Ralph C. Wilson, Jr. School of Education

Philosophy

Conceptual Framework

The overarching theme for the unit titled "Educator as Advocator" is a distillation of the School's vision, mission, beliefs, goals, central philosophy, and five related tenets. This overarching theme captures a central commitment to the philosophy of social justice, accomplished through the related tenets of diversity, achievement, compassion, knowledge, and service. The conceptual framework follows a constructivist approach to instruction that shapes who we are and informs our daily pursuit of educational excellence as faculty, staff, and candidates in the School. The theme, philosophy, and tenets provide a strong context for the work that we do in collaboration with the College community, P-12 schools, and the broader community. They also inform collective efforts to engage high-quality faculty in programs grounded in inclusive practice, with an extraordinary focus on the teaching profession in service to others, and an  understanding of the teacher’s and educational leader’s responsibility to encourage children and adults toward intellectual pursuit and personal growth.

Beliefs

Consistent with our conceptual framework, the School of Education has adopted the following set of shared beliefs to help guide our work:

• A strong liberal arts background helps candidates hone their intellectual skills and understand their chosen discipline more fully.
• Providing service to others is our civic responsibility.
• Commitment, dedication, and caring enhance student learning.
• Moral integrity, collegial, and respectful conduct among the administration, faculty, staff, and candidates are necessary to provide an effective professional and cohesive educational experience.
• Self-determination, self-advocacy, and self-improvement are keys to lifelong learning.
• All students can and will learn when afforded the appropriate conditions, opportunities, and resources.
• Successful learning communities respond to the needs, interests, and backgrounds of each student.
• Professional educators should develop content knowledge and pedagogical skills concurrently and in the most authentic settings possible.
• Effective teaching and learning involves the transformation of understanding based on the depth, quality, and flexibility of the content being taught, and its applicability to the prior knowledge of the learner.
• Maximizing the relationship between technology and other resources enhances educational programs, faculty and staff development, and candidate learning.
• Understanding and respecting diversity enhances professional and personal development.
• Reflective practice is the foundation for career-long professional and personal growth.
• Embracing multiple perspectives expands our knowledge base and informs our decisions.
• The use of data collection, analysis, and evaluation informs decision-making and guides program improvement.
• Continuous improvement is essential and most effective when it is informed by research, best practice, and internal and external assessment.
• Partnerships within our own institution and with other institutions are essential and mutually beneficial.

Wegmans School of Nursing

Philosophy

Ralph C. Wilson, Jr. School of Education

Philosophy

Professional Education Unit Belief Statement

Consistent with our conceptual framework, the School of Education/PEU has adopted the following set of shared beliefs to help guide our work. We believe:

• A strong liberal arts background helps candidates to hone their intellectual skills and understand their chosen discipline more fully.
• Providing service to others is our civic responsibility.
• Commitment, dedication, and caring enhance student learning.
• Moral integrity and collegial, respectful conduct among the administration, faculty, staff, and candidates are necessary to provide an effective, professional, and cohesive educational experience.
• Self-determination, self-advocacy, and self-improvement are keys to lifelong learning.
• All students can and will learn when provided with the appropriate conditions, opportunities, and resources.
• Successful learning communities respond to the needs, interests, and backgrounds of each student.
• Professional educators should develop content knowledge and pedagogical skills concurrently and in the most authentic settings possible.
• Effective teaching and learning involves the transformation of understanding based on the depth, quality, and flexibility of the content being taught, and its applicability to the prior knowledge of the learner.
• Maximizing the relationship between technology and other resources enhances educational programs, faculty and staff development, and candidate learning.
• Understanding and respecting diversity enhances professional and personal development.
• Reflective practice is the foundation for career-long professional and personal growth.
• Embracing multiple perspectives expands our knowledge base and informs our decisions.
• The use of data collection, analysis, and evaluation informs decision making and guides program improvement.
• Continuous improvement is essential and most effective when it is informed by research, best practice, and internal and external assessment.
• Partnerships within our own institution and with other institutions are essential and mutually beneficial.

