Faculty and Staff
OUR TEAM
Clinical Associate Professor, Special Education
Department of Teacher Education
302 Guyton Hall
(662) 915-7618
dlowry@olemiss.edu
Vita (PDF)
Clinical Associate Professor of Special Education, Dr. Lowry received her doctorate degree from the University of Mississippi. She holds a M.Ed. in Special Education from the University of Alabama Birmingham and an undergraduate degree in Communicative Disorders. She has thirty years of teaching experience in the field of special education.
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Her collegiate experience includes teaching undergraduate and graduate courses as well as serving as the special education coordinator. She has taught students with mild/moderate disabilities and supervised special education teachers in suburban and urban public schools for sixteen years.
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Her research focuses on formative assessment and effective teaching practices for students with mild/moderate disabilities. She has written several articles, presented at national and state conferences, and served on grant-writing teams for national and local grants.
Dr. Diane Lowry
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METP Director, Former Chair of Teacher Education, & Professor Emeritus of Leadership & Counselor Education
Department of Teacher Education
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239 Guyton Hall
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Dr. McClelland, former Chair of the Department of Teacher Education, serves as the UM METP Director.
Before her METP role, McClelland was the founding director of the Principal Corps, a highly selective educational leadership program with a 99 percent success rate in placing outstanding Mississippi educators into K–12 leadership positions. She was hired at UM in 2005 as an assistant professor of educational leadership to design the program after the School of Education received a $2 million startup grant from the Jim and Donna Barksdale Foundation.
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A 21-year veteran of public K–12 education in Mississippi, McClelland has served in a variety of educational leadership positions in north Mississippi, including stints as assistant superintendent of the New Albany School District, principal of New Albany High School and vice principal of Oxford High School. She holds a doctorate and master’s degree in curriculum and instruction from UM, as well as a bachelor’s degree in English Education from Blue Mountain College.
Dr. Susan McClelland
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Associate Dean for Student Services & Associate Professor of Teacher Education
Department of Teacher Education
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206 Guyton Hall
Vita (PDF)
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Ann Monroe is Associate Dean for Student Services and Associate Professor in the School of Education at the University of Mississippi. Before her time at UM, Dr. Monroe was a third-grade teacher with the Hamilton County School System in Chattanooga, Tennessee. She comes from a family of educators and believes wholeheartedly in the transformative power of teaching and learning.
Dr. Monroe has received multiple honors from the School of Education, including Outstanding Doctoral Student in Elementary Education, the Outstanding Teacher Award, and the Outstanding Student Service Award. She was named the Elsie M. Hood Outstanding Teacher for the University of Mississippi in 2018. Dr. Monroe is proud to be on the faculty at UM, where she and her colleagues prepare Mississippi’s next generation of teachers.
Dr. Monroe teaches a variety of courses, including education foundations, curriculum development, and assessment. Her research focuses on how teachers can promote pride and minimize shame in their classroom activities and lessons. She serves on numerous thesis and dissertation committees, is the UM representative on IHL’s Educator Preparation Collaboration Committee, and is a member of the 21 United Mississippi Board.
Dr. Monroe received her master’s and doctoral degrees from the University of Mississippi. She received her bachelor’s degree from the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga.
Dr. Ann Monroe
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Lecturer of Teacher Education & Coordinator of Elementary Education
Department of Teacher Education
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338 Guyton Hall
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Katie Naron is a career educator who has 18 years experience of serving both students and teachers. She is an Instructor of Teacher Education in the School of Education at the University of Mississippi. Before her time at UM, Mrs. Naron was a fourth grade teacher with Water Valley School District. She comes from a family of educators and her philosophy of education embodies student relationships before classroom content.
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Mrs. Naron has co-authored two textbooks on the subject of literacy instruction and assessment, and has received multiple honors, including Water Valley School District Teacher of the Year for 2012 and was named 2019 Oxford Eagle Best Professor. In 2022, she received the U of M School of Education Outstanding Teacher Award. In addition, she was named the 2021 Sorority Advisory of the Year by the University of Mississippi's Department of Fraternity and Sorority Life and the 2022 Faculty Member of the Year by the University of Mississippi's Department of Fraternity and Sorority Life. Miss Naron is proud to be on the faculty at UM, where she and her colleagues prepare the Mississippi's next generation of teachers.
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Mrs. Naron teaches a variety of courses, including education foundations, curriculum development, and literacy instruction. Her research focuses on early literacy foundations and preparation. She also teaches courses for the Mississippi Excellence in Teaching Program. Her professional career has led her to present at national, regional, and state level conferences on the subjects of literacy education and the integration of movement and music in the classroom. She received her bachelor's and master's degrees from the University of Mississippi.
Katie Naron
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Professor of Teacher Education
Department of Teacher Education
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331 Guyton Hall
Vita (PDF)
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Dr. OI as she is affectionately known is a Professor of English Education in the Department of Teacher Education. She earned her Bachelor of Science degree in Education from Western Kentucky University, her master's from the University of Mississippi, and her doctorate from the University of Houston.
