A message from the Chair…

Welcome to the Rockford College Education Department.

The Rockford College Department of Education offers Bachelor of Arts and Bachelor of Science degrees in Elementary Education as well as a Bachelor of Arts degree in Special Education. We also offer a minor in Secondary Education for majors in Biology, Chemistry, English, French, German, History, Mathematics, Physical Education, Spanish, Theatre Arts, and Visual Arts.

The mission of the Education Department at Rockford College is to prepare prospective teachers to empower their students' minds. The Education Department also recognizes that students, schools and communities further empower its work; hence, the 360-degree nature of our slogan, “Empowered Minds Learning Together.” The accomplishments of our most distinguished graduate, Jane Addams, most notably her establishment of Hull House, are a testimony to the benefits that empowered people enjoy in all aspects of their daily lives. Educators realize that empowerment is a concept that adds present and future quality of life to the children they teach. An empowered mind enables a student to utilize knowledge at higher levels and apply it to real-life situations. An empowered mind permits a student to successfully maneuver the path to self-actualization. An empowered mind allows a student to perceive social injustice and strive to correct inequities.

Rockford College teacher education graduates have the tools and diverse classroom experiences necessary to empower the minds of their students. They display more than a passion for working with children, a prerequisite that is desirable but not sufficient. They know the content that they teach and how to present that content in ways that diverse students can understand and apply to the world in which they live. They integrate learning and behavioral theory and appropriate technology into all aspects of instruction. They also address social issues in their classrooms through differentiating instruction for their learners, treating their students in an equitable manner, and instilling respect for diversity of all kinds in their students. Finally, through lifelong professional development, teacher education graduates refine their “entry-level” skills. They demonstrate their dedication to the profession by a willingness to reflect about instruction and a desire to be lifelong learners. As educators, ourselves, the Education Department must also learn from those we work with as a form of its own professional development.

Thank you for your interest in the Rockford College education programs.

Professor Barbara Swanson