Research

New Year, New Potential

Meet BU Wheelock’s new dean, Penny Bishop, as she’s interviewed by Anthony Abraham Jack

As the new dean of BU Wheelock, Penny Bishop is taking up many mantles, including as host of the webinar series, Conversations with the Dean. But the first webinar of the year flipped the script on the usual format, with BU Wheelock faculty member Anthony Abraham Jack asking the questions.

“This month we called an audible,” said Jack in his introduction. “It’s not too often when we get to welcome a new dean, a new person within our community, and introductions are so important. So we turned the tables in a fun way. I’m taking the reins today and giving you a chance to get acquainted with Dr. Bishop.”

Jack and Bishop covered a wide range of topics, including the values that drive the BU Wheelock community, equity in educational testing, and the different kinds of research being conducted at the college. They also spoke on Bishop’s own research on middle schoolers and the impact of higher education on first-generation students—a more personal subject for both Bishop and Jack, who were themselves first-gen students.

Tune in to hear more of Penny Bishop and Anthony Jack’s conversation in this special edition of Conversations with the Dean.

Highlights from the Conversation

A bold vision for education

[New BU president Melissa] Gilliam . . . talks about providing a singular and transformative educational experience for our students, and one that all qualified students can access, regardless of background.  . . So for me, being present in this moment means not only upholding that bold vision that I’m so excited to be a part of, but also co-constructing the path to get there. And I think it also means constantly striving to be a place where we promote civil discourse, especially during these really challenging and often divisive times.  

Penny Bishop

Equality in education and testing

I often believe that tests, especially standardized tests, in the people who write them, the results actually show more about how many resources a student or an applicant has in their home as compared to even at their school. . . .  There’s a way we can strive for equality and equity, but the two are not always one and the same, especially when people are starting on very different starting points. So, if we are gonna invest in the test, are we actually going to be investing in getting our students prepared?

Anthony Abraham Jack

The importance of the middle school years

The work of middle grades education or research on early adolescents is about the acknowledgement that it is, in fact, unique developmental stage. . . . We treat them like tall first graders or short high school students, and neither is developmentally appropriate. . . . So later on in my career, I’ve really tried to do some things to flip that narrative around, because I think their potential is extraordinary as well.

Penny Bishop

Conversations with the Dean are a series of webinars hosted by Dean Bishop that explore some of the most pressing topics in education. Learn more about Conversations with the Dean.