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Dr. OI has been a member of the UM School of Education faculty since 1998 where she has served as program coordinator for English Education. In 2015, she was named one of the 10 best professors in the nation by Kappa Alpha Theta Sorority.
Dr. Rosemary Oliphant-Ingham
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Instructor of Teacher Education, Science Education
Office of the Dean
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322 Guyton Hall
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Dr. Nicole Roberson serves as the Coordinator of Secondary Science Education and is also currently supervising Secondary Math Education teacher candidates within the Department of Teacher Education.
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Nicole completed her undergraduate degree at the University of Mississippi where she was also a cheerleader. She also completed her Master's in Curriculum and Instruction as well as her Ed.D. in Teacher Education at the university. She served as a secondary science tracher in the Oxford School District before transitioning to her higher education role.
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Nicole is currently the Director of the Mississippi Public School Consortium for Educational Access.
Dr. Nicole Roberson
Dean of School of Education and Professor of Teacher Education
Office of the Dean
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223 Guyton Hall
Vita (PDF)
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Dr. David Rock is the Dean of the School of Education at the University of Mississippi. He received his B.S. in Mathematics from Vanderbilt University, M.A. in Mathematics Education from the University of Central Florida, and Ed. D. in Teacher Education from the University of Central Florida. Dr. Rock has taught mathematics in Florida and Mississippi at the middle and high school level. He has conducted a multitude of educational workshops and seminars at local, state, and national conferences in which his goal is to increase interest and enthusiasm for teaching and learning mathematics. He is the developer of the Internet Math Contests, which encourages students to utilize the internet to solve challenging mathematics problems from across the globe. David has also co-authored 16 books including Teaching Secondary Mathematics (2013), Scratch Your Brain Where It Itches (2001, 2006, 2008), and Teaching K-6 Mathematics (2003).
Along with his wife Michelle, a former elementary teacher, he has four children: Carly, Kyle, Katelyn, and Cassidy.
Dr. David Rock
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Director of Educational Opportunity and Access & Clinical
Assistant Professor of Teacher Education
Department of Teacher Education
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243 Guyton Hall
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Clinical Assistant Professor of Curriculum and Instruction, Dr. Smith received her Ph.D. in Curriculum and Instruction from Mississippi State University. She also holds a B.A. in Mathematics from Fisk University, Nashville, Tennessee, and an M.B.A. from Tennessee State University. Prior to teaching at the University of Mississippi, Dr. Smith was a Curriculum Specialist/Teacher/Administrative Trainer at the Kenya Institute of Education in Nairobi, Kenya. Dr. Smith's research interests are in the areas of early literacy, teacher stress, burnout in the field of education, and the middle-level environment.
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In 2020, Dr. Smith was named Director of Educational Opportunity and Access for the UM School of Education where she works to increase all forms of diversity within the school, enhance equitable educational access, and continue to promote an inclusive environment for faculty, staff, and students.
Dr. Karen Davidson Smith
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Assistant Dean for Certification, Assistant Professor of Higher Education, & Director of
the Student Advising and Field Experience (SAFE) Office
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107 Guyton Annex
Vita (PDF)
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Dr. Whitney Webb serves as Assistant Dean and Certification Officer in the School of Education's Student Advising and Field Experience (SAFE) Office. Dr. Webb is also an Assistant Professor in the Department of Leadership & Counselor Education. She holds a Ph.D. in Educational Leadership, Higher Education from the University of Mississippi (1997), an M.Ed. in Higher Education/Student Personnel from the University of Mississippi (1995), and a B.A. in Communications from North Carolina State University (1991).
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Dr. Webb started her career working at the Mississippi Institutions of Higher Learning on a grant project focusing on improving high school graduation standards and better supporting critical needs districts in MS. She transitioned to the University of Mississippi as the program recruiter for the Mississippi Teacher Corps and served in that role until 1996.
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Dr. Webb continued her work with supporting teachers in critical needs districts through the Mississippi Teacher Fellowship Program grant, eventually transitioning to her current role as Asst. Dean of Advising and Certification Officer. She additionally serves as an Assistant Professor in the Department of Higher Education, teaching courses in research and writing and serving on dissertation committees for PhD and EdD students.
Dr. Whitney Webb
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UM METP Program Manager
Office of the Dean
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236 Guyton Hall
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Blake Adams serves as the Program Manager for the UM chapter of the Mississippi Excellence in Teaching Program at the School of Education. A Mississippi native, he holds a B.A. in History and Political Science from the University of Mississippi. Blake has more than 20 years of public sector experience beginning with 10 years with including the City of Austin Public Library System and Lafayette County & Oxford Public Library where he earned two Mississippi Library Commission Public Relations Awards. He also had a short stint the City of Austin Public Library.
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Blake was the recipient of the School of Education Outstanding Service Award in 2017; the 2023 Mississippi FIRST Robotics Delivery Partner Award.
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Outside of work, Blake considers himself a paraprofessional geek. His interests include IT, Photoshop, comically bad and obscure film, cooking, and gardening.