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Dr. Michael Searson Executive Director Dr. Michael Searson, who began teaching at Kean as an assistant professor in 1981, serves as the executive director of the Center for External Education and Development. Previously, he was acting dean of the College of Education. Prior to that appointment, he served from the spring 2004 through fall 2005 semesters as an executive assistant to President Dawood Farahi. In that capacity, he was an integral member of Farahi's senior staff who worked closely with the president in the day-to-day operations of the University. Searson was also formerly a longtime chair of the Department of Early Childhood and Family Studies, where he continues to serve as a professor since his arrival on campus. A renowned educator and authority in early childhood education, Searson wrote or edited a number of books in this discipline, including Resources for Early Childhood , Children's Literature: Developing Good Readers and the recently published Perspectives on Early Childhood Practice: A Handbook of Essential Readings . He has also worked at the state level with the New Jersey Department of Education in developing frameworks and program expectations for the new P-3 Certification, required primarily for teachers in a preschool setting in the state's Abbott school districts. Among the many highlights of his tenure, Searson is co-director of Kean's PT3 (Preparing Tomorrow's Teachers to Use Technology) program, which aims to enhance the technological background of all pre-service education majors at Kean before they venture into the field. In addition, he co-directs the New Pathways to Teaching grant, funded by the New Jersey Commission on Higher Education, which helped to establish a weekend college at the University. He has also led a host of other projects and grants, including the College of Education AT&T Technology Grant from 1996 to 1997. Furthermore, he regularly presents throughout the country on topics related to educational technology and serves on a statewide committee that is developing a technology proficiency assessment for New Jersey's school children. Searson is a former chair of the Faculty Senate and the Distance Learning Committee, as well as a faculty representative to the Board of Trustees. He is also a former director of the Freshman Seminar. Additionally, he was active in the faculty union and served on the statewide council, representing all nine state colleges. Prior to joining Kean, Searson was an adjunct professor in psychology and a teaching assistant at the Institute for Cognitive Studies at Rutgers University in Newark, N.J. He earned a Master of Science degree in early childhood/elementary education from the City College of New York in 1981, and a Master of Arts degree and Ph.D., both in cognitive psychology/childhood development, from Rutgers in 1989. Phone: (908)
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