Professor Prepares Students to Become
21st- Century Education Leaders
Since joining the St. John’s faculty in 2000, Regina
Mistretta, ED’87, Ed.D, Associate Professor of Education and
Program Coordinator of Staten Island Undergraduate Programs, has
devoted herself to advancing her alma mater’s reputation as a
cutting-edge training ground for future teachers.
“Dr. Mistretta has introduced new approaches to teacher education
that are ahead of the curve,” said Jerrold Ross, Ph.D.,
Dean of The School
of Education (SOE). “In fact, she has played a major role in
furthering the School’s reputation as a progressive teacher
education center that produces professionals who educate the whole
child.”
Her contributions include raising corporate funding to create model
classrooms — two
Teaching and Training Labs — that were installed on the Staten Island campus.
The state-of-the-art classrooms stay ahead of the learning curve in
teacher education.
In addition, Dr. Mistretta recently launched an exciting new
parent-student program called
"In Collaboration." It is designed to allow parents of Catholic
School fourth- and fifth-graders to productively help their
children with their math and science classes. “Our graduate
students have told us that the program gives them an understanding
of the underlying issues complicating parent/student school-related
interactions,” she observed. “This understanding, in turn, aids
them in helping parents give their children constructive feedback.”
Dr. Mistretta has written an article about the program that will
appear this fall in the Journal for Mathematics Education
Leadership.
She was also instrumental in creating the
Internship Placement Project, providing nonprofit internship
opportunities to all SOE undergraduates. Inspired by Dean Ross who
recognized the need for future teachers to familiarize themselves
with the challenges facing the urban needy, the initiative is
broadening student understanding of the psychological and social
factors impacting school-age children. “This knowledge will ensure
that our graduates will be able to make their courses relevant to
21st century, multicultural students,” said Dr.
Mistretta.
It was precisely because of this holistic approach to teacher
education that Dr. Mistretta initially decided to come to St.
John’s as an undergraduate. “Even then, the SOE was known for its
progressive educational philosophy,” she recalled. This philosophy
was also what convinced her to return to St. John’s to pursue her
career as a professor of education.
“It definitely was the right move,” she said, “St. John’s is
enabling me to craft visionary educational programs. I am glad I
decided to come home.”