Teachers, school counselors, child psychologists and educational leaders play a crucial
role in shaping the minds and futures of students. They have the ability to inspire
and motivate their students to reach their full potential. Faculty, alum, students
and staff in our School of Education are dedicated to providing the highest quality
education to future generations. Their hard work and dedication impact anywhere…
Dean and Professor Gretchen Givens Generett, Ph.D.
Welcome to the School of Education at Duquesne University! It is my honor to serve
as Dean of the School of Education. We proudly prepare classroom educators, educational
administrators, school counselors, mental health professionals and school psychologists.
Our guiding principles of justice, equity, and academic excellence inspire our work
to increase student access and opportunities.
The Duquesne mission to serve God by serving students is embedded in all our programs.
We work every day to enhance the needs of our professional disciplines and to make
people aware of our disciplines' profound impact on our communities' overall well-being.
We offer a bachelor’s degree, numerous master’s degrees and three doctoral degree
programs in three departments. Our departments include the Department of Counseling
Education and School Psychology; the Department of Instruction and Leadership in Education;
and the Department of Educational Foundations and Leadership. In each department,
we work to inspire and empower our graduates to make a positive impact on the world
through teaching, research, leadership and service.
We believe in the transformative power of education. Together, our faculty, staff,
students and alumni explore new ideas, challenge assumptions, and develop the skills
and knowledge needed to lead in an ever-changing educational landscape. I invite you
to learn more about the School of Education.
-Gretchen Givens Generett, Ph.D. | Dean and Professor, School of Education
Fulbright Scholars Preparing to Make an Impact
The School of Education has given me a lot of experience teaching in the U.S.
I want to collaborate with Taiwanese teachers to learn about their curriculum and
see how they teach their students...This is a great way for education students to
expand our worldview and teach in different environments.
Joy ChenB.S.Ed. Secondary Education '25 | Fulbright ScholarFollow Joy's Work
I am looking forward to expanding how underdeveloped and developing countries
can implement a process for identifying or diagnosing disabilities in students and
adopt evidence-based interventions that are culturally and socially responsive in
their education system.
Zoe Brunick, an Early Childhood Education/PreK-4 student, asks elementary through
high school students to imagine a life without teachers. The students also tell her
about their favorite teachers, qualities that make a good teacher, their advice for
teachers and more.
Our students visited the Tohaali Community School which serves a Navajo population
in rural New Mexico. They shared experiences of learning together alongside the middle
school students.
Maggie Burke shared the obstacles she overcame as a young student and how she will
take that insight and her preparation in our B.S.Ed. Early Childhood Education and
M.S.Ed. Reading & Literacy Education program to make an impact in the lives of young
learners as a reading specialist.
There’s something powerful about playing Division I football in the same city where you played as a teen.
As a Duquesne Dukes running back (and 2024 NEC Offensive Rookie of the Year), Shawn Solomon, E’27, can stand on Rooney Field and look across the Monongahela River to George K. Cupples Stadium on the South Side—the site of many Friday-night victories and high-fives with high school teammates. For Shawn, the view represents growth, ambition and years of hard work.
Recent Duquesne School of Education Graduate Receives Fulbright to Taiwan
Joy Chen, a May 2025 graduate, has been selected for a prestigious Fulbright award to Taiwan for the 2025 – 2026 academic year. For 11 months, Chen will teach English in a classroom setting alongside a cooperative teacher who speaks fluent Mandarin. She will plan and lead lessons, design curricula, co-host language camps and share American culture with students.
Dr. Gretchen Givens Generett, Dean of our School of Education, weighs in on the launch
of the $10M student teacher stipend program just unveiled and available to college
education students in the Pittsburgh region. School of Education Early Childhood Education
student Zoe Brunick shares her excitement.
Solving Classroom Challenges with Creativity
From shipping donated books before arriving in Kenya to resourcing WhatsApp to spread
digital lesson content amongst students with limited access, Dr. Rachel Ayieko's determination
and her students' tenacity brought effective mathematics education to their classroom
in Jaramongi Oginga Odinga University of Science and Technology. After returning to
Duquesne and sharing this experience, Dr. Ayieko's students offered technological
resources to improve access to learning. All were inspired and impacted through Dr.
Ayieko's work as Carnegie African Diaspora Fellow.
