Stuart Greene, associate dean for undergraduate studies in the University of Notre Dame’s College of Arts and Letters and associate professor in the Department of English, was honored with the 2010 Rodney F. Ganey, Ph.D., Faculty Community-Based Research Award at a ceremony this week.
The award, presented by Notre Dame’s Center for Social Concerns, recognizes Greene’s latest project, No Parent Left Behind (NPLB), a parent-centered research initiative that springs both from Greene’s theoretical work in literacy learning and his many years of community-based research in South Bend schools.
“Stuart’s commitment to research and service in education is truly admirable,” said John McGreevy, I.A. O’Shaughnessy Dean of the College of Arts and Letters. “I am particularly pleased to see his work recognized for the positive impact it has had on both our community and our students.
“What he’s accomplished through the NPLB initiative is a great example of Notre Dame’s commitment to conducting research, providing a vibrant undergraduate education, and engaging in and with the world.”
The Ganey Award recognizes faculty research that engages Notre Dame students in collaborations that affect real community issues in South Bend.
It was a conversation with school principals about the need for more parental involvement that started Greene on his two-year study that connected students from the College of Arts and Letters’ Education, Schooling and Society (ESS) minor with parents in local schools. Based on interviews, focus groups and surveys, Greene and his students “began to challenge prevailing models of parental involvement for minority and low-income parents,” he said.
“The typical observation about low-income parents is that they just don’t get involved in their children’s learning,” Greene said. “What we’re finding is that they’re actually doing a lot—it’s just not as visible as it could or should be. Our work is helping these parents tell their own stories, opening the way for them to make teachers and administrators aware of their strengths—and their needs.”
That work also spurred the next phase of the project, providing customized resources to support local parents in their efforts to help their children excel in reading and writing, the achievement for which the 2010 award has been bestowed.
This award includes a cash prize of $5,000 that is funded by Rodney Ganey, founder of Press Ganey Associates, as a part of the community-based research initiative facilitated by Notre Dame’s Center for Social Concerns.
After five years of service as associate dean for undergraduate studies, Greene will step down from that position at the end of June and will devote more time to NPLB as it makes the transition from a research project to a not-for-profit organization.
Greene currently co-directs NPLB and co-authors his research with Joyce Long, who teaches community-based research in ESS. Their work together will appear in a book Greene has co-edited, “Connecting Home and School: Complexities, Concerns, and Considerations in Fostering Parent Involvement and Family Literacy,” which will be published by Teachers College Press this fall.
Contact: Stuart Greene, sgreene1@nd.edu