(L-R) Lynn Kirkland, chair of the Department of Curriculum and Instruction, will become interim dean, and Deborah Voltz will return to the faculty, effective July 1.Lynn Kirkland, Ed.D., professor and chair of the Department of Curriculum and Instruction, will become interim dean of UAB School of Education effective July 1. Deborah Voltz, Ed.D., who has been dean of the School of Education since January 2011, will return to the faculty, where she will teach in the special education program and continue her research on teaching in diverse, inclusive classrooms.
This year marks Kirkland’s 20th at UAB; she joined as a teacher-in-residence in 1996 and began a tenure-track position in January 1999. She has chaired the department since 2011.
“I look forward to enhancing the trajectory of the School of Education, building on our diverse programs and internationally recognized faculty,” Kirkland said. “Our school will continue to contribute to the international and local conversations surrounding education and health and wellness. During this transition, our focus will be on internal and external cross-disciplinary collaborations to meet the needs of our community and the world.”
As dean, Voltz worked to strengthen ties between UAB and the local education and business communities and helped implement two of the school’s signature programs.
- During her tenure, the School of Education launched GEAR UP Alabama to increase the number of low-income students prepared to enter and succeed in postsecondary education. It was funded by the school’s largest grant to date — a seven-year, $49 million award — and reaches more than 10,000 students across the state’s Black Belt.
- The Maryann Manning Family Literacy Center also was created to support research in literacy. Its MidSouth Literacy Journal is an online, open-access publication that disseminates original research and practice articles in literacy education.
Assistant Professor Tonya Perry, Ph.D., will become interim chair of the Department of Curriculum and Instruction.
