MCE Signature Events
MCE Signature Events
The MCE Signature Events comprise a series of informal presentations and interviews conducted by the MCE Alumni Board as a dialogue with distinguished DU alumni, faculty and constituents who help connect the academic and professional worlds for the benefit of the students, faculty, staff and alumni.
2013 Winter Signature Event 
Featuring Barth Quenzer
Collaboration - The Path to Innovation
The Morgridge College of Education is proud to welcome back to the campus, for the Alumni Board's Winter Signature Event, Barth Quenzer. Fresh off his receiving the prestigious Milken Outstanding Educator Award, he will share with us what it means for a teacher to be so honored as one of forty in the nation this year. The Milken Family Foundation since 1985 has honored teachers and administrators with what has been called the "Oscars of Teaching".
Barth is an accomplished DU alumnus with multiple degrees from the University including a BA from the School of Art and Art History, and a Teaching License and MA from the Morgridge College of Education. A gifted artist himself, Barth works as a Visual Arts Teacher at Brown International Academy in Denver, teaching young students to become aspiring artists. Barth holds numerous awards and recognitions such as the 2012 Elementary Visual Arts Teacher of the Year and 2009 Mile High Teacher of the Year. He also works as an adjunct instructor at Rocky Mountain College of Art and Design. Quenzer is a member of the Denver Public Schools Visual Art Research Assessment Team and the Colorado Department of Education Content Collaborative, charged with penning high-quality arts assessments aligned to Colorado's new academic standards. Described as "an ambassador for art in the school, the district and across the state," his voice, his art and his students reflect a deep commitment and compassion for his craft. We look forward to his interview and his inspiration.
Photo courtesy of Milken Family Foundation
Video of the interview with Barth Quenzer
2012 Fall Signature Event 
Featuring Senator Michael Johnston
Through Historical Perspective - The Art of Education
Senator Michael Johnston is a Colorado native and a Morgridge College of Education alumni who has made high impact on the schools of our state as a student, teacher, administrator, author, and now as a member of the State Legislature representing District 33 of Northeastern Denver. Senator Johnston served as a member of the transition team on education policy for president-elect Barack Obama during his campaign. Johnston authored the number one selling education book In the Deep Heart's Core, based on his experience teaching in the rural south for Teach for America. Before being appointed to the State Senate, he also served in the Denver area as principal of the Mapleton Expeditionary School of the Arts, the Joan Farley Academy, and the Marvin Foote Detention Center. As an influential member in the field of education, the senator has been featured in Forbes Magazine's "7 Most Powerful Educators" and Time Magazine's "40 under 40".
Video of the interview with Senator Johnston
2012 Spring Signature Event
Featuring Dr. Donna Shavlik
The Ever Changing Landscape for Women's Education
Dr. Shavlik, a Denver native, is a former Director of the Office of Women in Higher Education and Senior Fellow, American Council on Education in Washington, DC. She was a founding member of the National Council for Research on Women and served as chair of the Board of Directors and has been a national and international advisor on higher education. During her tenure, Dr. Shavlik played a major role in coordinating efforts among higher education associations relative to women's equity and leadership and in creating strategies to address women's issues. She has received numerous awards, especially for the role she played in the passage of Title IX.
Video of the interview with Dr. Shavlik
2012 Winter Signature Event
Featuring Dr. Lucy Jane Miller
Sensory Processing Disorder: Persistence & Passion
Caring for Individuals with Challenges in Responding to Sensation
Lucy Jane Miller founded the Sensory Processing Disorder Foundation in 1979, and serves as the executive director. She was an associate professor at UC Denver Medical School with a double appointment in Pediatrics and Rehabilitation Medicine for 11 years. In 2005 Dr. Miller founded the STAR (Sensory Therapies And Research) Center, co-located with the Foundation in Denver.
For 35 years Dr. Miller has devoted herself to the study and treatment of Sensory Processing Disorder and is spearheading the effort to get SPD recognized as a diagnostic entity separate from other disorders. She is a prolific author, with over 50 articles in peer-reviewed journals. Her book, Sensational Kids: Hope and Help for Children with Sensory Processing Disorder (SPD) has become the definitive source of information on SPD. She has developed the STAR treatment model, which has been demonstrated through research to be effective.
Dr. Miller also develops norm-referenced standardized assessments that are in use worldwide, including the Miller Assessment for Preschoolers, the Leiter International Performance Scale – Revised and the new Miller Function and Participation Scale or M-Fun. She talks about learning family-centered care during her three terms, totaling nine years on the Governor's Interagency Coordinating Council for IDEA in CO. In 2005, she received the Martin Luther King, Jr. award from the State of Colorado.
Video of the interview with Dr. Miller
2011 Fall Signature Event
Featuring Dr. Kristen Waters
Morgridge College Alumna, Dr. Kristin Waters, has just assumed the duties as principal of Denver's Historic South High School. Waters, who received her PhD in educational administration from DU's Morgridge College of Education in 2006, began her teaching career in the Los Angeles Public Schools after graduating from the University of California, Santa Barbara and receiving an MA from Pepperdine University. Her career in Colorado included Montbello High, Morey Middle School and assistant principal at South, all before taking the reins at Bruce Randolph School where her leadership and a challenged student body, faculty and parents drew national attention. Dr. Waters was recognized by President Obama in his 2011 State of the Union address for her success in turning around the Bruce Randolph school from one of the poorest performing schools to one where 97% of students received diplomas in 2010.
2010 Fall Signature Event
Featuring Dean Gregory Anderson
2010 Spring Signature Event
Featuring Dr. Carolyn Mears
2009 Spring Signature Event
Featuring John & Carrie Morgridge
2009 Winter Signature Event
Featuring Dr. Camila Alire
2008 Winter Signature Event
Featuring Dr. Marion Downs
