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A year into our new Online Master of Arts in Teaching & Teaching Credential Program (OMATTC), student Rashmi Nayak reflects on her experience.

Pursuing a Second Career at Santa Clara: Rashmi Nayak’s Story

Rashmi Nayak has always had a love for teaching. As a child, playing pretend with her friends meant in any situation where a role as “student” or “teacher” was up for grabs, Rashmi Nayak would be the first volunteer for “teacher.” But never in her life did she think she would actually pursue teaching as a career. 

After earning her Bachelor’s in Computer Science and Engineering, Nayak spent 6 years as a software engineer. But she felt like something was missing. “Leaving a stable job that I’d worked so hard for was difficult, but I felt a longing to be more involved in giving back to the community. While still in IT, I used to volunteer to tutor students, and it was through this fulfilling experience that I decided that I wanted to make the career flip to teaching,” says Nayak.

Once the decision was made, Nayak earned her initial teacher credits, and landed her first teaching jobs as a Preschool/Pre-K teacher at Stratford Schools in the Bay Area, then an English Language Arts (ELA) Coordinator for a local school in her now home base of Lathrop, California. With dreams of earning her teaching credential and goals of teaching elementary students, Nayak set her eyes on Santa Clara University. 

“SCU was always going to be my first choice, but having recently moved two hours away, I wasn’t sure if I’d be able to manage the commute. So once I heard the School was introducing an online option, I thought, ‘yes, this is for me!’”

Even then, Nayak was still a little unsure about how the program would go since it was online and still novel. But an assuring orientation calmed her nerves, and she was pleased with how the program was designed and how the professors planned to support them every step of the way. And so far, the experience has been just as it was painted out to be. 

“Since I’m new to teaching, I’m still comprehending all the exams that are required and navigating how to prepare for them, making guidance and support from professors even more important,” says Nayak. “All the professors have been so understanding and receptive to feedback to ensure we’re getting the quality education we need while still being able to manage commitments outside of the classroom. I’ve especially connected with Dr. Kathy Stoehr. I feel so at home with her and she’s always there when I need her.”

Even as an online student, Nayak has been able to find community with her classmates. With many being working parents in school like her, Nayak says she can relate well to them and has found offline project work to be smooth. She looks forward to the opportunities to come on campus and meet them in person. 

“I’m so grateful to have the opportunity to pursue my dream job here at Santa Clara and be part of this new program. I’m so glad I made the leap and I’m so excited for the learning, personal growth, and teaching to come!”

Broncos Rise: ECP Alum Kim Panelo Xue Brings Trauma Support Group Back to SCU for a Second Year

ECP alum Kim Panelo Xue and her company Era Center just announced that Broncos Rise, an eight-week closed support group for SCU student survivors of assault, has been renewed for the 2023-2024 academic year.

Claudia Rodriguez-Mojica - Conscious Classrooms Review

Associate Professor and Associate Chair in the Department of Education, Claudia Rodriguez-Mojica, recently co-authored the book Conscious Classrooms with Allison Briceño. The book was reviewed on The California Reader.

Mike Valdez - Counseling Psychology

Bridging the Tech Industry and Mental Health

Mike Valdez, a first-generation Latinx counseling psychology student, is working towards blending the world of mental health with the tech industry.

Master of Arts in Teaching + Credential online

Santa Clara University Offers New Online MA in Teaching + Credential

In response to the growing demand for flexible teacher-education programs, Santa Clara University’s School of Education and Counseling Psychology (ECP) is bringing its Teacher Education programs online, offering a Master of Arts and teaching credential for public, private, and Catholic school teachers. Aligning with the commitment to prepare educators dedicated to ensuring all learners are supported in the classroom, this program is the first online offering from the School of Education and Counseling Psychology.

Marco Bravo, PhD, is Transforming the Future of Bilingualism in STEM for Educators

$2.7M Grant to Support Project Leverage

Santa Clara University professor and associate dean of the School of Education and Counseling Psychology Marco Bravo has received a $2.7 million grant from the National Professional Development Program of the Department of Education to fund “Project Leverage.”

