowed him to work in the industry since graduation. Early in his career he found himself gravitating towards information systems and business which led him to his current role as an IS Operational Consultant within Baylor Scott & White, a large healthcare system in Texas. Vaughn continues to be an advocate for students and professionals that explore all opportunities, and allow their interests to drive their career.
School Behavioral Health Unit Supervisor,
Office of Health and Nutrition Services,
Michigan Department of Education
Lansing, MI
Scott Hutchins is a School Mental Health and Medicaid Consultant for the Michigan Department of Education (MDE) in the Office of Health and Nutrition Services. Hutchins is a life-long learner dedicated to servant leadership with a Master’s Degree in Educational Leadership from Eastern Michigan University and a Bachelor’s Degree from Michigan State University in Elementary Education. Prior to going to MDE, he served as a public school teacher and administrator for 20 years. Hutchins is passionate about being a champion for ALL learners and is committed to being better than he was the day before.
Fifth Grade Teacher, Hayes Intermediate School
Grand Ledge, MI
An educator for over 20 years, Matt Powers is currently a 5th grade teacher at Hayes Intermediate School in Grand Ledge Public Schools. He has also taught 3rd through 6th grades at Maplewood School in Maple Valley Schools.
Matt has a long family lineage of Spartans – his grandfather, grandmother, mother, sisters, aunts and in-laws all earned degrees from Michigan State University. Matt met his wife and fellow educator, Shannon, at MSU. They have two daughters, the youngest continuing the family’s Spartan legacy.
Over the years, Matt developed his leadership skills serving on a variety of committees and teams. He’s served as chair of Elementary Science and Grade Level committees as well as member on School Improvement, District Improvement, PBIS, MTSS, MIBLSI and MICIP teams. Matt has also spent the last seven years mentoring new teachers.
Matt is passionate about improving the work environment of his colleagues, most recently serving as an active union member with the Maple Valley Education Association where he held long-term positions of Vice President and Negotiations Team Member. He is also active in the Eaton County EA as Vice President and PAC Chair.
Always quick to fill a need, Matt joined the Thornapple Kellogg School Board in 2019, working alongside colleagues to complete a ‘Needs Assessment’ and pass a bond for $36 million. The efforts facilitated numerous improvements, including smaller class sizes and strengthened curriculum.
Coaching is another way Matt serves his communities. Building on his affinity for athletics and competition, Matt coached his daughters’ youth league teams in numerous sports. Matt transitioned to coaching 7th grade boys and girls basketball at Maple Valley.
Middleville UMC is another home for Matt. He is the Vice Chair of the Trustees Committee. Matt is an active member of the Discipleship Formation Committee, formerly known as the Christian Education Committee.
Social Studies Educator,
Grand Blanc High School
Grand Blanc, MI
Nathan Riek is a high school social studies teacher at Grand Blanc High School. He teaches American Government, AP Government, and African American History. In addition to his teaching he has involved himself in the community as a coach (football, baseball, basketball), and as an academic club sponsor (Model UN). He has participated in scholarship, “Deliberating Public Policy with Adolescents” and is a presenter at the 2020 NCSS Conference. In 2018 he was the Grand Blanc Chamber of Commerce Teacher of the Year, and one of five American Legion’s Teacher of the Year in entire State of Michigan.
Doctoral Candidate,
Higher, Adult, & Lifelong Education,
Michigan State University
East Lansing, MI
Theresa is a graduate student starting her second year in the HALE Ph.D. program, studying Higher, Adult, and Lifelong Education. She earned her bachelor’s degree in elementary education and English from Marquette University and her master’s degrees from Trinity College Dublin (Irish Literature) and Loyola University Chicago (Higher Education). She’s so excited to one day be able to add MSU Alumni to the list! She currently serves as a Graduate Career Advisor in MSU’s Office of Graduate Career Development in the Graduate School and is broadly interested in the supports the university can provide to students during their transition out of the university. She is excited not only to bridge Alumni and Student voices for the College of Education, but also for the opportunity to build relationships within the MSU Alumni network. Through this opportunity, she hopes to support Alumni networking opportunities for current students.