School counseling alumna Annie Goldberg (‘17 M.Ed.), a school counselor at Broadview Middle in Burlington, N.C., is the 2024 North Carolina School Counselor of the Year. Read more about her data-driven work, creativity, compassion, and advocacy for her profession at ed.unc.edu/annie.
SCHOOL OF EDUCATION
With this edition of Carolina Education, it is my honor to write to you as dean of the UNC School of Education. I’ve been a faculty member at Carolina for over 25 years. I am the new dean, but I’m not new to the School. In the last year as interim dean, I’ve viewed the School through new eyes, seeing even more great work from our faculty, staff, students, and alumni and appreciating the perspectives of stakeholders who care deeply about our future. We have challenges, of course, but we also have potential.
The School has changed a great deal in my time here. We still prepare educators and we do that work exceptionally well. Our faculty members still ask and respond to education’s toughest questions, and they do so in collaboration with school districts and educators. But now, we also prepare innovators and leaders for a variety of organizations. Many of our graduates go on to work with children and communities in a number of professional capacities outside of schools. We leverage new technologies.
One thing that hasn’t changed: Serving the needs and best interests of students or people in our communities is always demanding and challenging work. The people who have spent any time in Peabody Hall know this, and they still invest their time and energy into serving and solving challenges. This is what inspires me, and I hope what you read in this issue of Carolina Education speaks to that.
On the cover, you’ve already met alumna Annie Goldberg, the 2024 North Carolina School Counselor of the Year. Annie’s work at her middle school exemplifies the strengths-based approach to counseling she developed at Carolina. We’re proud to have an exceptional school counseling faculty and equally proud to know alumni like Annie serve PK-12 students at the highest level every day.
With the close of the 2024-25 school year, we also celebrate a milestone at Carolina Community Academy, our K-2 lab school in partnership with Person County Schools. This year, the kindergartners who walked through the doors on the very first day are finishing second grade and will begin third grade at an elementary down the road next fall. Their academic and social growth is a testament to CCA’s exceptional staff and leadership — many of whom are alums — and to powerful cross-campus collaborations that bring the very best of what Carolina has to offer to Person County.
We were honored to have Karen Erickson (’95 Ph.D.), a leading scholar in literacy and disability studies, deliver our 2025 graduation address. Her words were a powerful reminder of the impact research, teaching, and advocacy can have when rooted in individual and collective purpose.
You’ll also see more alumni achievements. When you have good news to share with us, please share it!
The people in the UNC School of Education community — and that includes you — Propel the World for their students, schools, organizations, communities, and more. I’m excited and honored to lead this School and can’t wait to meet many of you as I settle in as dean. Thank you for your support, and happy reading.
Dean and William C. Friday Distinguished Professor of Education
Following a national search, Jill V. Hamm, Ph.D., William C. Friday Distinguished Professor of Education, was named the next dean of the UNC School of Education. Chancellor Lee H. Roberts made the announcement during the during the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill’s Faculty Council meeting on April 25. Hamm — a renowned researcher with interests focused on early adolescents’ social, behavioral, and academic adjustment and the role of peer relations in successful school adaptation — had served as the School’s interim dean since May 2024. Before her interim role, Hamm was the School’s associate dean for research and faculty development, playing a leading role in growing the School’s annual research expenditures from $6.2 million in 2016 to $25 million in 2024.
Hutt
Ethan Hutt, Ph.D., the Gary Stuck Faculty Scholar in Education and an education historian, co-authored the forthcoming article “‘Original History’ and the Free Exercise Case for Religious Charter Schools,” which was included in an amicus brief for the U.S. Supreme Court case St. Isidore of Seville Catholic Virtual School v. Drummond. The article highlights historical moments that serve as analogs to the legal questions raised in the case.
Former School of Education
Dean Frank Brown, Ph.D., the first Black dean of a doctoral degree-granting professional school at Carolina, passed away on March 12 at the age of 89. A visionary writer and researcher, Brown authored more than 300 publications focused on legal and racial issues in education. A trailblazer in academia, Brown was also the first Black vice president of the American Educational Research Association.
