June 03, 2010
Richmond County Savings Foundation
Partners with St. John’s Staten Island Campus to Unveil New
Teaching and Learning Labs
Staten Island, NY (June 3, 2010) – The Richmond County
Savings Foundation of Staten Island (RCSF) has teamed with St.
John’s University to debut two new Teaching and Learning Labs to be
used by The School of Education (SOE) as model classrooms for
student training this coming fall. The refurbished classroom labs
were made possible by a $150,000 grant given by the Richmond County
Savings Foundation.
The two classrooms, named the Richmond County Savings Foundation
School of Education Teaching and Learning Labs, will be housed in
the DaSilva Academic Center in Staten Island and will be used for
Early Childhood, Childhood, and Adolescent Education. Both labs
will mirror each other with the latest in technological advances
that are a major part of today’s educational experience. The rooms
also contain Smartboard technology, Instructional Materials Centers
and a fully-stocked game lab.
This initiative began as part of Regina M. Mistretta’s “vision” for
teaching candidates in The School of Education to prepare them for
real-life classroom experiences, and in part from feedback received
from students voicing their need for – “a place that guides the way
we need to teach.” Mistretta is an Associate Professor for the
Department of Curriculum and Instruction at St. John’s.
“I had a dream of what this space could become and Richmond County
Savings and Nick Legakis (Director of Institutional Advancement at
the University) made my dreams come true,” said Mistretta. “We also
talked to students and this is the end result of a wonderful
collaboration.”
Mistretta was one of a handful of St. John’s representatives at an
informal tour of the labs on May 27. She was joined by Legakis,
Rev. Patrick Griffin, C.M., Executive Vice President for Branch
Campuses and Mission, Gerard McEnerney, Assistant Vice President
and Executive Director of the Staten Island Campus, Steven Kuntz,
Associate Dean of The School of Education, Sandra Abrams, Assistant
Professor, and Kim Seggio, Senior Program Officer at Richmond
County Savings.
These labs will provide sound pedagogical practices and
immerse St. John’s students in technology enhanced environments
characteristic of those that future educators will encounter at the
primary, elementary, middle and secondary levels. One such practice
is that of “gaming” curriculum, where students can learn through
interactive video games that they play for fun in their spare time.
“Students feel connected to studying with real integration of these
games as a form of education,” said St. John’s Professor Sandra
Abrams.
Abrams gave a short tutorial of the popular Guitar Heroes game on
Wii to Rev. Griffin, C.M. (during the tour), and explained the
educational value and practices that teachers can pass on to their
students through fun, innovative gaming participation.
Community access will also be frequent, as neighboring schools in
Staten Island will be invited to utilize the facilities and help
St. John’s students gain field experience in the form of parental
involvement initiatives involving children and their families, and
observation of model lessons that implement the best practices
discussed and explored during course sessions.
Current and future uses of the Teaching and Learning Labs
will include:
- Undergraduate and graduate course work
- A resource center for both undergraduate and graduate students
and faculty
- A facility for field work to be done by St. John’s graduate
students in the evening
with children from the community - A family resource center that would encourage parental
involvement in the form
of parent workshops as well as parent and child engagement
workshops - A demonstration area for Smartboard technology
Richmond County Savings Foundation is committed to supporting
projects that enhance the quality of life in the communities served
by the Foundation. In this regard, RCSF focuses on supporting
charitable organizations whose programs and services advance
educational opportunity, enrich cultural development and strengthen
health and human services.
For more information contact Dominic
Scianna, Assistant Vice President for Media Relations at St. John’s
University by calling (718) 990-6185 or e-mail inquiries
to sciannad@stjohns.edu