We are in an age where demands on education professionals continue to increase. Demands for increased knowledge of technology, increased skill in educating diverse populations, and an increased need for professional development are a few examples. These demands require The University of Iowa College of Education to play a crucial role in training large numbers of education professionals to become leaders in their field.

I'm honored to guide the College of Education at one of the nation's top research universities. By its very nature, the College offers a faculty and a mission that places students at the cutting edge of knowledge. By developing instructional practices and field-testing curricula, our faculty build bridges between theory and practice. Their work is cyclic: research questions are applied to the field thereby improving the educational practice in schools and clinics. In turn, these practices produce new research questions for reflection and then application.

Practical research experience has numerous, long-lasting benefits for our students as well. It teaches a systematic approach to problem solving, keeps students in immediate touch with the latest ideas, data and interpretation, and teaches them how to determine improvement and measure success.

Education students are trained as researchers, value the science-practitioner relationship, and participate with their mentors in professional organizations. By doing this, they develop a state of mind and a set of habits that mirror their research faculty. Research becomes second nature to them, not an afterthought.

By remaining committed to our research-intensive mission, education is enriched, practice is advanced, and success is certain.

Research matters.

Sandra Bowman Damico
Dean