Marking the culmination of years of commitment and focus, graduation is a milestone shared and celebrated by the entire Johns Hopkins School of Education community. Our festivities honor graduates in three distinct ceremonies:
- Society of Excellence Awards, recognizing schoolwide student and alumni achievement;
- Doctoral Hooding Ceremony, marking the success of PhD and EdD candidates; and
- School of Education Graduation Ceremony: the gala event where all candidates celebrate receiving their degrees.
We are delighted to observe these occasions with all the pomp and circumstance that our graduates deserve. Thank you for joining us!
2024 Graduation Week Videos
2024 Graduation Week Photos
2024 Graduation Week Videos
2024 Graduation Week Photos
View this post on Instagram
National Anthem
Marjorie Sheiman (left), mezzo-soprano, is performing the national anthem at the Doctoral Hooding Ceremony. Joshua Coleman (right), baritone, is performing the national anthem at the SOE Graduation Ceremony. Both are 2024 degree candidates of the Peabody Institute of Johns Hopkins University.
Johns Hopkins School of Education
Jaime Lester, PhD
Vice Dean of Academic Affairs
Congratulations, graduates! Johns Hopkins strengthens, challenges, and supports you—but it is you who make us great.
Jaime Lester will be welcoming students and their families to the Society of Excellence Awards, Doctoral Hooding Ceremony and the SOE Graduation. She will also lead the Hooding of the Doctoral Candidates and Recognition of Graduates at graduation.
Johns Hopkins School of Education
Christopher C. Morphew, PhD
Dean
We’re so proud of your achievement—and so ready to celebrate! Looking forward to seeing you at the big event. Congrats!
Christopher C. Morphew will be delivering opening and closing remarks at the Doctoral Hooding Ceremony and delivering the opening remarks and presenting the Champion of Education Award at graduation.
Rhonda Richetta, EdD, MS ’06
Representing the Johns Hopkins Alumni Association, Rhonda L. Richetta is the principal of City Springs Elementary/Middle School, a Baltimore City public charter school operated by the Baltimore Curriculum Project. Dr. Richetta has gained wide recognition for leading the implementation of restorative practices at City Springs, transforming school climate and culture, and significantly reducing school suspensions. In 2021, Dr. Richetta was named a Baltimore City Public Schools Distinguished Principal and was elected by her peers to serve as vice president of the Public-School Administrators and Supervisors Association. She earned her master’s degree in educational leadership and administration from Johns Hopkins University and the Doctor of Education in Leadership, Management, and Policy from Seton Hall University.
3 Johns Hopkins Alumni Association Awards
Rhonda L. Richetta will be presenting the Distinguished Alumnus/a Award, the Outstanding Recent Graduate Award, and the Excellence in Teaching Award
3 Johns Hopkins Alumni Association Awards
Rhonda L. Richetta will be presenting the Distinguished Alumnus/a Award, the Outstanding Recent Graduate Award, and the Excellence in Teaching Award
JHU Alumni Association Awards
(left to right)
Cheree Davis, Cert ’15 Outstanding Recent Graduate Award
Roy E. Strowd III, MD, MEHP ’18 Distinguished Alumnus/a Award
Veronique Gugliucciello Excellence in Teaching Award
Outstanding Recent Graduate Award: In more than 25 years as an educator, Cheree Davis, a 2015 Administration and Supervision program alumna, has mentored more than 25 early-career educators. Among other honors, she is a recipient of the Oprah Winfrey Ambassador Teacher Award.
Distinguished Alumnus Award: Vice dean for medical education at the Wake Forest University School of Medicine, Dr. Roy E. Strowd III is a 2018 alumnus of the MEHP program. The founding editor of Neurology: Education, he is a leading contributor to the advancement of medical education.
Excellence in Teaching Award: Faculty Advisor and Senior Lecturer in the International Gifted Teaching and Learning Program, Veronique Gugliucciello is recognized for the impact of her instruction, and commended by her students for individual attention, integration of creativity, and model leadership.
Champion in Education Award
In honor of their many contributions to advance education through leadership and innovation, the Johns Hopkins School of Education proudly names Sheldon and Saralynn Glass our 2024 Champions in Education!
