Kevin Valdez of UC Santa Barbara’s Gevirtz School has been chosen as the 2019-20 Cynthia and Frederick Brinkmann Fellowship recipient. This fellowship supports graduate students in the Teacher Education Program who are pursuing a teaching credential and show academic promise.
Kevin Valdez is a Single Subject Teaching Credential (Science) and Master of Education candidate in the Teacher Education Program. He graduated from UCSB in 2019 with a B.A. in Environmental Studies and a minor in Science and Math Education. He is driven to bring science literacy into his classrooms and also to provide his students with a sense of stewardship and appreciation with the world around them.
The Teacher Education Program at UC Santa Barbara offers the Multiple-Subject, the Single-Subject, and the Education Specialist Mild/Moderate and Extensive Support Teaching Credentials with a Master’s Degree in Education. These programs provide future teachers with a solid theoretical foundation integrated with extensive fieldwork that leads to both a California State Teaching Credential and a Master’s Degree in Education. The programs are run as a cohort, with the elementary and secondary cohorts no larger than 50 students each. This allows for the individualized attention necessary for high-level preparation of reflective, skilled practitioners who can meet the needs of a diversity of learners in California schools. The Teaching Credential Programs are full-time, post-graduate programs that begin in June and conclude the following June. Teacher candidates have the option to work on the Master’s Degree concurrent with credential coursework. It is one of the highest quality programs in the nation, with state-of-the art practice grounded in partner schools, a focus on teaching to reach all learners, and teacher educators with established records of success.