Conway Named Associate Dean of College of Education

KUTZTOWN, Pa. – Kutztown University has named Dr. Thomas R. Conway as associate dean of the College of Education. Conway comes to KU after nine years at Cabrini University and will begin at KU May 20.

Conway is a life-long educator and has served at Cabrini since 2015. He began as an assistant professor of education in 2015 and rose to associate professor in 2021. He has served in several leadership positions, including project director for several grant projects, director of the Honors Program, chairperson of Teacher Education, chief certification officer and faculty assembly chair.

“I am beyond excited to join the Kutztown University community as the associate dean for the College of Education,” Conway said. “Through my work within Pennsylvania, I am aware of the excellence that shines from Kutztown’s programs. I look forward to being part of the College of Education to assist in any way possible with moving forward the collective vision and mission of the college. I am humbled to join this community of students, staff, faculty and administrators in continuing the innovative work that is happening at KU.”

At Cabrini, Conway taught methods and content-area reading courses for secondary education majors at the undergraduate and graduate levels. His research areas include instructional coaching/mentoring, leadership, educational technology and socio-cultural issues. In 2021, he won Cabrini’s Distinguished Faculty Award for scholarship for the publications of his two edited books: “Engaged clinical practice: Preparing Mentor Teachers,” and “University-based Educators to Support Teacher Candidate Learning and Development and Collaborative Models for Clinical Practice: Reflections from the Field.” In 2022, he won Cabrini’s Distinguished Faculty Award for external service to the profession.

Conway also serves in several leadership positions at the state and national levels. He is currently president-elect of the Pennsylvania Association of Colleges and Teacher Educators (PAC-TE). He will assume the presidency June 1. Additionally, he has served as a board member, fall conference chair, planning committee member and co-editor of PAC-TE’s journal, “The Pennsylvania Educator.” On the national level, Conway has served as the co-chair for the Association of Teacher Educators (ATE) Taskforce on Addressing the Needs of Cooperating/Mentor/Associate Teachers in their Practices and Roles as Mentors and Supervisors of the Novice Teacher. He is the chair of the Public Relations and Communications committee, member of the Commission on Advocacy, member of the Commission on the Re-Examination of Teacher Education Standards and a member of the editorial board for the fourth edition of the “Handbook of Research on Teacher Education.” At the March 2024 annual meeting in Anaheim, he will assume a position as a member of the Board of Directors as the college and university representative with a term through 2027.

“We are thrilled that Dr. Conway has decided to join the KU team in the College of Education,” said Dr. Rebecca West Burns, dean, College of Education. “Dr. Conway comes to us after a strong national search. We are fortunate to work with someone who has extensive knowledge, experience and leadership in education in Pennsylvania as he will support our mission to support student success through innovation in education.”

Conway earned his Education Doctorate in educational leadership from Saint Joseph’s University in 2010, a Master of Arts in theological and pastoral studies from La Salle University in 1998, and a Bachelor of Arts in secondary education/social studies from La Salle University in 1994.

The College of Education at Kutztown University is dedicated to having a positive impact on the lives of children and youth in the commonwealth of Pennsylvania through the preparation of highly qualified professional educators. Our goal is to provide preparation programs that blend a strong knowledge base in the content area and understanding of human development and grounding in pedagogy with frequent and continuous field experiences. The professional educators prepared in our programs will be willing and able to effect change in an increasingly diverse and technologically integrated educational environment. Our graduates will be committed to professional development throughout their careers, thus supporting the College of Education model of lifelong learning.