50+ Scholarships Supported
Since its endowment in 2011, the Sheldon D. Glass and Saralynn B. Glass Counseling Scholarship has supported more than 50 students.
50+ Scholarships Supported
Since its endowment in 2011, the Sheldon D. Glass and Saralynn B. Glass Counseling Scholarship has supported more than 50 students.
Mrs. Saralynn B. Glass
Mrs. Saralynn B. Glass is a distinguished alumna of Johns Hopkins University, having earned her Bachelor of Science in Psychology in 1972 and her Master of Science in Education in 1977. Throughout her career, Saralynn has been a trailblazer in the field of education. She is a founding member of both the School of Education’s National Advisory Council and Alumni Council, where she has played a pivotal role in fostering innovation and ensuring quality in education. Saralynn’s leadership and dedication continue to inspire educators and students alike.
Sheldon D. Glass, M.D.
Dr. Sheldon D. Glass is a highly esteemed member of the faculty at Johns Hopkins University, where he has contributed significantly to the field of psychiatry for over five decades. Graduating with a Master of Science in Education in 1966 during his psychiatric residency, Dr. Glass has been a steadfast educator and mentor. He has served as a full or part-time faculty member in the department of psychiatry since 1968, dedicating himself to both teaching and clinical practice. Over his tenure, Dr. Glass has introduced five new courses to the School of Education, enriching the academic experience for countless students and shaping the future of psychiatry education.
Candidate Address to the Graduates
Jibri McLean
MS in Counseling Candidate
Class of 2024, this is our moment! Believe in yourself and those around you, and we will achieve a brighter future for education.
Born and raised in Baltimore, Jibri McLean attended the Gilman School and graduated in 2013. He then accepted a football scholarship to Kenyon College where he earned his BA in political science. Upon graduation, Jibri accepted a one-year fellowship position at the Gilman School. He subsequently taught middle school history at the Calvert School for five years, and during his tenure there, earned his MS in counseling at Johns Hopkins. An avid lover of sports, music, and traveling, Jibri has always had a passion for helping children strive to the fullest potential and achieve their dreams. He currently serves as Upper School counselor at Germantown Academy in Pennsylvania.
Address to the Graduates
John White, EdD ’22 | Chief Success Officer, Great Minds
John White serves as chief success officer at Great Minds, the fast-growing developer of Eureka Math, Wit & Wisdom, Geodes, and PhD Science. John’s role is to assure the effective implementation of curriculum for millions of U.S. school children, leading the company’s customer success, professional services, research, and public policy teams.
John previously served as Louisiana state superintendent of education. Over nine years, he led nationally recognized efforts to unify the state’s fragmented early childhood system, to modernize curriculum, to professionalize educator preparation, to provide pathways to prosperity for all high school graduates, and to rebuild the New Orleans public school system in the decade following Hurricane Katrina.
Louisiana’s class of 2019 included 5,000 more graduates than did the class of 2012. Five thousand more students in that class earned the state’s TOPS college scholarship, and 5,000 more enrolled in college after graduating high school. In that time, the number of Louisiana students earning Advanced Placement early college credits increased by 167 percent, and Louisiana now ranks number one in the nation in the percentage of high school seniors completing an application for higher education financial aid.
In 2019, Louisiana students ranked first in the nation for improvement in 8th grade mathematics on the National Assessment of Education Progress (NAEP). Over the decade spanning John’s tenure, Louisiana ranked in the top 10 states for improvement on every one of the four main NAEP tests.
Prior to being named state superintendent, John served as superintendent of the Louisiana Recovery School District, leading the renovation of public schools in New Orleans in the years after Hurricane Katrina. He previously served under Mayor Michael Bloomberg and Chancellor Joel Klein as deputy chancellor for the New York City Department of Education and served as executive director of Teach For America – Chicago and Teach For America – New Jersey. He began his career as an English teacher at William L. Dickinson High School in Jersey City, New Jersey.
John is co-founder of Propel America, a nonprofit start-up connecting recent high school graduates with good first jobs, and Watershed Advisors, a consultancy to governments scaling high-impact education initiatives. He is a former director at Great Minds PBC and an Education Advisory Council member at the global consultancy Alvarez & Marsal. John earned a bachelor’s degree with distinction from the University of Virginia, a master’s degree in public administration from New York University, and a doctorate in education from Johns Hopkins University. He lives in New Orleans with his wife and three children.
