NOTABLE

Learning Systems Institute (LSI) Director Rabieh Razzouk, MBA, led a grant writing seminar with the assistance of LSI Associate Director Gena St. John. Fifty Lebanese participants from Holy Spirit University of Kaslik participated in the two-hour session and Scheduling has begun on in-person training.

On a recent visit to the southern region of Malawi, a USAID team cited six significant successes achieved on the Strengthening Teacher Education and Practice (STEP) Activity in Malawi. Adrienne Barnes-Story, Ph.D., is the Principal Investigator on the project, which is being led by the Learning Systems Institute.

Brenda Wawire, Ph.D., and Jennie Robinette, M.Ed., delivered week three of four total weeks of intensive professional development to 49 teacher educators. The professional development is [part of the USAID Strengthening Teacher Education and Practice (STEP) Activity in Malawi, led by the Learning Systems Institute.

Augustin Kamlongera, Ph.D., met with the Malawi Directorate of Teacher Education and Development to determine criteria for identifying Teacher Educators of Excellence across the Teacher Training Colleges in Malawi.

Ana H. Marty, Ph.D., Research Faculty, Early Childhood Education and Literacy Specialist, met with key stakeholders in Rwanda to disseminate findings from the pilot testing of a new teaching practice framework. Dr. Marty also facilitated the April Primary Teaching Residency Program Consortium Term 3 Meeting. Kate Schell, MA, joined the Learning Systems Institute staff in Rwanda to train the Primary Teaching Residency Program Tutors. All this work is part of the Primary Teaching Residency Program, funded by the U.S.-based Rainwater Charitable Foundation, being piloted by LSI.

Learning Systems Institute Director Rabieh Razzouk, MBA, and the CPALMS team recently celebrated a significant milestone. Since CPALMS started offering educational resources on the platform, more than one billion resource views and downloads have been delivered.

Reading specialists and educators from around the state joined representatives from the Florida Department of Education, Stephanie Zuilkowski, Ph.D., Associate Director for Research, Learning Systems Institute and Associate Professor of International and Multicultural Education, Julie Twomey, M.Ed., ELA Content Specialist, Assistant in Research, and Kate Schell, MA, Assistant in Research in Tampa for a review of teacher-created assessment items. 

Carmen Zachery, video editor on the Learning Systems Institute’s CPALMS staff, worked with teachers across the state of Florida to film new videos for the Teacher Perspective series. These videos feature teachers who share practical classroom tips and personal techniques for transitioning into new benchmarks.

Maddie Leaman, the Learning Systems Institute’s Peace Corps Recruiter, held Q&A sessions with FSU students at numerous career fairs.

GRANTS

Adrienne Barnes-Story, Ph. D., a Research Specialist at the Learning Systems Institute, has been awarded a 2024 SEED Award from the Council on Research and Creativity. Work on the project "Large Class Pedagogy in Low-Income Contexts: Exploring Methods with Teachers in Malawi" will begin later this year.  

PRESENTATIONS AND CONFERENCES

Irinel Chiorescu, Ph.D., Professor of Physics and Researcher at the National High Field Magnetic Laboratory, delivered a virtual presentation as part of the Kharkiv Quantum Science Seminar. Thirty-five Ukrainian scientists participated in the two-hour presentation, which was facilitated by FSU's Ukraine Task Force at the Learning Systems Institute, led by Program Director Vilma Fuentes, Ph.D.

As part of the work being done by FSU's Ukraine Task Force at the Learning Systems Institute, Bill Hunkapiller, Ph.D., FSU's Chief Information Security Officer, participated in a virtual panel that explored public-private partnerships at the first scientific and practical international conference on Cyberdiplomacy held in Kyiv, Ukraine. 

FSU's Ukraine Task Force at the Learning Systems Institute and the Center for Global Engagement celebrated Vyshyvanka Day, a Ukrainian holiday. The celebration was held in The Globe Auditorium and featured special presentations, as well as an opportunity for the FSU community to engage with the Ukrainian diaspora in Tallahassee.

As part of the Florida Department of Education-funded CPALMS project, Learning Systems Institute staff have developed career and technical education (CTE) resources with Florida teachers. These resources will connect CTE to other content areas. A recent workshop was held on the FSU campus at Innovation Park. It was conducted by Carrie Meyers, Jim Reynolds, Julie Chappell, Robert Hanna, Zaida McGinley, Jamie Santillo, Sherri Winsett, and Ninamarie Sapuppo.

FSU's Ukraine Task Force Program Director and Learning Systems Institute visiting associate in research Vilma Fuentes, Ph.D., and LSI researcher Anna Romanova, Ph.D., presented at the International Psychological Conference. Florida State University was a partner of the international conference hosted by the Beketov National University of Urban Economy (Kharkiv, Ukraine).

Learning Systems Institute researcher Anna Romanova, Ph.D., presented "The Truth Behind Ukraine's Statehood: Dispelling Myths and Misconceptions" at The Globe Auditorium. FSU's Ukraine Task Force facilitated the presentation.

Learning Systems Institute Assistant in Research Kate Schell, MA, presented the paper "Participatory Action Research: Creating Transformative Spaces of Local Knowledge and Advocacy for Multilingual Education" at the American Educational Research Association (AERA) conference in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. 

HONORS & AWARDS

Gizem Solmaz-Ratzlaff, a researcher at the Learning Systems Institute, was named a 2024 ASAPbio Fellow. ASAPbio is a scientist-driven non-profit promoting transparency and innovation in life science communication.

BYLINES

Stephanie Zuilkowski, Ph.D., Associate Director for Research, Learning Systems Institute and Associate Professor of International and Multicultural Education co-authored an article in the International Multilingual Research Journal entitled “Instructional strategies used by teachers in multilingual classes to help non-speakers of the language of instruction learn initial reading skills in Zambia”. The lead author is Sitwe Benson Mkandawire, a former Transforming Teacher Education in Zambia resident fellow at FSU. 

Stephanie Zuilkowski, Ph.D., Associate Director for Research, Learning Systems Institute and Associate Professor of International and Multicultural Education co-authored “Economic vulnerabilities, mental health, and coping strategies among Tanzanian youth during COVID-19” published in BMC Public Health.