Four graduate students received the inaugural College of Education Distinguished Graduate Student Awards in Justice and Equity Pedagogy.
“As a committee, we know that graduate students do so, so much in our college,” said Assistant Professor Scott Farver, co-creator and award facilitator. “We have all had the privilege of working with so many amazing students who are not always recognized for the work they contribute. This was one way we could support and acknowledge them.”
The first-ever winners received a certificate and $1,000. The winners are:
- Madison Allen Kuyenga
- Johnathan Hill
- Sheila Orr
- Alyssa Voort Uher
The award committee included Assistant Professor Alex Allweiss, Assistant Professor Terrance Burgess and Academic Specialist Mary Patillo-Dunn, in addition to Farver.
The college’s Office of Diversity, Inclusion and Community Partnerships and the MSU Graduate School financially support the awards. The awards are now an annual celebration of the commitment of graduate students across the college. All 2024 recipients were students at the time they received the award.
Read more to learn about our incredible awardees.
Madison Allen Kuyenga
Allen Kuyenga will earn a Ph.D. in Educational Psychology and Educational Technology in 2024, following a successful dissertation defense. She founded Konduit, LLC, an equity-focused professional learning offering for K-12 teachers, particularly in computer science education.
Allen Kuyenga’s work centers on computer science education spaces. This commitment extends to the online classroom.
“My teaching philosophy is rooted in the belief that every learner deserves continued access to an education that not only empowers them academically but also validates their diverse identities, backgrounds, and experiences,” wrote Allen Kuyenga.
To enact this work, Allen Kuyenga prioritizes accessible online learning (such as offering multiple ways students can submit their coursework) and offering one-on-one encouragement. In addition, she also teaches them how to acknowledge and address “instances of accidental harm … express when they feel personally affected … and signal when a discussion is veering off course or moving too fast.”
Johnathan Hill
Hill is a doctoral student in the Curriculum, Instruction and Teacher Education (CITE) program and a graduate research fellow for the National Science Foundation (NSF).
A group of undergraduate students nominated him for the award.
“[Professor Hill] presents thought-provoking questions that require critical reflection on our knowledge of pedagogical and oppressive systems within our schools,” the students wrote. “These conversations lead us to better understand how our roles in society exist within these systems of oppression, in addition to how they affect not only our students but everyone around us. Professor Hill has not only helped us see the importance of practicing abolition as a lifestyle, he has also been a role model in showing us how an abolitionist life is lived.”
Hill strives to create and maintain authentic relationships with his students and aims to model what an abolitionist teacher can and should be.
“Ultimately, my goal as an educator is to facilitate a process that enables learners to better understand the similar and unique ways in which they are situated and to discover their own answers as to how they can best contribute to working for equity and social justice,” said Hill.
Sheila Orr
Orr will earn a Ph.D. in the CITE program in 2024, following a successful dissertation defense. This is her third degree from MSU — she also earned a B.S. in Mathematics and an M.A. in Teaching and Curriculum. In addition to serving as a course instructor and a research assistant, Orr co-led the secondary mathematics program as the co-licensure area lead.
Orr uses “math as a bridge to connect with students and families to foster sociopolitical understanding, cultivate empathy and take action within their future classrooms,” the award committee said during the award ceremony.
“I perceive education as a deeply human endeavor, where the ability to establish genuine connections between educators and students is paramount,” Orr wrote. “It is important for teachers to understand that classrooms are a reflection of the choices made by educators, which can reflect broader societal norms. It is crucial for prospective teachers to possess the analytical tools needed to dissect these influences, enabling them to approach mathematics education with a nuanced perspective.”
Alyssa Voort Uher
Uher will earn a Ph.D. in Special Education in 2024, following their dissertation defense later this summer. At MSU, Uher taught more than 20 courses in the Teacher Preparation Program (TPP). They earned an MSU Excellence-in-Teaching Citation in 2024.
Uher’s work in disability studies and justice has transformed the way the college teaches about it. Their outstanding efforts in updating the syllabus for a class taken by all students in the TPP have become standard practice for all sections of the class moving forward.
“Equity and justice-oriented classes require an acknowledgment of the uneven playing field that exists due to systemic inequalities and deliberate steps to level the playing field by providing each student with the support they need to succeed,” wrote Uher. “Within my courses, this begins with critical discussions about how most of the content about disabilities that will be used within the course was created by those who do not have disabilities and the acknowledgment of how every facet of special education, from disability diagnosis to educational experiences, is impacted by one’s identity like race, ethnicity, gender expression and class.”