URI Feinstein College of Education

URI Feinstein College of Education The Feinstein College of Education is located at URI's Kingston campus.

The College offers a range of bachelor’s, master’s, doctoral, and teacher certification programs.

Save the date! Join us for “A Scholar Displaced, a Mission Continued: Inclusive Education During the War in Ukraine,” a ...
08/28/2026

Save the date! Join us for “A Scholar Displaced, a Mission Continued: Inclusive Education During the War in Ukraine,” a special conversation with Olga Fert.

📆 Thursday, September 24
🕛 5:30 pm
📍 Beaupre Center, Room 100

Fert is a lecturer and research associate at Technische Universität Braunschweig in Germany and a professor of special education at Ivan Franko National University in Lviv, Ukraine. She will discuss her personal journey fleeing Ukraine during the war with Russia and her work with Ukrainian mothers of children with disabilities and refugees living in Germany.

The lecture is sponsored by the Feinstein College of Education with URI’s Project SUSTAIN program, a $1.1 million U.S. Department of Education–funded program that aims to address critical shortages in qualified special education personnel across Rhode Island.

Registration for the lecture is requested.

🔗 Read more about Fert's work, her visit to Rhode Island, and URI's partnership with Technische Universität Braunschweig (and register) at https://www.uri.edu/news/2026/08/ukrainian-german-special-education-scholar-to-lecture-on-inclusive-education-in-wartime-sept-24/

Introducing the Dean's Advisory Council! The DAC advises the COEDU dean on academic programming, strategic initiatives, ...
08/28/2026

Introducing the Dean's Advisory Council! The DAC advises the COEDU dean on academic programming, strategic initiatives, and alumni and external partner relationships. Each member, most of them URI alum, brings significant experience and expertise to the role, which helps shape the future path of the college. The DAC meets in person twice a year with additional virtual meetings as needed.

Today we introduce four of the eight DAC members, who all give of their time and draw on the wisdom and insight they’ve gathered over many decades working in education from the classroom to administration to the U.S. Department of Education!

David A. Bergeron ‘78 is a senior fellow at the Center for American Progress working on higher education policy issues. He previously served for more than 35 years in the U.S. Department of Education, rising through the ranks to end his government career as acting Assistant Secretary for Postsecondary Education and Deputy Assistant Secretary for Policy, Planning, and Innovation.

Heidi Cianfarani ‘92, MA ‘00, is a dedicated educator who spent more than 33 years serving students in the Warwick (RI) Public Schools system. Cianfarani taught third and sixth grade and served as an elementary science specialist, where she inspired curiosity, critical thinking, and a lifelong love of learning in her students.

Aimée Couto ‘96 is a K-5 instructional coach for the East Providence (RI) School District, where she works alongside teachers and school leaders to strengthen classroom instruction and improve outcomes for students. Her focus is on literacy and math. Couto was named the 2024 RI Teacher of the Year, and in 2025 she served on the RI Council on Elementary and Secondary Education.

Henry Del Angelo ’90 is a school counselor at Joel Barlow High School in Connecticut. Del Angelo has over thirty-five years of experience at the high school level as a classroom teacher, administrator, and school counselor. He was named one of The Princeton Review’s 20 School Counselors Who Make a Difference. He also established Del Angelo Consulting, LLC, and launched Your Key to College in 2008.

🔗 Read more about the DAC members at https://web.uri.edu/education/people/deans-advisory-council/

Classes start in less than two weeks, and URI has a number of new programs starting this fall—five of them through the F...
08/27/2026

Classes start in less than two weeks, and URI has a number of new programs starting this fall—five of them through the Feinstein College of Education!

The new COEDU programs are:
- B.A. in Learning and Education in Action (LEiA)
- M.A. in Health Professions Education (online)
- Ed.D. (online)
- Graduate Certificate in Health Professions Education (online)
- Graduate Certificate in Multilingual Learner Education (online)

🔗 Learn more about all the new programs URI is offering this year at https://www.uri.edu/news/2026/08/uri-offering-new-programs-for-the-2026-27-year/

Meet Sharon D’Antuono, a PhD in Education student, clinical assistant professor in Communicative Disorders at URI, and m...
08/26/2026

Meet Sharon D’Antuono, a PhD in Education student, clinical assistant professor in Communicative Disorders at URI, and member of the COEDU's Translanguaging Lab.

How did you become interested in multilingualism and education?
My interest stems from my own lived experience. I had an unusual upbringing, speaking solely Armenian at home until the age of 4, when I entered preschool and began learning English. From then on, I often blended both languages when communicating with my grandparents. As a child, this made me feel different and even embarrassed. Now I understand those experiences as translanguaging and recognize them as a critical part of my identity and culture. That understanding drives my commitment to ensuring that multilingual learners value their home languages and recognize them as the treasures they are.

What drew you to join the Translanguaging Lab? What has your experience in the TLab been like so far?
I was drawn to the TLab because it meaningfully bridges research, clinical training, and community engagement, while centering and valuing home languages. In my roles as clinical faculty and a doctoral student, it has deepened my understanding of the language experiences of multilingual learners. Most importantly, my involvement with the lab has strengthened the connection between my research interests and clinical teaching by helping me translate theory into practice. Through lab meetings, I have been introduced to the study of linguistic landscapes, expanding my understanding of how language appears and functions in public spaces.