Names of Graduates Read By
-
Annette Campbell Anderson, PhD
Assistant Professor
Deputy Director, Center for Safe and Healthy Schools
Curriculum Director, Johns Hopkins HEAT CorpsAffiliation
Center for Safe and Healthy Schools, Innovative Teaching & Leadership
Expertise
Administration, Organization & Leadership, Education Policy & Politics
-
Veronique C. Gugliucciello, MS
Senior Lecturer
Affiliation
Innovative Teaching & Leadership
Expertise
International Teaching & Global Leadership
-
Ranjini Mahinda JohnBull, PhD
Assistant Professor
Affiliation
Advanced Studies in Education
Expertise
Learning & Instruction, Mind, Brain, & Teaching
-
Sterling P. Travis, PhD
Assistant Professor
Affiliation
Counseling & Educational Studies
Expertise
Counseling & Human Development
Annette Campbell Anderson, PhD
Assistant Professor
Deputy Director, Center for Safe and Healthy Schools
Curriculum Director, Johns Hopkins HEAT Corps
Affiliation
Center for Safe and Healthy Schools, Innovative Teaching & Leadership
Expertise
Administration, Organization & Leadership, Education Policy & Politics
Veronique C. Gugliucciello, MS
Senior Lecturer
Affiliation
Innovative Teaching & Leadership
Expertise
International Teaching & Global Leadership
Ranjini Mahinda JohnBull, PhD
Assistant Professor
Affiliation
Advanced Studies in Education
Expertise
Learning & Instruction, Mind, Brain, & Teaching
Sterling P. Travis, PhD
Assistant Professor
Affiliation
Counseling & Educational Studies
Expertise
Counseling & Human Development
Society of Excellence Awards
Presented annually to recognize outstanding teaching and student achievement based on exceptional individual contributions to the profession.
Edward F. Pajak, Jr. Award | Chanda Turner
An accomplished educator and school leader with a diverse set of experiences in U.S. public schools, Chanda Turner proudly started her career in 1997 as an elementary paraprofessional educational technician. She earned her doctorate in the Mind, Brain, and Teaching program at the School of Education and currently serves as director of curriculum and staff development for a public school district in her home state of Maine. In addition to her professional life, Dr. Turner is a mom of two teenage daughters, wife of a high school science educator, a blueberry farmer, a Girl Scout leader, an Alagille Syndrome mom, and a liver transplant mom. She enjoys bringing the best practices of teaching and learning into all aspects of her life, believing that every experience is an opportunity to learn and grow.
Jeffrey A. Grigg Memorial Award | Lisa Nehring
Lisa is a PhD student and Social Justice Fellow at the Johns Hopkins School of Education. Using principles of social psychology and place-conscious frameworks, Lisa’s research questions the boundaries of classroom spaces and attempts to understand the relational aspects of meaningful education. Currently, she is working in partnership with Baltimore City Public Schools to explore the use of outdoor learning spaces.
Robert Keddell Memorial Award for Teacher Leadership | Claudia Mejia Trejo
As the first-generation Latina in her family to complete this milestone, Claudia’s passion for early childhood education and trying to understand how children learn led her to pursue a certificate program in Mind, Brain and Teaching. Her academic journey has been empowered by working and living in Asia for 13 years and completing her graduate program at Johns Hopkins, which has given her the tools to be more analytical of children’s environment, how they learn, and how to interpret research in education. Claudia also serves as a board member of Side x Side, a nonprofit arts integration program that serves schools in Maine.
MEHP Alumni Award | Anna Burgner, MD
Dr. Anna Burgner is an associate professor of medicine and program director of the Nephrology Fellowship Program at Vanderbilt University. She received her MD from Indiana University School of Medicine and completed her residency and nephrology fellowship at Vanderbilt University Medical Center. Since earning her MEHP through Johns Hopkins, she has worked tirelessly over the past 11 years as an educator. She serves on the editorial board for the American Journal of Kidney Diseases, as an associate editor for Nephrology News and Issues, and on multiple national committees that focus on nephrology education. For her leadership and innovation in medical education and actively transforming training in the discipline of nephrology, she received the 2023 Midcareer Distinguished Educator Award from the American Society of Nephrology.
