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Ocala alumna honored as Florida’s top school principal

EduGator alumna Jayne Ellspermann (MEd ’84, education leadership), the principal at West Port High School in Ocala, is Florida’s “Principal of the Year” according to the Florida Association of School Administrators (FASA).

Jayne Ellspermann

Jayne Ellspermann

FASA singled out Ellspermann based on her rich experience and longevity in public education and for raising academic scores at West Port.

Ellspermann is known for her focus on student achievement, staff training and campus pride. She recently instituted a “Power Hour” for students, empowering them to make informed choices for clubs and activities, and has seen her campus transform into an “A” school with the highest scores in the district. She also brought a college program to West Port, enabling students to earn their associate’s degrees on campus before graduating from high school.

Ellspermann joined Marion County Public Schools in 1980 as a high school social studies teacher. She rose through the ranks as testing specialist and assistant principal at two schools.  She received her first principal appointment in 1992 and served in that capacity at Romeo Elementary, Osceola Middle, and West Port Middle schools before moving to West Port High in 2004.

She earned a bachelor’s in psychology from the University of Georgia and a master’s in educational administration from the UF College of Education.

Ellspermann now represents Florida in the 2015 MetLife / NASSP National Principal of the Year competition.

FASA represents nearly 11,000 education administrators to support professional goals and enhance the quality of education. 

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COE researchers out in force at AERA’s massive annual meeting

(Click here for PDF listing of UFCOE presentations)

For years, the massive annual meeting of the American Educational Research Association has been a hotbed of the latest research and new ideas about teaching-and-learning practices and policies. This year, some 65 UF College of Education faculty and students participated in the 2013 meeting April 27-May 1 in San Francisco, joining 14,000 other education scholars from 75 nations. 

This year’s meeting theme focused on the relationships of education and poverty—how education theory, research, policy and praxis contribute to alleviating economic, intellectual and moral poverty.

Mirka Koro-Ljungberg...4 AERA presentations

Mirka Koro-Ljungberg              …4 AERA presentations

More UF education scholars, from multiple disciplines, attend AERA’s annual meeting than any other professional gathering. The EduGator contingent in San Francisco included 34 college faculty and 31 graduate students participating in presentations, panel discussions and association-related business meetings.

The UF presentations included hot education topics such as:

  • The effect of charter schools on student achievement
  • How neighborhoods contribute to children’s language and literacy development
  • Games and simulation courses in education technology
  • Analyzing the urban middle school transition and persistently disciplined students
  • Does teacher preparation for English Language Learners matter?
  • Leadership standards and accountability in Florida: Do they address poverty and social justice issues?
  • Supply and demand context for special-education teacher preparation reform
  • Writing instruction: What do preservice teachers know?

The busiest COE faculty attendees were Walter Leite and Mirka Koro-Ljungberg (both from research and evaluation methods), with four presentations each. Mary Brownell (special education), Ester de Jong (ESOL/bilingual education), Bernie Oliver (education leadership) and Albert Ritzhaupt (education technology) each made three presentations.

The complete AERA annual meeting program is available online at www.aera.net. 

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WRITER: Larry Lansford, director, news and communications, UF College of Education; llansford@coe.ufl.edu; 352-273-4137

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