Ross, Dorene

Professor, Curriculum, Teaching, & Teacher Education
Unified Elementary ProTeach
School of Teaching and Learning
College of Education

University of Florida
2215D Norman Hall
PO Box 117048
Gainesville FL 32611
352-273-4206
Fax: 352-392-9193
dross@coe.ufl.edu

Research Biography

Dr. Dorene Ross joined the faculty at the University of Florida in 1979 and is currently an Irving and Rose Fien Professor in the School of Teaching and Learning and a faculty partner in the Lastinger Center for Learning. She has a long history of work in teacher education with particular emphasis on preparing students to work with diverse student populations and played a leadership role in the design and implementation of the current Unified Elementary ProTeach program. Her current work is focused around engagement with schools and scholarship focused intensively around issues related to poverty and school reform. She works extensively in providing staff development in poverty schools and serves as a Professor-in-Residence at two poverty schools, which have both substantially raised achievement. Since 2003, Dr. Ross has worked with and assumed leadership roles within the Lastinger Center for Learning, an endowed center with a mission to improve the educational outcomes for elementary children particularly those living in poverty. Over the past five years the Center has developed a school improvement model that is now being used in 38 elementary schools in five Florida school districts.

Degrees

Ed.D. – University of Virginia, 1978, Early Childhood Education

M.Ed. – William and Mary, 1975, Elementary Education

B.A. – University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill, 1972, Childhood Education

Key Professional Appointments

Rose and Irving Fien Professor, University of Florida, 2008 – 2011

Professor, University of Florida, 1990-present

Associate Professor, University of Florida, 1984-1990

Activities & Honors

Undergraduate Teacher of the Year Award, College of Education,1993

Teaching Improvement Program Award, Univ. of Florida,1993

Scholarship of Engagement Award, College of Education, 2005

Grants

Principal Investigator. Unified Elementary and Middle School PROTEACH: Re-designing Teacher Education at the University of Florida (with Dr. Rodman Webb), 1997-2000, BellSouth Foundation, $250,000.

Principal Investigator. College Research Incentive Fund, 1999-2000. College of Education, University of Florida, $3,000.

Collaborating Partner. Project FLITE: Florida Leadership in Inquiry and Teacher Education, 2000-2003. U.S. Department of Special Education and Rehabilitation Services $800,000.

Grant writer. Preservice Teacher Development and Evaluation at the University of Florida, 1999-2000, Florida Department of Education, $199,639.

Co-principal Investigator. Extending the use of CBM in Florida, 2000, Florida Department of Education, $20,308.

Ready Schools Miami, Kellogg Foundation (with D. Pemberton, A. Adams, D. Lawrence, A. Sejeck). Funded for 5 years for $10,000,000 ($5,000,000 for UF-based work), 2006-2011. (UF Co-director and PI for research).

Lastinger Center Program Evaluation (Pemberton, D., Ross, D., Adams, A. and others), $450,000, 2006-2007 (Co-PI)

Selected Publications

Bondy, E. & Ross, D.D. (2005) Preparing for inclusive teaching: Meeting the challenges of teacher education reform. Albany, NY: SUNY Press.

Bondy, E. & Ross, D.D. (2008). The teacher as warm demander. Educational Leadership, 66(1), 54-58.

Bondy, E., Ross, D., Adams, A., Nowak, R., Brownell, M., Hoppey, D., Kuhel, K., McCallum, C., & Stafford, L. (2007). Personal epistemologies and learning to teach. Teacher Education and Special Education, 30 (2), 67-82..

Bondy, E., Ross, D., Gallingane, C., & Hambacher, E. (2007) Creating environments of success and resilience: Culturally responsive classroom management and more. Urban Education, 42(4), 326-348.

Brownell, M., Ross, D. D., Colon, E. P., McCallum, C. (2005) Critical features of special education teacher education: A comparison with general teacher education. Journal of Special Education, 38 (4), 242-252.

McLeskey, J. & Ross, D.D. (2004) The politics of teacher education in the new millennium: Implications for special education teacher educators. Teacher Education Special Education, 27 (4), 342-349.

Ross, D. D. & Blanton, L. (2004). Inquiry communities in special education teacher education. Teacher Education Special Education, 27(1), 15-23.

Ross, D. D., Stafford, L., Church-Pupke, P., & Bondy, E. (2006). Practicing Collaboration: What we learn from a cohort that functions well. Teacher Education and Special Education, 29(1), 32-41.

Ross, D.D., Halsall, S., Howie, S., & Vescio, V. (in press). No excuses: Preparing novice teachers for poverty schools. Teacher Education and Practice.

Ross, D.D., Bondy, E., Gallingane, C., & Hambacher, E. (2008). Being a “warm demander:” The role of insistence in fostering achievement motivation. Childhood Education, 84 (3), 142-146.

Ross, D.D., Hoppey, D., Halsall, S., McCallum, C., Hayes, S., & Hudson, R. (2005). Cohort use in teacher education: Benefits, barriers, and proposed solutions. Teacher Education and Practice, 18(3), 265-281.

Ross, D.D., Kamman, M. & Coady, M. (2008). Accepting responsibility for the learning of all students: What does it really mean? In M. Rosenberg, D. Westling, & J. McLeskey, J. (Eds.). Special education for today’s teachers: An introduction (pp. 52-81). Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice Hall.

Vescio, V., Ross, D., & Adams, A. (2008). A review of research on the impact of professional learning communities on teaching practice and student learning. Teaching and Teacher Education, 24(1), 80-91.