{"id":202285,"date":"2016-08-26T13:18:47","date_gmt":"2016-08-26T17:18:47","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/?p=202285"},"modified":"2023-08-02T13:34:27","modified_gmt":"2023-08-02T17:34:27","slug":"10-questions-with-reuben-pierre-louis-future-special-education-teacher","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/2016\/08\/10-questions-with-reuben-pierre-louis-future-special-education-teacher\/","title":{"rendered":"10 Questions With Reuben Pierre-Louis, Future Special Education Teacher"},"content":{"rendered":"

In this\u00a0new series<\/a>, the Neag School is catching up with students, alumni, faculty, and others throughout the year to give you a glimpse into their Neag School experience and their current career, research, or community activities.\u00a0<\/em><\/p>\n

Click the image below to check out\u00a0an interactive, 360-degree view\u00a0from inside UConn\u2019s Scholars House.<\/h3>\n
\"Reuben<\/a>
Neag School senior and Scholars House resident assistant Reuben Pierre-Louis (far left) snaps a 360-degree photo of a room in the new Learning Community at UConn, where new students are moving in today.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Current UConn student Reuben Pierre-Louis \u201917 (ED), \u201918 MA is set to begin his senior year in the Neag School\u2019s\u00a0five-year Integrated Bachelor\u2019s\/Master\u2019s (IB\/M) program<\/a>\u00a0with a concentration in special education. In addition, he will be serving as a resident assistant this coming academic year in UConn\u2019s new\u00a0ScHOLA\u00b2RS House Learning Community<\/a>.<\/p>\n

ScHOLA\u00b2RS House \u2013 which stands for\u00a0S<\/strong>cholastic\u00a0H<\/strong>ouse\u00a0O<\/strong>f\u00a0L<\/strong>eaders who are\u00a0A<\/strong>frican-A<\/strong>merican\u00a0R<\/strong>esearchers &\u00a0S<\/strong>cholars \u2014 is designed to support the scholastic efforts of male students who identify as African-American\/Black through academic and social\/emotional support, access to research opportunities, and professional development. For more information about ScHOLA2<\/sup>RS House, visit\u00a0lc.uconn.edu\/schola2rshouse\/<\/a>, or\u00a0check out this video<\/a>.<\/p>\n

What is your hometown?<\/strong>\u00a0Stamford, Conn.<\/p>\n

What degree(s) are you pursuing at the Neag School of Education?<\/strong>\u00a0I am pursuing a bachelor\u2019s degree in education with a concentration in special education and a master\u2019s degree in educational psychology through the Neag School of Education IB\/M Program.<\/p>\n

What led you to choose to pursue a degree in the field of education?\u00a0<\/strong>I chose this profession because I love to learn what I was taught and teach\u00a0what I have learned. One of the main reasons I chose this profession is the bad experience I had in the the school system growing up. Looking back now, I felt robbed of an education. As if I was \u201cpickpocketed.\u201d I watched how the tracking system in high school was so vast that you would think we were in the 1960s school system. I watched many black and Hispanics, especially men, die through many systematic pits. I watched a school system that would breed \u201cus\u201d to believe that our\u00a0only salvation was either holding a football or a basketball. I know this sounds clich\u00e9, but I truly believe I can and will make a difference one day.<\/p>\n

What are your ultimate career goals once you complete your degree?\u00a0<\/strong>I want to go back and help uplift poor\u00a0communities, especially the black community, and make a change. I want to teach at a school that I can\u00a0believe\u00a0in. A\u00a0phrase that I heard from another teacher that always stuck with me is:\u00a0\u201cThe best teachers need to be at the worst schools.\u201d It does not always work out that way. I am also interested in special education research \u2014 in particular, mental health disorders. [I grew up with] a father who was diagnosed with schizophrenia; it really changes your perspectives on things. I want to figure out the underlying causing of mental health disorders, but most importantly, what is the best treatment possible.<\/p>\n

\u201cI want to \u2026 help uplift poor\u00a0communities, especially the black community, and make a change. I want to teach at a school that I can\u00a0believe\u00a0in.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0Reuben Pierre-Louis \u201917 (ED), \u201918 MA<\/small><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

