Faculty - Education

With an earned doctorate from Tennessee State University in Curriculum, Instruction, Teaching and Learning, Cindy Connelley brings a diverse background to Husson. Earning K-12 teaching licensure in physical education and health, she has taught and coached at Bucknell University, Catawba College, the University of North Carolina at Charlotte, Middle Tennessee State University, the University of Maine at Presque Isle, and also at public and private K-12 schools. She graduated cum laude from Springfield College with a B.S. in Physical Education, Health, Recreation and Dance. Cindy then earned her M.Ed. in Human Development, Learning and Health from the University of North Carolina at Charlotte, as well as the Certified Health Education Specialist designation from the National Commission for Health Education, a doctorate in Curriculum and Instruction was earned from Tennessee State University with dissertation titled A Qualitative Study of Personal Constructs of E-Teaching. Her research interests have included: stimulation of the inner ear for learning efficiency; gifted learners in collaborative settings; unlearning prejudice; and physical education movement with autistic students. Traveling both nationally and internationally to provide clinics and workshops for sports and health within the physical education and health education curriculums, she has coached a Harlem Globetrotter and given clinics with some of the leading coaches in the world. Being a strong coach means being a strong teacher, and Cindy believes that integrated and experiential teaching and coaching helps students enjoy a fast-paced curriculum with many problem- solving experiences.

Good teachers make learning valuable, student-centered and fun! Teaching and learning are a partnership; the teacher and student must work together, and once this partnership is developed, learning has no boundaries. Working with future educators, leaders and coaches is dynamic and affords me the opportunity to promote science-based health education and physical education curriculums that can impact lives.

Deb is a Counselor Educator, Licensed Professional Counselor (LCPC), Approved Clinical Supervisor (ACS), as well as a certified Professional School Counselor. She joined the faculty at Husson in 2007, having previously served as a faculty member in the Counselor Education program at the University of Southern Maine. Her career spans more than three decades serving education in Maine as a teacher, school counselor, and counselor educator. In addition, she has a private practice offering counseling, consulting, and clinical supervision.

Deb has a passion for rural Maine and its people, especially its counselors and young people. Her areas of interest include mental health counseling, school counseling, career counseling, ethical decision-making, and clinical supervision.

Deb has an undergraduate degree in history, a master's degree, and a doctoral degree in Counselor Education all from the University of Maine. Deb is an active member of several national, regional, and state professional organizations that serve the profession of counseling.

Deb is, most importantly, a wife, mother, and grandmother; the best 'careers' of all!

The profession of Counseling has evolved significantly over the span of my career from vocational and school counseling to the Counselor of today who may specialize in Mental Health, School, Career, Pastoral and Spiritual, Addictions, Counselor Education and Supervision, Rehabilitation, or any of the 22 specialties identified by the American Counseling Association. The search for Counselor Identity continues with the 2020 visioning work of the ACA.

Unity in the Counseling profession has been a goal and a passion for which I have worked throughout my career. I firmly believe that we, Counselors, are a noble and highly skilled profession, but that we are too small to be divisive. Through my work at Husson University I apply this philosophy by engaging students in the four counseling programs together in the same core courses and in Practicum and Internship classes. I believe this fosters a spirit of community, understanding, and unity and enables counselors to work collaboratively in practice. I am excited that Husson University’s focus on interprofessional collaboration now encourages us to extend this philosophy and practice to promote teaming and unity with students preparing to become teachers, health care practitioners, and business and criminal justice professionals.

I am pleased and proud to call myself a Counselor, to practice in several of the roles of this wonderful and rewarding profession, and to have the pleasure of educating new Professional Counselors and Human Relations specialists.

Barbara brings a diverse background to the School of Education. With a career spanning 26 years in education, she has been a special education teacher, teacher leader, educational evaluator, and founder and director of a private middle school. Having served as the Title II Coordinator for the Maine Department of Education from 2004 – 2011, Barbara has provided state-wide leadership and training in the areas of teacher effectiveness, professional learning and Response to Intervention. She earned her undergraduate degree in Psychology from St. Michael’s College in Vermont and her Master’s in Education from the University of Alaska in Anchorage. Barbara is a doctoral student in Educational Leadership at the University of Maine. She is actively involved in national and regional education organizations and is currently the President of Learning Forward New England, the regional affiliate of Learning Forward (formerly the National Staff Development Council). Barbara continues to serve on a number of task forces and stakeholders groups at the Maine Department of Education, representing and advocating for higher education.

Having raised four children, Barbara and her husband, Stan, are newly experiencing the “empty nest” and eagerly pursuing their shared interest in social justice activities, most currently in the area of prison re-entry and support for families of prisoners. Barbara is an avid amateur musician, regularly playing the viola in a number of small ensembles, and singing in choruses.

We stand at the cusp of unprecedented change in our society and in all of its institutions. Education is by far the most influential institution in our country and in the world since it is affecting all of our citizens for better or worse. I am excited to be a part of the educational community in these times. We have great challenges but that means great opportunity. If we are going to prepare our young adults to be prosperous and contributing members of a global society we must respond to these technological, societal and economic changes by adapting how we educate and examining the role of higher education in the 21st century. As we work toward more equitable opportunities for all of our nation’s young adults, it is my hope that we can both transform higher education to meet the needs of a changing society and preserve the rigor and integrity of a program that will produce graduates who will be critical thinkers, collaborative workers, and competent, caring citizens.

Jeffrey Wren comes to Husson following a career at the University of Maine. Jeffrey earned his Bachelors of Science degree in Biology at the College of William and Mary and continued on to earn his Masters in Education from U. Maine. Shortly after graduation, he started the women's varsity swimming program for the University. He served as head coach of both the women's and men's teams. In addition to coaching, Jeffrey was also the aquatic director, which involved teaching skills classes in aquatics for the College of Education.

I believe it is relatively easy to know good teaching from mediocre or poor teaching. Students need to be willing to accept only the former. Little things like being on time and being ready with an organized plan go a long way. It is often just as easy to do things the right way. We should all start our day with that goal.