Excellence Awards
Advanced Studies in Education
PhD | Zyrashae Smith Onyewu
Zyrashae Smith-Onyewu, PhD is a postdoctoral researcher and incoming assistant professor in the College of Education at the University of Florida. She is a recipient of a 2022 American Education Research Association (AERA) Minority Dissertation Fellowship, the 2022 Jeffrey A. Grigg Memorial Award, and a 2021 Johns Hopkins 21st Century Cities Initiative Award for Doctoral Research on Urban Issues. Zyrashae has served as a graduate research assistant for the Baltimore Education Research Consortium (BERC) and a college access advisor for the CollegeBound Foundation. She holds a bachelor of science in psychology from Morgan State University and a master of science in educational studies with a graduate certificate in urban education from the Johns Hopkins School of Education.
EdD | Carleen Ratcliffe
Carleen Ratcliffe, EdD, is a senior academic advisor at Seattle University in Seattle, Washington. Through her advising and mentorship work with undergraduate nursing students, she discovered an interest in the factors influencing the mental health of first-year college students. Her doctoral research explored how social capital and belonging affect first-year student depression, stress, and anxiety, with a particular focus on first-generation college students. These studies culminated in the creation and testing of an instrument to measure students’ social capital throughout their first year in college. Dr. Ratcliffe continues her work by growing participant numbers at the current study site with plans to expand to multiple higher education institutions across the United States in the next academic year.
MEHP | April Choi, MD
April is an emergency medicine physician currently finishing her medical education fellowship at Johns Hopkins. She completed medical school at the Medical College of Wisconsin in Milwaukee before returning to her home state of New Jersey to complete emergency medicine residency training at Rutgers New Jersey Medical School. There, she served as chief resident, which cultivated her interests in medical education. April is thankful that the MEHP program provided her with the foundation upon which to build her medical education path and looks forward to further developing her interests in curriculum design and medical education research.
Counseling and Educational Studies
School Counseling | Aishwarya Jayabharathi
Aishwarya’s experience includes counseling within elementary, middle, and high schools, where she cultivated her research interests alongside promoting learning and wellbeing for diverse student populations. Current research interests involve social-emotional learning; opportunity and achievement gaps; and mental health and wellbeing in schools. During her time at Johns Hopkins, she has worked as a research assistant within various programs and presented her research at the Society for Research on Educational Effectiveness, Evidence Based School Counseling Conferences, Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers, and American Society for Engineering Education. She serves as the student representative on an Applied Physics Lab collaborative team and is the School Counseling representative of the Chi Sigma Iota (CSI) Honor Society.
Clinical Mental Health Counseling | Keenan Eldridge
Keenan is a Maryland native who served as president of the Johns Hopkins Lambda Chapter of Chi Sigma Iota International Counseling Honors Society. A relentless worker, he is easily accessible among fellow students and faculty at SOE. Keenan was named as Pro Bono Counseling Project’s nominee for the 2023 Baltimore Ravens Community Quarterback Award for his service within the greater Baltimore area. As Howard Community College’s 2019 Social Sciences Division Student of the Year and University of Maryland, Baltimore County’s 2021 Outstanding Student in Sociology, Keenan is dedicated to being a lifelong learner and serving the community with enduring impact.
Interdisciplinary Option | Sebastian Chu
Sebastian Chu has experience in the Baltimore City Public School System and currently works as an academic program coordinator for the Johns Hopkins Berman Institute of Bioethics. He is interested in the role of technology in the classroom and data analysis in education.
DALET | Aamer M. Khan
A dedicated lifelong learner with a rich background in instructional and management roles within higher education, military, and aviation sectors, Aamer Khan is a senior instructional designer at Texas A&M University-Health Science Center. Informed by his DALET knowledge, his work aims to address the interprofessional learning needs of students from diverse medical disciplines, with the ultimate goal of improved healthcare outcomes. Prior to his role at Texas A&M, Aamer spent 12 years as an assistant professor and program manager at the Defense Language Institute. He remains committed to improving technology-enhanced learning environments through empathy, equity, research, and professional growth to make a meaningful contribution to education in the digital age.