It's Important to Show Up
"The thing I’m most proud of is being a servant in all aspects of my life—public service,
education, and not just as mayor or mom or wife or community member. We all don’t
get the opportunity to serve and connect or make a difference, so it’s important to
show up when you do.” - Dr. Kenya Johns, Ph.D.'21 | Mayor of Beaver Falls
Dr. Meyer Leading in Reading Education
Duquesne University's Reading & Literacy Education professor and Reading Clinic Director
Dr. Carla Meyer shared on 90.5 WESA regarding new literacy standards and how reading
instruction is adapting! Duquesne University's School of Education is ensuring our
curriculum aligns with statewide standards based on the science of reading.
Graduate Student Named a Pittsburgh Magazine 40 Under 40 Honoree
Ed.D. Educational Leadership graduate student and founder of The Sisters Lifting As
We Climb Network has been named a Pittsburgh Magazine 40 Under 40 Honoree. Sharnay
Hearn Davis reflects, “As a woman of faith, being neighborly is in my DNA...This means
going beyond who lives next door and being interested and invested in someone reaching
their full potential.”
Information sourced from Zippia, the Pew Research Center, American Counseling Association,
American School Counselor Association, Learn.org, Psychology Today and Duquesne's
Graduate Outcomes Survey
3,000Students impacted by just one teacher
The average teacher will impact more than 3,000 students throughout the course of
their career.
According to the American School Counselor Association. 1 in 5 students across all
schools are in need of a school counselor and are without one. Consider making an
impact as a school counselor.
In 2021, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) reported that there were 57,900
school psychologists employed in the U.S. (www.bls.gov). The BLS has predicted this
field will have a 6% growth in employment from 2021 to 2031.
The U.S. Govt. Accountability Office reports that Licensed Professional Counselors
(LPCs) are the 2nd largest group in the behavioral health workforce.
Contrary to common belief, salary surveys conducted by the APA indicate that school
psychologists have a higher median income than clinical psychologists.
96% of our graduates reported that their career position was related to their major.
They are making an impact in the fields of K-12 education, higher education, healthcare
and many other settings as educators, teachers, counselors & school psychologists,
administrators, and more. 82% of our graduates who reported they will be attending
graduate school, indicated that they will attend Duquesne University. This information
is from the most recent graduate-reported outcomes data for our School of Education.
100+ Years of Learning & Making an Impact
I know from firsthand experiences how great Duquesne’s School of Education is:
preparing not just educators, but educators who are leaders serving communities, students
and families.
Matt HeckmannHosack Elementary School Principal | Ed.D. Educational Leadership Graduate StudentDiscover Matt's Story
There are many more careers out there that you can choose from. Some more lucrative,
some with more flexibility, some that may feel more honored but your choice allows
you to impact thousands of students. One lesson at a time! One conversation at a time!
One student at a time!
Joe WelchAward-winning 8th Grade Teacher for North Hills School District | B.S.Ed. Secondary
Education Duquesne AlumnusHear from Joe
When a school understands a child’s needs it can bring in the right services,
provide more empathy toward the student and give the best chance for success, even
if there are limitations due to chronic illness.
A large part of who I am and where I am today is a result of my experience at
Duquesne and my time as a graduate student within the School of Education. I will
never take the lessons learned or friends that I made for granted, and I will always
be grateful for the career that I have and the privilege of helping others daily.
Go Dukes!
I love being able to find ways to best support my students even if they can’t
always verbally tell me what they need....My Duquesne education has helped me to become
not only an advocate for myself, but for others.
Caterina ("Cat") Veneziano E’24, GE’24B.S.Ed. Early Childhood Education and M.S.Ed. Special Education CBP/HD StudentDiscover Cat's Story
I’m looking to go back to my first love, which was education. When I started
class, I thought it might interfere with my work and school board responsibilities....I
found that it’s enhanced everything.
Sgt. Frank CortazzoM.S.Ed. Education Administration Graduate StudentRead Frank's story
I’m reminded every day of the lasting impact Duquesne has left upon me. Whether
it be in my teaching, my research or my service to the profession and community, I
approach counselor education from, and for, the mind, heart & spirit. This is what
my professors modeled for me...and this is exactly how I continue to serve as a model
for the future counselors I currently train.
After graduation, he "barely had a chance to exhale and was drafted into the
U.S. Army" and served two years. After his dedication and service, Alex decided to
apply at the Pittsburgh Board of Education, was accepted and worked "teaching exceptional
children for about 32 years...it was a great experience and a wonderful time to do
it"
Alex Joseph, Ed. 54’Retired Teacher | U.S. Army Veteran