Kara Hume, Ph.D., the Richard “Dick” Coop Faculty Scholar in Education, received the 2025 Council for Exceptional Children’s Division on Autism and Developmental Disabilities (DADD) Research Award — a recognition that honors outstanding contributions to research supporting individuals with autism, intellectual disability, and other developmental disabilities. The award was presented at the 26th International Conference on Autism, Intellectual Disability & Developmental Disabilities in January.
Launched in 2024, the School’s online Ed.D. in Educational Leadership with a concentration in Organizational Learning and Leadership welcomed its first cohorts to campus in April for the program’s inaugural Immersion Experience. After weeks and months of virtual classes, students and faculty members met in Chapel Hill, beginning to plan capstone projects and engaging in collaborative discussions that are already advancing the program’s work to prepare leaders who will deliver upon their organization’s mission.
Learn more at ed.unc.edu/oll
The kindergartners who walked through the doors of Carolina Community Academy — Carolina’s K-2 lab school in Roxboro — on the school’s first day in 2022 “graduate” to third grade this spring. They leave with a strong foundation for the rest of their academic lives. To mark their graduation, in collaboration with the Ackland Art Museum and the UNC School of Information and Library Science, the second graders are creating their own unique leaves to be included in permanent poplar tree art installation in one of school’s main hallways.
Elena Ashburn (’12 M.S.A., ’18 Ed.D.) has long viewed education as a calling — one that has taken her from teaching high school English to shaping education policy at the highest level of North Carolina’s government.
In early 2025, Ashburn was named senior advisor for education policy on Governor Josh Stein’s policy team — a role she stepped into after years of service in North Carolina public schools, including leadership roles across Wake County at the district and school levels.
Two years after earning her master’s degree, Ashburn became principal of East Garner Middle. In 2017, she was named principal at Raleigh’s Broughton Magnet High School, where under her leadership the school saw record-setting graduation rates and improvements in teacher retention.
In 2021, Ashburn was named the Wells Fargo North Carolina Principal of the Year and received the Distinguished Leadership Award from the UNC School of Education.
Most recently, Ashburn served as Wake County’s central area superintendent.
The School reached out to Ashburn to learn about her new role and what she’s helped to accomplish so far. This Q&A has been edited for space. Read the full Q&A at ed.unc.edu.
Tell us about your role as senior advisor for education policy on Governor Stein’s policy team. What impact has this role had on your professional journey so far?
As the senior advisor for education policy, I work alongside the Governor in setting policy priorities for Pre-Kindergarten through higher education across our great state.
Having come to this role after 15 years of service as a practitioner in North Carolina public schools, this new role has challenged me to think and lead in different ways as we work to ensure every child has access to an exceptional public school experience in North Carolina.
What does a typical day look like in your role? What have you been able to accomplish so far?
There is no typical day! I engage in a myriad of activities to support the Governor’s education priorities — including policy
implementation through boards and commissions, engaging with educators, and fostering collaboration among state agencies and organizations — and so much more.
While each day may look different, every day is grounded in the belief that every child in North Carolina deserves the opportunity to attain an excellent education.
In just these first few months, the Governor has: proposed necessary and ambitious pay raises for teachers and educators; established an Advisory Council for Student Safety & Well-Being, with an initial charge to support school systems in making classrooms cell phone free; and launched the Governor’s Teacher Advisory Committee to hear directly from our hard-working teachers on how we can best support their daily work. This, of course, is just the beginning.
How has your experience in the UNC School of Education’s MSA and Ed.D. programs informed the work you do today?
Catherine Marshall was my first professor at UNC. On the first day during my MSA experience, she asked the class who wanted to be a superintendent. I was the only one to raise my hand. Over the next six years, she never let me forget that I had, in fact, raised my hand — and she always reminded me that I was capable of doing something wildly important.
