Faculty and Staff
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Dr. Maria Luisa Zamudio-Mainou, Executive Director
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Tracy Berner, Budget Manager Tracy Berner is the business administrative Associate for the Chicago Teacher Education Pipeline. She received her MBA from Illinois State in December 2011.
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Jennifer O'Malley, Director During her professional life, Jennifer O'Malley has become well versed in the education system of Chicago. After receiving her undergraduate degree in English, Jennifer earned a Master in Writing, and then a Master in Education at DePaul University in Chicago. She taught writing, English, and language arts in Chicago Public Schools (CPS) for six years before joining the Chicago Teacher Education Pipeline ™ staff in the early stages of its development. As the current Director, Jennifer cultivates partnerships for ISU with CPS schools and district staff as well as community-based organizations in Chicago. She leads the CTEP team in collaboration with district and community partners in the development and implementation of programs for ISU education students and graduates in Chicago to cultivate and sustain effective, culturally responsive urban teachers
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Brent Showalter, Senior Research Fellow After joining the Chicago Teacher Education Pipeline as Research Associate in 2008, Brent Showalter worked to coordinate research efforts and structure evaluations for campus, community, and school-based programs and projects. With the advent of the National Center for Urban Education, Brent was appointed to the position of Senior Research Fellow and currently manages all research initiatives and assessment efforts for the NCUE, including the three pipelines (Chicago, Peoria, and Decatur). He has expertise in quantitative research designs, methodologies, and statistical analyses.
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Cliff Cobert, Associate Director Cliff Cobert, a retired Superintendent of Schools, brings over 38 years of school experience to ISU and the Teacher Education Pipeline. Cliff began his education career as a secondary mathematics teacher and has 29 years in school administration, 16 of which he served as Superintendent. Cliff’s experience in the areas of school personnel, curriculum, finances, and grants enhance his efforts, working with the Peoria Public Schools and Peoria community partners, to build and maintain a vibrant and effective Peoria Teacher Education Pipeline.
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Mentoring and Induction Apryl earned her degree in English from the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign and a Master of Arts in Secondary Education from National-Louis University. Apryl is a product of a south side Chicago Public School. When she returned to the system as a teacher, she was in awe of how much urban education had changed, which led her to her passion to have a positive impact in the movement. During her 11 years as a teacher, Apryl earned a Master of Arts degree in Curriculum and Instruction where she lead many curriculum teams and initiatives, including a nationally recognized college preparatory program for 5 years, teaching the elective class for 8 years. Currently working on her doctorate, she is passionate about helping new teachers get successfully acclimated to the profession of teaching in an urban environment and especially Chicago Public Schools.
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Joanna Oceguera, Project Manager Joanna began her career in education at Chicago Public Schools, after graduating from Saint Xavier University with a B.A. in English Education. Her leadership skills led to her promotion as Literacy Coach at her 9th-12th grade building. Joanna's love of coaching has brought her to the National Center for Urban Education, where she supports beginning teachers and program mentors in the Induction & Mentoring Program. She is committed to aid in the retention of qualified and exceptional teachers in schools where they are most needed, by bringing support, knowledge, and resources to the teachers that she works with on a daily basis.
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Ashley Wolinski-Norton, Clinical Assistant Professor, Special Education Ashley Wolinski-Norton is a clinical assistant professor in the Department of Special Education at Illinois State University and coordinator of the CPS Field-based program. Prior to her position with Illinois State University, she spent seven years as a Learning and Behavior Specialist and in administrative roles in Chicago Public Schools. She has also served as a mentor for beginning special education teachers. She teaches SED 390 Assessment to Instruction, SED 391 Current Laws and Initiatives, and SED 392 Content Strategies, Analysis, and Collaborations during the CPS Field-based semester in Chicago. In addition, she supervises Field-based students and student teachers at their CPS clinical sites along with securing their placements in collaboration with the Chicago Teacher Education Pipeline. Ashley has been an educational consultant on 20 books published by Heinemann Library including the following series: Disabilities and Differences, Understanding Health Issues, and My Science Investigations. Currently, Ashley is pursuing her doctorate in special education at Illinois State University.
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Dr. April Mustian, Assistant Professor
Dr. April Mustian is an associate professor of Special Education at Illinois State University (ISU). A former K-12 special educator, she provides in-depth instruction to preservice teachers and graduate students on culturally responsive school- and class-wide behavioral and literacy practices. She is the coordinator of our specialized urban course sequence at ISU called Innovative Network of Future Urban Special Educators (INFUSE). Additionally, she serves as the Director of Faculty Development for NCUE, where she, along with other NCUE staff and our community partners, support new NCUE urban faculty each summer through an immersive professional development course redesign experience. Her research interests include culturally responsive academic and behavioral interventions for students with high-incidence disabilities, urban special education preparation, teacher bias and its impacts on school outcomes for marginalized student populations, restorative practices, and decreasing disproportionality (challenging the School-to-Prison-Pipeline) of Black students in disciplinary action.
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Dr. Brian Horn, Assistant Professor Brian Horn is an assistant professor of reading and literacy in the School of Teaching and Learning at Illinois State University. Brian taught for eight years in urban elementary and middle schools in Kansas and Michigan prior to coming to ISU. Brian's research interests include urban teacher identity and preparation, critical literacy, and action research. Most recently, Brian's research has been published in Voices from the Middle (2012), Networks: An On-Line Journal for Teacher Research (in press), and in the forthcoming book, "A Poverty, Equity, and Education Reader in Many Voices" (in press).
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Lois La Galle, Site Coordinator Lois taught in Chicago Public Schools for 23 years as a dual language classroom teacher, school librarian and ESL teacher. She helped develop and coordinate and internship program for student teachers from Chicago State University and has mentored numerous student teachers and new teachers in CPS. As the Chicago PDS Site Coordinator, she coordinates and mentors ISU student teachers in Chicago.
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