Sherry Wang & Ling Lam - Counseling Psychology

AAPI, Mental Health, and You — How to Get Involved

May is Asian American and Pacific Islander (AAPI) Heritage Month and Mental Health Awareness Month. This month celebrates and highlights the intersection of two topics that are so important to our community and the broader community that our students and graduates serve every day. Counseling psychology faculty, Sherry Wang, Ph.D., and Ling Lam, Ph.D., offer a few resources to support the AAPI community and raise awareness about mental health.

Kathy Sun - Teacher Education

SCU Receives $3 Million NSF Grant for STEM Teachers

To help support the development of high-quality mathematics teaching in high-need schools, the National Science Foundation (NSF) has awarded a $3 million grant to Santa Clara University to pay for 20 future math teachers to earn both a master’s degree and teaching credential, while learning cutting-edge approaches to teaching math.

Tanesha Cartwright ’18, M.F.T. ’23

Forging a Path, Reflecting Community

Searching for a therapist that would get it led former hairstylist Tanesha Cartwright ’18, M.F.T ’23 to change everything—and return to SCU.

Michelle U. Nguyen Endowed Scholarship

Gift for mental health in the Vietnamese community

ECP alumna and advisory board member, Michelle Nguyen, has made a generous gift to support student scholarships.

Dale Larson - Counseling Psychology

In Conversation About Teen Mental Health, Emotional Healing, and Resilience

SCU professor of counseling pscyhology professor Dale Larson speaks with Digging Deep Founder, Sheri Sobrato about the the importance of mental health as well as what parents, teachers, and professionals can do to work with teenagers and young adults to guide emotional well being and resilience. 

Santa Clara University Launches EdD in Social Justice Leadership

An inaugural cohort of 20 students will begin the three-year degree program in September 2021.

Sherry Wang - Counseling Psychology

Sherry Wang discusses racial trauma on ABC news

Sherry Wang discusses layers of racial trauma experienced by Asian Americans and Pacific Islander Community

Sobrato-Brisson Endowed Chair

The SECP Receives Leadership Gift from Sobrato-Brisson Family

ECP alumna Sheri Sobrato Brisson MA ’94, and Eric Brisson have made a generous gift to the School of Education and Counseling Psychology for the establishment of the largest endowed chair in the history of Santa Clara University. In addition to the creation of the endowed chair in child and adolescent mental health, the gift provides funding to support research, a new specialization in child and adolescent mental health, community outreach, and thought leadership programming related to this critical area.

Kathy Stoehr - Teacher Education

Teacher Shortage and Supporting Educators

Kathy Stoehr shares her perspective and expertise on overcoming the teacher shortage facing our nation and ways to support educators

Ling Lam - Counseling Psychology

The Power of Feeling Safe - TEDx

SCU Counseling Psychology faculty member presents at TEDx Belmont Shore on the Power of Feeling Safe: How Kindness Restores Resilience. Polyvagal Theory is the science of feeling safe.

Sherry Wang, PhD - Counseling Psychology

How to Contain the Virus of Racism During Coronavirus Outbreak

Being Asian in the midst of coronavirus means being scared for our health while simultaneously facing unpredictable racism and xenophobia. So, how do we cope? Assistant Professor Sherry Wang offers strategies in an op-ed in the San Francisco Chronicle.

Dale Larson - Counseling Psychology

Helping SCU Students Cope During COVID-19

A campus expert offers insights into emotional wellness, resilience.

Shauna Shapiro - Counseling Psychology

Shauna Shapiro published in Harvard Business Review

Professor Shapiro and colleagues' recent publication in the Harvard Business Review on the impact of mindfulness on creativity, innovation and problem solving in engineers

Dale Larson - Counseling Psychology

Dale Larson honored by the National Hospice Foundation

The National Hospice Foundation recognized Dale Larson, Ph.D. as “… one bold innovator who forged ahead in the face of conventional wisdom for a vision of a world where everyone facing serious illness, death, and grief will experience the best that humankind can offer.”

Marco Bravo and Claudia Rodriguez-Mojica - Teacher Education

$2.3 Million Grant from the U.S. Department of Education

Marco Bravo, Ph.D. and Claudia Rodriguez-Mojica, Ph.D. have secured a $2.3 million grant from the U.S. Department of Education to enhance teacher preparation for dual language environments.