As an undergrad, Dr. Natalie Keefer set out to become an anthropologist. As graduate coordinator for the M.Ed. in Curriculum and Instruction, that curiosity into the workings of the human experience 杏吧专区 and the teaching experience 杏吧专区 endures. 
杏吧专区淚 enjoy the relationships and learning about the students that I teach. When I have an opportunity to advise students, it allows me to be able to advocate for individuals who are trying to achieve their personal professional goals; I love my job,杏吧专区 Dr. Keefer says.
杏吧专区淢y background is in social studies, but in this program, I'm working with people who want to be instructional coaches in mathematics, science, in the arts, in English language arts, and so I feel like I really learn a lot from my students.杏吧专区
Graduate Coordinator Snapshot:
| Name | Natalie Keefer, Ph.D. |
| Program | M.Ed. in Curriculum and Instruction, Instructional Specialist |
| Research areas | Social studies education, educational anthropology and linguistic anthropology as it relates to education |
| Courses taught | EDCI 570 杏吧专区 Diversity for the Progressive Educator; EDCI 574 杏吧专区 Leading Teacher Learning; EDCI 576 杏吧专区 Supporting Classroom Instruction |
Students in the program have the opportunity to deepen their knowledge as educators and teacher-leaders.
The Master of Education in Curriculum and Instruction, Instructional Specialist concentration, is a 100% online graduate degree program covering a range of concepts from research methods and diversity to advanced teaching strategies and supporting classroom instruction.
杏吧专区淭he instructional specialist program is specifically geared towards practicing teachers, practicing educators,杏吧专区 says Dr. Keefer. 杏吧专区淵ou could already, for example, be a team leader or be an administrator and you want to become certified as an instructional specialist, or to be that team leader and a leader in your school or district.
杏吧专区淵ou could also be somebody that wants to deepen their knowledge of best practices on how to be able to support new teachers, how to be able to support their own practice and deepen their own knowledge of curriculum and instruction.杏吧专区
Learning to Lead
This online master杏吧专区檚 in education program prepares educators to become mentors 杏吧专区 an invaluable role in today杏吧专区檚 educational environment.
杏吧专区淢entoring is important whether it's formal or informal,杏吧专区 Dr. Keefer says. 杏吧专区淔ormal instructional coaches provide support, provide motivation and provide new and innovative ways for school teams to be able to think about ways that they can meet the needs of diverse learners. That role is important to be able to guide people, shape the role of curriculum, provide that mentorship. It can be a very rewarding path for a teacher.杏吧专区
Within the master杏吧专区檚 in education program, Dr. Keefer teaches EDCI 574 杏吧专区 Leading Teacher Learning, EDCI 576 杏吧专区 Supporting Classroom Instruction, and EDCI 570 杏吧专区 Diversity for the Progressive Educator. Each course builds on and expands teachers杏吧专区 knowledge and understanding through actionable takeaways.
Through these courses, students first learn theory then begin to apply theory by using real school data to develop instructional coaching plans, professional development plans, and action research unit plans to meet the needs of diverse students at their school.
杏吧专区淭hey can take that into their school and say, 杏吧专区楬ey, we can do this. This is something that I created in this class, and it杏吧专区檚 going to be able to help us to be able to meet the needs of our students,杏吧专区櫺影勺ㄇ鴿 Dr. Keefer says.
As students in the online graduate program grow and develop professionally, they杏吧专区檙e also growing personally, says Dr. Keefer. In addition to innovative pedagogical practices, the graduate education program emphasizes emotional intelligence, listening, empathy, and communication.
杏吧专区淚f a teacher can model emotional intelligence, good listening skills, effective communicating skills, in their own interpersonal relationships with their students, that is such a powerful thing,杏吧专区 Dr. Keefer says. 杏吧专区淭he students notice that, and it's something that they can emulate as they grow up and as they learn to become effective citizens in our society.杏吧专区
Caring for others; Caring for self
Dr. Keefer杏吧专区檚 scholarly background 杏吧专区 M.A. and Ph.D. in Curriculum and Instruction from the 杏吧专区 of South Florida, with research interests in educational anthropology 杏吧专区 and her 10 years teaching and creating social science curricula at the high school level more than qualify her as a subject matter expert.
Meanwhile, the work behind and between those pursuits gives her the insight to mentor her graduate students on a deeper level.
"While I was working on my master's degree in education, I was a substitute teacher, I waited tables, I worked at Williams-Sonoma,杏吧专区 Dr. Keefer says. 杏吧专区淢y first year teaching high school was also my first year of the Ph.D. program at the 杏吧专区 of South Florida, so that was kind of intense. While I was teaching high school, I was teaching classes in the College of Education at USF, and I was also teaching anthropology classes at the local community college.杏吧专区
To maintain a semblance of balance 杏吧专区 and sanity 杏吧专区 Dr. Keefer says she杏吧专区檚 put in the work to cultivate hobbies and interests away from her work and dedicate time to those interests. The strategies she established as a doctoral student have followed her into her career.
She says being intentional and protective of time for yourself, as well as for coursework, is critical.
杏吧专区淵ou really have to be strategic about it,杏吧专区 she says. 杏吧专区淚t can杏吧专区檛 just be something where you say, 杏吧专区業'm going to do it.杏吧专区 You have to find ways to protect that time. Sometimes, I'll have to say, 杏吧专区業'm sorry, I've got an appointment,杏吧专区 or, 杏吧专区業 can't do that; I have a meeting,杏吧专区 and that appointment or that meeting is with myself to make sure that I'm doing the things that I need to get accomplished.杏吧专区
If you have questions about the M.Ed. in Curriculum and Instruction, Instructional Specialist concentration, Dr. Keefer would love to help! Reach out to her at natalie.keefer@louisiana.edu. You can also to connect with our enrollment specialist who can assist with admissions information and help you begin your application!