Jomeline Balatayo named one of two Graduate Student Caucus Representatives for the California Council on Teacher Education (CCTE)

Jomeline Balatayo, a Ph.D. candidate in the Department of Education at UC Santa Barbara’s Gevirtz School, was named one of two Graduate Student Caucus Representatives for the California Council on Teacher Education (CCTE). Balatayo is charged with disseminating information about leadership/service opportunities and arranging keynote speaker sessions, professional development seminars, and other special events that are relevant to the needs and interests of graduate student members of the CCTE. She also will help provide a forum for graduate students to share their research and teaching ideas among faculty and with one another.

In addition to this position, Balatayo is also a volunteer member of the CCTE Policy Committee. This sub-group is charged with providing information and insight to the development and writing of recommendations for the advocacy and passage of legislation that will assure effective, fair, and equitable teacher evaluation, nurture effective teacher professional development, and result in the best possible instruction for children in California’s schools.  

The California Council on Teacher Education (CCTE) represents nearly every teacher education program in California, making it the largest and most comprehensive organization dedicated to teacher preparation. CCTE holds two bi-annual conferences in the fall and the spring. These forums provide an engaging arena for discussion, learning, and exchange of ideas among various types of education professionals and practitioners in the field, namely K-12 teachers, administrators, teacher association representatives, deans, policy advocates, professors, Beginning Teacher Support and Assessment (BTSA) leaders, and consultants from the California Commission on Teacher Credentialing. The organization provides current information on up-and-coming research, best-practice approaches, and statewide policy initiatives. Teacher Education Quarterly, its peer-reviewed journal, showcases well-designed research studies that advance the field of pre-service and in-service teacher education.