The world is facing an education crisis. Significant disparities in access, quality and outcomes leave millions of children without basic literacy and numeracy skills. The Covid-19 pandemic deepened the crisis, disrupting learning for more than 1.6 billion students globally and widening existing inequalities. While much research has been done, the translation of research to practice remains elusive to changing academic outcomes for many, as evidenced by global achievement data.
Sacred Heart University’s Maureen Ruby, endowed chair and associate professor in the Isabelle Farrington College of Education & Human Development (FCEHD), is a member of the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization’s (UNESCO) Global Alliance on the Science of Learning. She will engage in ongoing collaboration with international members of the alliance, working to solve the global research to practice gap.
In December, Ruby attended the invitation-only alliance annual meeting at UNESCO’s headquarters in Paris, where approximately 100 alliance members from 30 countries collaborated in four workgroups. Each workgroup focused on a single area of current global importance: social and emotional learning, literacy, numeracy and digital learning/technology. Ruby is in the literacy group, which has been her passion in education.
“It’s amazing how small the world gets when you start talking about issues of global importance in education,” Ruby observed. “They are universal. The level of expertise from across the globe was really inspiring and empowering. We are all like-minded in our passion, commitment and readiness to do this work.”
Using the abundance of current research in the four areas of focus, the group is working on identifying and reporting on best practices based on the science of learning. “We are working on developing a policy paper that UNESCO will send to the ministries of education of all the member states of the United Nations,” Ruby said.
Mel Horton, FCEHD dean, said Ruby’s involvement with UNESCO is a tremendous asset to SHU. “Her work not only highlights the global impact of our faculty but also contributes significantly to the advancement of education worldwide,” Horton said. “We are incredibly proud of her achievements and the positive influence she has on both our university and the broader educational community.”
Ruby was named the Isabelle Farrington endowed chair of social, emotional and academic leadership in 2022. “I am so blessed to have this support from the Isabelle Farrington estate,” Ruby said. “It has allowed me to take advantage of opportunities that we would not have had the funds for otherwise.”
The endowment enabled her to present with fellow Sacred Heart professor Kim Hellerich at the International Mind, Brain and Education Society’s (IMBES) conference in Belgium last summer. It was there that she was approached and learned about the Global Alliance on the Science of Learning in Education. “A new world opened up to me that I never would have even known about had I not been accepted to the conference in Belgium,” Ruby said.
Paul J. Sutera, senior vice president of university advancement at Sacred Heart, said, “Endowed chairs at Sacred Heart University can be a cornerstone of academic excellence and innovation. These prestigious positions not only bring distinction to our faculty and institution but also provide essential resources for groundbreaking research and scholarly endeavors. By supporting endowed chairs, we ensure that our educators have the means to inspire and lead, fostering a legacy of knowledge and discovery that benefits our students and the broader community for generations to come.”
As the second-largest Catholic university in New England, and one of the fastest-growing private doctoral institutions in the U.S., Sacred Heart University is a national leader in shaping higher education for the 21st century.
