Character-education expert to speak May 12

One of the nation’s leading experts in the field of character education will speak Saturday, May 12, as part of the School of Education‘s Alumni Weekend program.

“Why Morals Are Back: The Return of Character Education” will be the topic of the free public event starting at 9:30 a.m. in 204 Educational Sciences Building, 1025 W. Johnson St.

School of Education alumnus James Leming, the Carl A. Gerstacker Professor of Education at Saginaw Valley State University in Michigan, plans to compare current public demands that schools develop “moral behavior” to similar discussions that took place in the 1920s and ’30s. He’ll explain the cultural roots of both movements and their underlying ideology.

Following Leming’s presentation, the School of Education will honor outstanding alumni:

• Alumni Achievement Awards: James Leming (Ph.D. ’73; Ronald Trent Anderson (B.S. ’61, M.S. ’62, M.F.A. ’63), a Massachusetts high-school art educator whose career spans 38 years; Barbara Brodhagen (B.S. ’72, M.S. ’76, Ph.D. ’98), educational researcher and seventh grade teacher at Madison’s Sherman Middle School; Margaret J. Safrit (M.S. ’62, Ph.D. ’67), a physical education professor and researcher for over 30 years at UW–Madison and American University; and Sky Yaeger (B.S. ’76, M.A. ’78, M.F.A. ’80), vice president for product development and marketing at Bianchi USA, a bicycle manufacturer.
• Outstanding Recent Graduate Awards: Victoria Hays (Ph.D. ’94), assistant director for psychology training at the University of Michigan.
• Lois Gadd Nemec Distinguished Elementary Education Alumni Award: Diana Kasbaum (B.S. ’73), teacher, Sun Prairie’s Eastside Elementary School.

The event concludes with a luncheon in the Virginia F. Harrison parlor, Lathrop Hall, 1050 University Ave. The lunch requires advance payment and registration; the remainder of the program is free.

For more information, call (608) 262-0054.