College of Education Focus

Consistent with Jesuit tradition

The College of Education programs at Marquette University prepare teachers, school counselors, counseling psychologists, community counselors and administrators to demonstrate a commitment to social justice through their work. This commitment is expressed first through our undergraduate and graduate students becoming excellent professionals who exhibit a deep knowledge and understanding of their disciplines as well as how children, adolescents, and adults learn and develop. The commitment is further realized as students master the requisite skills of their profession.

Taken together, their knowledge and skill enable Marquette students to be effective communicators whose pedagogy, administration, counseling practice, or professional psychology meets the intellectual, social, emotional, cultural, and physical needs of those they aspire to help. In effect, their practice takes the form of planning, instruction or intervention, assessment, and the shaping of learning environments, all done with the race, social class, gender, ethnicity, and ability of their students or clients in mind.

Lifelong learning and professional development

Marquette students also exhibit dispositions that support lifelong learning and an appreciation for research and professional growth. They continually reflect on their practice and role in society, as well as attempt to enhance the learning and general well being of those they serve. In all of these endeavors, they grow in their engagement with critical analysis and advocacy around structural inequities in society and in education.

Marquette's four pillars of value

All College of Education programs foster personal and professional excellence, the promotion of a life of faith and the development of leadership expressed in service to others. Respectful of these underpinnings, our learning community values the balancing of theory, research, and practice and emphasizes active engagement, critical thinking, and social critique. Our students develop strongly held ideals of care, respect, and advocacy for the well-being of all humankind under the guidance of faculty who are exceptional teachers and mentors, prominent scholars, and exemplary models of service. Our faculty members aim to nurture the transformation of students into individuals who will grow continuously in their application of the ideals of social justice -- in the practice of their profession, in their personal and collective involvement in society, and in their interactions and relationships with students, parents and guardians, clients, families, colleagues, school personnel, and community partners.