Dr. Kala Burrell-Craft
Kala Burrell-Craft serves as the newest faculty member in the School of Education as an Associate Professor in the Educational Leadership program. Prior to joining us here at UMES, Dr. Burrell-Craft served as the Director of Teacher Residencies at Old Dominion University in Norfolk, Virginia, and Program Coordinator for a federally funded state personnel development grant at Louisiana State University. At ODU, Dr. Burrell-Craft lead college-wide initiatives centered on DEI as the co-director of the Anti-Racist Leadership Learning Initiative for Equity and Deconstructing Racism & Oppression (ALLIED) committee and as college facilitator for Bold, Inclusive Conversations.
Dr. Burrell-Craft has presented at the regional, national, and international level at various professional conferences on topics related to identity development, educational spaces (urban and rural), antiracist teacher preparation (culturally responsive pedagogy), critical literacies (critical race theory), and social justice. She was recognized by the Virginia Association of Colleges and Teacher Educators for her role in promoting partnerships between Virginia public schools and universities. She was also awarded a 2022 John R. Broderick Diversity Champion Award by the Office of Institutional Equity & Diversity at Old Dominion University, and the American Association of Colleges for Teacher Education (AACTE) 2022 Best Practice in Multicultural Education and Diversity Award for her work in teacher preparation.
Dr. Burrell-Craft earned her B.A. degree in English from Bowie State University, M.A. degree in Special Education from the University of Phoenix, a Post-Graduate degree in Educational Leadership from Towson University, and an Educational Specialist and Ph.D. degree in Educational Leadership and Research from Louisiana State University.
Dr. E. Scott England
E. Scott England has worked at almost every level of education during his career. He began his education career a 1:1 special education teacher’s aide to student with Autism. He also worked for three summers as both an aide and an instructor at a summer Autism camp. After becoming a certified teacher, Dr. England held first grade teaching assignments at two different elementary schools in central Illinois. He also taught third grade in northwestern Illinois. He is certified in elementary, middle school social studies and English language arts, and special education, as well as holding both principal and superintendent certifications.
Recognizing the ability to have an impact on a larger population, Dr. England became principal of a PK-3 building. As principal, he led several successful initiatives including developing a full-inclusion pre-k program, transitioning assessments from traditional to standards based, developing a character education program, implementing a volunteer reading program involving community members, and sweeping curriculum changes in both math and English language arts. He was then selected to become district superintendent.
As superintendent, he continued to implement curriculum changes, hired additional personnel to support reading and math interventions, and developed many community partnerships. He also increased cash on hand for the district by over one million dollars, upgraded the entire transportation fleet to most cost effective and fuel-efficient buses, remodeling many areas of the schools including retrofitting light fixtures to save thousands per month on the electricity bill, and built a new cafeteria for an elementary building.
Dr. England brings his experiences in public education to UMES in hopes to better prepare future leaders of education. His research interests include recruitment and retention efforts, policy, and reform. He received his B.S. from Millikin University, his MS.Ed and Ed.S. from Eastern Illinois University, and his Ph.D. from Indiana State University.
Dr. Casey T. Jakubowski
Casey Thomas Jakubowski, Ph.D. (SUNY Albany – Education Leadership and Policy) has served in public education for over 20 years. A former social studies teacher, with experience in middle and high school, Dr Jakubowski has written four books on teacher recruitment, retention, and practice. Dr Jakubowski’s research areas include the history of education, state policy implementation at the local level, rural educational best practices, and civic education. Dr Jakubowski, originally from the Buffalo, NY area, has served in a wide range of educational improvement and reform positions, at the local, and state level. Research publications and presentations include the Australian and International Rural Education Association, the National Rural Forum, History of Education Society, Rural Sociology Society, American Education Student Association, and over two dozen podcasts. A qualitative researcher, Dr Jakubowski examines the intersection of state policy, local implementation, stakeholder feedback, and community history.