Gifted | Bridget Belyeu
Bridget holds a BA in international/global studies from the University of North Texas. She has over 10 years of experience teaching at Fort Worth Academy, a progressive school for gifted, twice-exceptional, and high-achieving students in Texas. Her interests include technology integration and problem-based learning.
Education Policy | Meredith Coffey
Meredith Coffey is a senior research associate at the Thomas B. Fordham Institute. She completed her MS in education policy at Johns Hopkins University in August 2023. Originally from Miami, Florida, Meredith also holds a BA in comparative literature & literary theory from the University of Pennsylvania, a PhD in English literature from the University of Texas at Austin, and an MS in education from Hunter College. Before her current position at Fordham, Meredith taught high school English at public schools in New York City and Fairfax County, Virginia. She lives with her family in Silver Spring, Maryland.
Innovative Teaching and Leadership
ITGL | Hongjie Guan
Hongjie is a member of the Teaching English as a Foreign Language (TEFL) family. She is passionate about advocating for equity and social justice in language education. Hongjie was inspired by various resources provided by the ITGL program to discover her interest in academic research. She is currently pursuing a doctorate degree in educational policy studies at Georgia State University, focusing on educational leadership. She is interested in analyzing language education policies and examining culturally responsive practices using qualitative methods.
TFA/TNTP | Ro-Anne Roxanne Thomas
A Jamaican immigrant, Ro-Anne is a passionate second grade teacher. She holds a B.A. in psychology from Fairfield University. After working as a medical scribe, Ro-Anne joined the 2019 TFA corps to pursue her passion for education and service. She is currently in her fifth year of teaching in her adopted hometown of Bridgeport, Connecticut, where she inspires, teaches, learns from, and gives back to the next generation of leaders. Ro-Anne is an avid reader and basketball enthusiast.
Special Education | Margie Miller
A native Marylander, Margie has worked as an educator since 2015, when she began teaching ESL to young adults from Central America at a D.C public charter school. This led to other teaching experiences, like tutoring non-literate Spanish-speaking adults through Plaza Comunitaria, working as a community college reading clinician, and tutoring English and Spanish GED. Margie's experiences working with adults with disabilities led her to pursue a master’s degree in special education at Johns Hopkins, where the Mild-to-Moderate Disabilities concentration has helped her better understand and support students with disabilities—and herself. Currently student-teaching at Hampstead Hill Academy, Margie plans to pursue a job as a lower elementary special education teacher in Baltimore City Public Schools.
Names of Doctoral Candidates Read By
-
Hunter Gehlbach, PhD
Professor
Faculty Lead, PhD ProgramAffiliation
Advanced Studies in Education
Expertise
Learning & Instruction, Measurement & Research Methodologies
-
Janet Schreck, PhD
Associate Professor
Interim Chair, Advanced Studies in EducationAffiliation
Advanced Studies in Education
Expertise
Administration, Organization & Leadership, Research, Evaluation & Assessment
-
Laura Flores Shaw, EdD
Assistant Professor
Faculty Lead, Doctor of EducationAffiliation
Advanced Studies in Education
Expertise
Learning & Instruction
Hunter Gehlbach, PhD
Professor
Faculty Lead, PhD Program
Affiliation
Advanced Studies in Education
Expertise
Learning & Instruction, Measurement & Research Methodologies
Janet Schreck, PhD
Associate Professor
Interim Chair, Advanced Studies in Education
Affiliation
Advanced Studies in Education
Expertise
Administration, Organization & Leadership, Research, Evaluation & Assessment
Laura Flores Shaw, EdD
Assistant Professor
Faculty Lead, Doctor of Education
Affiliation
Advanced Studies in Education
Expertise
Learning & Instruction
In Memoriam
Laura Quaynor
Associate Professor and Department Chair
Researcher
Teacher
Mentor
Colleague
Friend
Laura Quaynor was an associate professor, the chair of the Department of Advanced Studies in Education, and a valued member of our community who passed away in August of last year. A specialist in academic writing, she developed and led courses on ESL and bilingual teaching methods, cross-cultural studies, linguistics, and comparative education, among many other contributions. We will always remember Laura for her positivity, her consideration, her willingness to ask important questions—and the wonderful support she gave her students.