Why do you think translanguaging matters now—for students, educators, and broader educational equity efforts?
Translanguaging matters now more than ever because classrooms and communities are increasingly linguistically diverse, yet educational systems often remain rooted in monolingual norms. Through my work, I see how embracing translanguaging helps educators move away from viewing linguistic differences as deficits and instead recognize them as strengths. This shift supports students' sense of identity and belonging and promotes more equitable educational and clinical practices for children and their families.

Just three weeks until we celebrate the start of the new academic year with a Rhode Island classic: Del's frozen lemonad...
08/25/2026

Just three weeks until we celebrate the start of the new academic year with a Rhode Island classic: Del's frozen lemonade!

📆 Tuesday, September 15
🕛 Noon - 3 pm
📍 The Quad (Lippett side)

Enjoy a refreshing cup of Del's (RI insider tip: Never, and we mean never, use a straw with Del's!), pick up some College of Education swag, and meet other members of our COEDU community. Undergraduate and graduate students are welcome!

Meet some of the wonderful College of Education staff members who keep the business and financial aspects of the College...
08/25/2026

Meet some of the wonderful College of Education staff members who keep the business and financial aspects of the College in line!

Are you a school or district leader looking for proficiency-level professional development in Multilingual Learner (MLL)...
08/24/2026

Are you a school or district leader looking for proficiency-level professional development in Multilingual Learner (MLL) education? URI offers a program specifically designed for you!

Our fully online (blended synchronous and asynchronous) two-course program (1-Fall/1-Spring) is a great opportunity for leaders to complete their MLL Endorsement, collaborate on resolving problems of practice, and improve educational outcomes for multilingual learners in our state.

Complete our leadership cohort by June 30, 2027, to apply for RIDE’s MLL endorsement and meet proficiency expectations.

In addition, URI just launched an Ed.D. program this year. Participants in this cohort could use the two courses (6 credits) as their applied electives if they were to join the Ed.D. program in the next five years.

Registration deadline is August 28.

Learn more at https://web.uri.edu/osi/multilingual-learner-mll/

URI’s fully online Seminar in Digital Literacy and Learning course (EDC 532) is back for Fall 2026! Register by Septembe...
08/24/2026

URI’s fully online Seminar in Digital Literacy and Learning course (EDC 532) is back for Fall 2026! Register by September 1 to save your spot! Learn more at https://www.digiuri.com/edc532

Join co-instructors Julie Coiro and Kara Clayton to explore the latest research on digital literacy and AI, learn practical strategies for teaching learners of all ages to navigate online information, design activities you can put into practice, and connect with a diverse community of educators and learners.

Students in the course don't just learn about digital literacy—they put their learning into action. From designing digital learning experiences and resources to exploring new ways to support critical thinking, online inquiry, digital creation, and responsible uses of emerging technologies, students leave the course with a project they can use right away—and ideas that can continue to grow long after the semester ends.

Not a URI graduate student? You can still join us! Anyone with a bachelor’s degree can enroll as a non-matriculating student, and credits may transfer to graduate programs outside URI. Email [email protected] for a permission number.

📣 Introducing Brady Altman, an incoming student planning to study elementary education (and hopefully psychology)!Brady ...
08/21/2026

📣 Introducing Brady Altman, an incoming student planning to study elementary education (and hopefully psychology)!

Brady was drawn to the feel of the URI campus, the people, and the location—easy beach access!

"I took one step on campus and knew it was the place for me," Brady says.

His love of working with kids and teaching people have led him toward a degree in elementary education.

Welcome, Brady! We are looking forward to having you join the College of Education Ram Family soon! 🐏

📚 For parents who want to foster a love of reading in their children, Virginia Killian Lund, assistant professor of elem...
08/21/2026

📚 For parents who want to foster a love of reading in their children, Virginia Killian Lund, assistant professor of elementary language arts, recommends aiming to “discover shared delights with your child.” This is something she has put into practice with her own pr***en, Calder.

The mother-child pair has read a “bajillion” books together and recently co-authored a chapter about their bedtime reading ritual. They presented about the topic at the Children’s Literature Association conference in Pittsburgh this summer.

While many parents may gravitate toward sharing their own childhood favorites with their children, Killian Lund finds value in exploring new literature together.

"Because we're both discovering the book for the first time at the same time, our reactions are genuine,” she says of her reading with Calder. “When we wonder what's going to happen next, when we're confused about why a character did or said something—we're in it together."

Killian Lund also aimed to create genuine interest and discussion about books during her many years as an English and language arts teacher.

"The first week of school, I'd also ask everyone to bring in a favorite book, either from home or from the library, and I'd take a picture of every student with their book covering their face and put it up on a bulletin board,” she says, noting that this was often the only way she found to get middle schoolers to agree to having their photo taken, “It would be like a guessing game of who was behind each book, but it was also a way for me to generate ideas of books I might recommend to them."

🔗 Read more about Killian Lund and her child’s approach to reading as well as their recent publication and presentation at https://www.uri.edu/news/2026/08/some-bedtime-reading-wakes-us-up/

Killian Lund will be overseeing URI’s new Learning and Education in Action (LEiA) undergraduate program in the College of Education, which is slated to begin this fall semester.

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