Social Justice: Philosophy of the Professional Education Unit

Social justice is the central philosophy on which the School of Education/PEU’s conceptual framework is based. This philosophy is deeply rooted in the Catholic tradition under which St. John Fisher College was originally founded and served as the central focus of the life of our patron, St. John Fisher. Consistent with this tradition, the School of Education/PEU seeks to provide our candidates, faculty, and staff with insights of a more “just” world in which people treat one another civilly, humanely, and honorably. To accomplish this noble purpose, our candidates must know how and be able to: (1) provide all learners with equitable access to knowledge about themselves and the world in which they live; (2) engage in caring and effective pedagogical practices that support the acquisition of new knowledge and skills; (3) help students become independent and lifelong learners, and active participants in a social and political democracy; and (4) advocate for the interests of the students that they serve. To these ends, the School of Education/PEU’s philosophy of social justice is characterized by five interlocking tenets: diversity, achievement, compassion, knowledge, and service.

Wegmans School of Nursing

Philosophy

School of Business

Philosophy

Consistent with the College's mission, teaching excellence is the principal focus of the School of Business faculty at St. John Fisher College. This focus on teaching excellence is supported by faculty engagement in intellectual endeavors, participation in professional organizations and activities, and interaction with the business community. The School is committed to recruiting and retaining qualified faculty who are dedicated to the success of its students. Both the College and the School of Business support ongoing faculty development. Additionally, faculty members are encouraged to engage in service to the College, the community, and their disciplines, recognizing that these efforts enhance their roles as teacher-scholars. Faculty members regard technical knowledge as necessary but not sufficient for an excellent education. In addition to providing students with technical knowledge, they endeavor to equip students with the skills necessary to effectively communicate, solve problems, work collaboratively, and manage change in an increasingly diverse and globalizing environment. The School of Business programs attract both traditional and nontraditional students, primarily from the Central and Western New York State regions. Both full- and part-time students are provided with individual attention through small class size and an accessible faculty. Students are encouraged to be actively engaged in the formal learning process, as well as more informal learning experiences. The City of Rochester, home to a number of Fortune 500 companies, and many small and medium-sized enterprises, many of which are family businesses and start-ups, is an active business and commercial center that offers a multitude of experiential opportunities for students. We provide a wide variety of co-curricular and career preparation experiences for students. Students are encouraged to embrace lifelong learning and appreciate the fundamental role of continuous improvement. In keeping with the School of Business’ emphasis on continuous improvement, the faculty actively seeks and incorporates feedback from their constituencies, including current students, alumni, and the local business community.

School of Arts and Sciences

Philosophy

Guiding Principles

• Study in the Arts and Sciences is both pragmatic and enlightening.
• Engagement in the community and application of knowledge are essential to the development of the capacity for critical inquiry.
• Faculty members and students are jointly responsible for the educational experience, a collaboration guided by the words of William Butler Yeats: “Education is not the filling of a pail but the lighting of a fire.”
• Teaching, scholarship, and learning are enriched in an environment that encourages intellectual curiosity and explores social justice.

The School of Arts and Sciences, in partnership with the other schools that make up St. John Fisher College, provides educational experiences that are rooted in the liberal arts and prepare students to lead lives of intellectual, professional, and civic integrity. This is accomplished by the following:

• Providing opportunities for undergraduate and graduate students to develop proficiency in one or more of the major fields of study housed in the School.
• Providing undergraduate students opportunities to develop in-depth knowledge in a field of study outside the major through the pursuit of a minor.
• Providing an educational foundation for all undergraduate students through a Core curriculum that is intentional and reflective of the breadth of perspectives that characterizes the liberal arts at St. John Fisher College.
• Promoting the engagement of students, faculty members, and professional staff within a learning environment that creates high expectations along with the support for all to achieve their full potential.

School of Business

Philosophy