What kind of support have you received along the way from faculty mentors during your time at the Neag School of Education?\u00a0<\/strong>I would say the tag team counselors [academic advisors]\u00a0Dominique Battle-Lawson<\/a>\u00a0and Mia Hines have helped me on a consistent basis. They have\u00a0helped me in so many different ways, from passing the Praxis test, [giving me] recommendations, and the list goes on. One of the main social supports for me was former graduate assistant\u00a0Justis Lopez \u201914 (ED), \u201915 MA<\/a>. Before I got accepted [to the Neag School], Justis helped me along the way. Also, faculty like Joseph\u00a0Cooper and Erik Hines\u00a0[ScHOLA\u00b2RS House faculty director] are role models for me as an African-American male. Even though I am the only black male in most of my classes now, I feel comfortable to know that there is a decent\u00a0amount\u00a0of African-American faculty\u00a0that I can talk to.<\/p>\n

\"Scholars
Neag School student Reuben Pierre-Louis, left, will serve as a resident assistant this coming academic year in UConn\u2019s new Learning Community, ScHOLA\u00b2RS House. (Photo Credit: Ryan Glista\/Neag School)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

As a resident assistant at ScHOLA\u00b2RS<\/strong>\u00a0House, in what ways do you envision being able to support the students who will be a part of this new Learning Community?\u00a0<\/strong>I think I will be able to serve as a leader, mentor, and a friend to the students in this Learning Community. I see myself providing advice and guidance on a daily to weekly basis to help them to stay on track. I want the students to succeed not only academically, but also socially on campus. What I learned through my years in college is that you can be a great student academically for a while, but if you do not have a solid\u00a0social\u00a0network, it most likely won\u2019t last.<\/p>\n

What do you see as the greatest benefit of launching ScHOLA\u00b2RS<\/strong>\u00a0House as a new Learning Community?\u00a0<\/strong>Students of color will have a space in a predominantly white institution.<\/p>\n

Why do you feel it is important for UConn to establish a Learning Community like this?\u00a0<\/strong>If they don\u2019t, the University will slowly lose\u00a0its black population \u2026 Why do you think the University has on-campus centers like the\u00a0AACC<\/a>\u00a0(African American Cultural Center)? If UConn starts losing its educated black population to \u2026 HBCUs [Historically Black Colleges and Universities], this can affect the economy of Connecticut because people\u00a0usually\u00a0work in the state where they graduate. This Learning Community is bigger than what it appears.<\/p>\n

What do you believe makes a great educator?\u00a0<\/strong>A great educator has to be personable, humble to learn, and has to be self-driven.<\/p>\n

What is one thing most people may not know about you?\u00a0<\/strong>I am Haitian.<\/p>\n

Watch Reuben Pierre-Louis speak, along with faculty and administrators, about the new ScHOLA\u00b2RS House Learning Community in\u00a0<\/em>this video<\/em><\/a>. Check out\u00a0additional photos from ScHOLA\u00b2RS House move-in day<\/a>.<\/em><\/p>\n

Read other installments of the\u00a010 Questions<\/em>\u00a0series here.<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Current UConn student Reuben Pierre-Louis \u201917 (ED), \u201918 MA is set to begin his senior year in the Neag School\u2019s five-year Integrated Bachelor\u2019s\/Master\u2019s (IB\/M) program with a concentration in special education. In addition, he will be serving as a resident assistant this coming academic year in UConn\u2019s new ScHOLA2RS House Learning Community.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":33,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_crdt_document":"","wds_primary_category":0,"wds_primary_series":0,"wds_primary_attribution":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[2428,1855],"tags":[],"magazine-issues":[],"coauthors":[1878],"class_list":["post-202285","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-educational-psychology","category-neag"],"pp_statuses_selecting_workflow":false,"pp_workflow_action":"current","pp_status_selection":"publish","acf":[],"publishpress_future_action":{"enabled":false,"date":"2026-05-07 18:09:41","action":"change-status","newStatus":"draft","terms":[],"taxonomy":"category","extraData":[]},"publishpress_future_workflow_manual_trigger":{"enabledWorkflows":[]},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/wp-rest\/wp\/v2\/posts\/202285","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/wp-rest\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/wp-rest\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/wp-rest\/wp\/v2\/users\/33"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/wp-rest\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=202285"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/wp-rest\/wp\/v2\/posts\/202285\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":202287,"href":"https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/wp-rest\/wp\/v2\/posts\/202285\/revisions\/202287"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/wp-rest\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=202285"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/wp-rest\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=202285"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/wp-rest\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=202285"},{"taxonomy":"magazine-issue","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/wp-rest\/wp\/v2\/magazine-issues?post=202285"},{"taxonomy":"author","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/wp-rest\/wp\/v2\/coauthors?post=202285"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}