{"id":196433,"date":"2023-03-17T10:26:48","date_gmt":"2023-03-17T14:26:48","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/?p=196433"},"modified":"2023-03-17T10:26:51","modified_gmt":"2023-03-17T14:26:51","slug":"eight-neag-school-alumni-honored-at-25th-annual-awards-celebration","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/2023\/03\/eight-neag-school-alumni-honored-at-25th-annual-awards-celebration\/","title":{"rendered":"Eight Neag School Alumni Honored at 25th Annual Awards Celebration"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

The UConn Alumni Center at UConn\u2019s Storrs campus was filled on Saturday, March 11, with Neag School of Education Alumni Board members; Neag School faculty, staff, and administrators; friends of the University; and guests honoring eight esteemed Neag School alumni at the School\u2019s 25th annual Alumni Awards Celebration.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cToday, we are celebrating this event for the 25th consecutive year, thanks to the Neag School Alumni Board,\u201d said Jason G. Irizarry, dean of the Neag School of Education. \u201cA big thank you to all of the Board\u2019s past and present members for their continued support in making this annual celebration possible. I\u2019m also delighted we can hold this year\u2019s celebration in person. It\u2019s nice to see you all and spend the afternoon together.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Before the 2023 Alumni Awards presentation, emcee Kim Wachtelhausen \u2013Alumni Board president and outreach director for U.S. Rep. Jahana Hayes \u2013 recognized an additional award recipient on behalf of the Neag School.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Matthew Bowers of Durham, Connecticut, a speech-language pathologist at ACES at Chase in Waterbury, has been named the fourth annual Neag School of Education\u2019s 2023 Rogers Educational Innovation Fund award winner<\/a>, which will support his classroom project titled, \u201cService Learning Through Assistive Technology Engineering.\u201d Bowers\u2019 project includes creating a curriculum that teaches hands-on STEAM (science, technology, engineering, art, and math) skills while also building disability awareness and empathy in young learners.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cIndividuals who make distinctive sources of support a reality, like the Rogers Award, are so important to us and the Neag School,\u201d Wachtelhausen said. \u201cTheir selfless contributions remain vital in providing our talented students, faculty, and education community members with much-appreciated financial support.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Following the networking reception, eight Neag School alumni were recognized in the following categories, with each awardee being featured in a short video and then giving brief remarks:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Outstanding School Educator – Kristen N. Negr\u00f3n \u201912 (CLAS), \u201915 MA<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Kristen
Kristen N. Negr\u00f3n, Neag School’s Outstanding Educator, gives thank you remarks at the podium during the Neag School Alumni Awards.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Negr\u00f3n earned her master\u2019s degree in counselor education in 2015. Negr\u00f3n recently joined Connecticut RISE Network, where she is a freshman success coach working with core network schools on closing educational and achievement gaps for ninth grade students. She previously served as the school counselor and on-track coordinator for Middletown High School in Middletown, Connecticut. She is fluent in Spanish and has a bachelor\u2019s degree in psychology with a minor in Latino studies from UConn.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In her prior role at Middletown High School, Negr\u00f3n worked with an identified population of at-risk freshmen to ensure they were on track throughout the school year and provided necessary support. In addition, she was a co-advisor for the Middletown Minority Student Coalition (MSC), where she sought to empower minority students of various backgrounds within the school to create an environment that offers freedom of expression. In addition, Negr\u00f3n co-authored a chapter in Irizarry\u2019s book \u201cDiaspora Studies in Education: Toward a Framework for Understanding the Experiences of Transnational Communities.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThank you for this incredible honor,\u201d Negr\u00f3n said. \u201cI\u2019m forever thankful for Dean Irizarry\u2019s guidance and support throughout my education journey. He\u2019s been a huge inspiration for me.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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