Beverly Schmalzried will join the Milligan College faculty this summer as professor and chair in the education department.
Schmalzried is currently the Chief of Family Member Programs and oversees 85 child and youth programs on U.S. Air Force installations in the United States and worldwide.
“I’ve always just really loved teaching and I’ve enjoyed college teaching the most,” Schmalzried said in a telephone interview.
She said she enjoyed meeting Milligan’s students and faculty and likes the college’s focus on students. She holds a doctorate in childhood development from Florida State University.
Before her position with the U.S. Air Force, Schmalzried taught and supervised in early childhood education at Kansas State University and the University of Wisconsin-Stout.
She also taught junior high school and was a child development specialist at Head Start, a program dedicated to meeting the educational, dietary and health needs of impoverished children.
“I believe with all my heart that we will work most effectively in our teacher ed department,” said Billye Joyce Fine, director and assistant professor of education.
Bertram Allen, professor of psychology and chair for the area of social learning, has served as the interim chair
of education for nearly a year and a half and was on the search committee that made recommendations for the position to Mark Matson, academic dean and professor of Bible.
“We’re just going to make what we already have, which is good, very good,” said Allen.
Matson said Schmalzried has an amazing ability to understand the strengths and weaknesses of the education program and will provide a “central vision” for financial and curricular issues of the education area.
“We ended up selecting a short list of three, and interviewed two of those, and ended up canceling the third interview because we were so excited about Beverly,” said Matson.
In a telephone interview, Schmalzried said she would like to build a strong partnership with area elementary and secondary schools. She also wants
to involve the Head Start program
with Milligan. She said Christian teachers could help fulfill the need for good examples in public schools.
In an e-mail sent to Matson on Oct. 4, Schmalzried responded to the college's mission statement.
“I believe that I would be a good example for young people of how scholarship and dedication to others can lead to a satisfying personal and professional life,” she wrote.
She earned the 2001-2003 National Partner in 4-H Award and the General Michael P. Karns Award for Outstanding Performance in Air Force Services.
Schmalzried was raised in the Christian Church, which she describes as the center of her social life. She met her husband, Donald, a school principal in Fairfax County, Va., at a church camp.
At U.S. Air Force installations she has been involved with both Protestant and Catholic churches.