Education Advising

Aaron Cashmore has a Master’s of Education degree in Early Childhood Education with an emphasis in Behavior Management.  She has taught in the early childhood classroom for nearly 20 years before joining the faculty at UM Western.  Aaron enjoys helping student engage in and understand the foundations of the early childhood classroom and teaching practices through practical experience

Dr. Goodson Dzenga is a highly qualified professional with a Ph.D. in Applied Behavior Analysis and board certification in behavior analysis (BCBA). He currently serves as the Special Education Coordinator at the University of Montana Western. His research interests primarily revolve around promoting effective communication for children with developmental disabilities and identifying interventions to enhance communication for this population.

Educational background:

Associate of Science Degree, Education, University of Alaska Anchorage; Bachelor’s Degree, Elementary Education, Teaching minor in the Social Studies, University of Alaska Anchorage; Master’s Degree, Early Childhood Education, University of Alaska Southeast

Advising:

Bonnie’s teaching and advising is grounded in her profound commitment to non-traditional students, who, as she did, frequently begin their journey as a professional early childhood specialist or licensed teacher, in a childcare program.  From that entry point, then achieving an AAS degree followed by a bachelor’s degree and beyond.  Because it was her experience, she understands the complexity of working and caring for a family while taking university classes.   Bonnie is 100% online faculty, so she has flexibility in her work week to communicate and meet with students.

Bio: 

I was born and raised in Missoula County, Montana, graduating from Missoula Sentinel High School.  After relocating to Anchorage, Alaska with my husband and children I earned a teaching degree and K-8 teaching license with an endorsement for the Social Studies.  While teaching grades K-3, including multi-age classrooms, on Elmendorf Air Force Base I completed my master’s degree in early childhood education.   My first faculty appointment was at Idaho State University and then I relocated to Montana State University Billings and began taking graduate courses in Education Leadership at MSU Bozeman.  I started teaching for Western in 2011.  I love to travel and am passionate about wilderness areas and the natural world – I spend summers high in the Montana mountains and have worked for an education non-profit in Yellowstone National Park.  I also research family histories with the goal of preserving and writing family’s generational stories, having extensive experience with European history, geography, and transcription of German, Czech, and Italian historical records. But of all I do, my most important thing is spending time with my three grandchildren!

Katrina Kennett is deeply interested in how pre-service teachers integrate authentic literacy practices and contemporary technology tools into their instruction. Her research focuses on how teachers plan for student learning and she coaches in-service teachers as they design sustained opportunities for student inquiry in their curriculum. She also serves as a university supervisor for student teachers.

Educational background:

Mathematics and Education K-12. Taught high school and middle school. Continues to teach online secondary mathematics. Currently the Education Department Chair

Advising:

Elementary, Mathematics and Secondary Education, Teaching Certificate

Bio:

Shay Kidd is happily married since 2008 and the father of 5.  This helps to keep him connected to the education system on multiple levels.  Getting his bachelors in Secondary mathematics at BYU-Idaho (2009), he started his career teaching at the high school level. This is also when he started to teach online with Idaho’s online school.  After earning his master’s degree from the University of Texas -Arlington in K-8 mathematics education, Shay moved to Wyoming and taught middle school (2012).  He was then accepted at the University of Wyoming in 2015 where he earned his PhD. In Curriculum and Instruction: Mathematics Education. He started at the University of Montana-Western in 2017 and has been teaching mathematics methods ever since.  He currently serves as the education department chair.

Yu Li specialized in cultural and social foundations of education and her research centers on exploring diversity, equity and inclusion in education from normative, interpretive and critical perspectives. Her research interests are comparative/international education, multi-cultural education, culturally responsive and inclusive teaching and learning, rural education, globalization and education, girls’ education empowerment, and emerging technology in education. Her current research focuses on the population of migrant and immigrant students, families, and teachers, especially on their capabilities in the intersections of cultures, languages, societies, and nations.

A versatile music educator, Brent Poe McCabe, has taught in a variety of educational venues, from K-12 and community college to university instruction. Throughout his academic journey, Brent has served as choir and band director, supervised student teachers and has taught most courses within a collegiate music education program.

He has also served as presenter and clinician at state and regional National Association for Music Education conferences and has authored “A Performer’s Guide and New Critical Edition of Frank Martin’s Quatre Pièces Brèves (Lambert).”

As a critically acclaimed classical guitarist, Brent has performed throughout the United States and abroad and has been a prizewinner in numerous national and international music competitions. He has also recorded three guitar albums. The latest, entitled “Evocación” (2012), features popular music from South America, Cuba and Spain.

Deborah McCabe has a Masters Degree in Special Education and a Reading Endorsement. She has worked extensively with at risk teens. Deborah taught multiple subjects in diverse settings in public and private middle and high schools in Boston, MA, Torrington, WY, Livingston, MT, San Francisco, CA, and most recently on the Fort Belknap Indian Reservation. A former Outward Bound Instructor, Deborah models active expeditionary methods and integrates these strategies into her collegiate instruction. She is the Director of Kappa Delta Pi Honor Society, Director of “UMW K-8 Homework Help Program”, and Advisor to the Education Club. She supports campus wellness by teaching Core Strength Training classes to colleagues and community members biweekly at the Wellness Center.

Kathy Shipman coordinates the partnership program between the University of Montana Western, Montana Tech in elementary and secondary education, and the Helena College. She teaches courses in both general education as well as special education and predominately teaches her classes online or face to face in UMW’s distance programs. Kathy strives to incorporate experiential teaching and learning into her online courses, and along with teaching education courses at UMW, she is a university supervisor for student teachers and the Montana Western/Montana Tech Education Club Advisor.