School of Education's Tom Cornell Offers Reflections Upon Retirement
June 08, 2021
Dr. Tom Cornell has retired after serving as the School of Education’s interim dean
since 2018. He joined Webster as an associate professor 2008 and has been instrumental
in the School of Education’s growth. His colleagues are grateful that he will remain
connected to Webster as an instructor during his retirement.
Cornell was interviewed on the School of Education’s podcast, where he discussed his experience at Webster in addition to his career as a K-12 educator, reading specialist, and education consultant.
When you graduate with your degree, you’re not done learning as a professional.
Education is more than a career, says Cornell. "I’ve enjoyed the challenge [of serving as interim dean] because I saw opportunities for growth, I saw opportunities for us to really expand our School in different ways, and I saw an opportunity to serve the students and our broader community. And I really saw it as a wonderful service opportunity and a way to work with my colleagues in different way. So I call it a culminating experience because it really is. It’s the last position I will hold formally in the area of education. I still want to continue teaching after I retire. I just can’t envision myself not teaching at all, especially in the area of literacy.”
Cornell's interview covers a number of other topics including future directions for the field of literacy education, advice for aspiring teachers and teachers-in-training, opportunities for professional development and lifelong learning, and his post-retirement plans.
“What I would like to see most is a continued effort by all teachers to continually learn about what they can do to help their students in the area of literacy…when you graduate with your degree, you’re not done learning as a professional,” said Cornell.