To me, what is wildly important is having the courage to lead and serve all people with love. I am bolstered by Dr. Marshall and the many other UNC professors who poured into me, believing in my ability to affect change. Our kids most certainly deserve it.
Above: Bekele-Piper after graduating from the Human Development and Family Science program in 2024. Right: Bekele-Piper at her student-teaching placement. (Photos courtesy of Selah Bekele-Piper)
UNC SCHOOL OF EDUCATION 2025 STUDENT TEACHER OF THE YEAR
When asked about a highlight during her student-teaching experience, Selah Bekele-Piper (’24 B.A.Ed., ’25 MAT) recalls leading a hands-on science lesson about magnets. She provided her students with an opportunity to independently explore and make exciting discoveries. She says the moment reinforced to her the importance of adaptability, responsiveness to student needs, and thoughtful reflection — key components of effective teaching. “Seeing their excitement about discovering and their engagement was lots of fun,” she says.
During the 2024-25 school year, Bekele-Piper student taught at Person County’s Stories Creek Elementary — an experience made possible by the Fellows for Inclusive Excellence program, which places the School’s teaching and school counseling students into internships in rural high-needs schools.
Bekele-Piper is the UNC School of Education’s 2025 Student Teacher of the Year.
At the UNC School of Education, we empower educators and scholars to lead, to think creatively, to act with compassion, and to strive for equity and excellence for all. Equipped to succeed in their professions, our graduates emerge as leaders in their institutions and communities, and mindfully contribute toward continually improving and transforming them.
Since the last issue of Carolina Education , the School has received the following good news from our alumni community.
Robert Q. Berry III (’03 Ph.D.) was appointed dean of the Indiana University School of Education.
Alexa Brogna (’21 B.A.Ed, ’22 M.A.T.), Megan Cannady (’22 B.A.Ed., ’23 M.A.T.), Andrew Reinicke (’24 M.A.T.), and Jessica Tornai (’22 M.A.T.) were each named school-level 2025 Beginning Teachers of the Year in Durham Public Schools.
Tehya Bullard (’24 B.A.) is making a difference as a college advisor at Fairmont High School in Robeson County through the Carolina College Advising Corps.
Kristal Moore Clemons (’09 Ph.D.) was named interim associate dean of the College of Education at Virginia State University.
Sylvia Michelle Jabaley (’97 B.A.) was promoted as the first community school project manager in New Hanover County with Communities In Schools of Cape Fear.
Nina Franklin (’18 M.Ed.) was named one of CharlotteMecklenburg Schools’ 2024 School Counselors of the Year.
Karen Erickson (’95 Ph.D.) delivers
Karen Erickson (’95 Ph.D.), the David E. & Dolores (Dee) Yoder Distinguished Professor of Literacy and Disability Studies in the Department of Health Sciences at the UNC School of Medicine, delivered the School’s graduation address on Saturday, May 10, 2025, in Carmichael Arena. Erickson, who is a leading researcher in literacy for students with intellectual and developmental disabilities, charged students to write [their] own story, control [their] own narrative, and shine a light on the things that matter most to [them].”
Kathleen Harrell (’10 M.Ed.), a New Teacher Support Program coach, received the 2024 North Carolina New Teacher Support Program’s Advocacy Award.
Kelly McCarthy Mooney (’79 A.B.Ed.) of Birmingham, Ala., was elected to the Alabama State School Board in November 2024 and was sworn in for her four-year term in February 2025.
Paula Groves Price (’02 Ph.D.), dean of the N.C. A&T College of Education, received an Outstanding Book Award from the Society of Professors of Education for her 2024 edited book, “The Oxford Research Encyclopedia of Race and Education.”
Rodney Trice (’06 Ed.D.) received the North Carolina School Superintendents’ Association’s 2025 Dr. Samuel Houston Jr. Leadership Award.
Anthony White (’14 M.S.A.) was named executive director of auxiliary services in Durham Public Schools.
Changed jobs? Won an award? Moved? Scan the QR code and let us know.
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