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"I share the same educational philosophy as people
like Paulo Freire and
Jim Cummins, who stress that education is most meaningful when it is
transformative—and by and large the courses SNR offers are designed to
be just that."
Heather
Herrera
Instructional Staff, Letters
School of New Resources
Co-op City Campus
The College of New Rochelle
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Professor Herrera, what is
your education background?
I received my BA from Mills College, which is best known
as the oldest women’s college west of the Rockies. In many ways, Mills
is similar to The College of New Rochelle, which is perhaps why I was
drawn to the college. Like CNR, Mills is a college with a strong sense
of community and many rich traditions that strives to educate the whole
person. Honor is of primary importance at Mills and as a Mills woman
you are expected to remember who you are and what you represent. I am
grateful to Mills for promoting integrity above all things; honor and
integrity are values I encourage in my own students. After several
years of working in the nonprofit sector, I moved to New York City from
my native San Francisco and I attended City College where I received my
Masters in Language and Literacy. Language and Literacy is a hybrid
program encompassing language acquisition, education and linguistics.
This program was the perfect avenue for me—the course work was
challenging, but because of the political climate surrounding language
and education it was an extremely meaningful experience. Over time, I
realized that I loved teaching more than anything else, so I decided to
go for my PhD in English Education at New York University’s Steinhardt
School of Education, where I am completing my dissertation.
How long have you been at
the School of New Resources?
I started at SNR in August
2005 upon completing my course work at NYU.
What do you teach at Co-op
Campus?
In addition to mentoring
several independent study courses, I also teach two core curriculum
courses: American Experience and Ways of Knowing, which is a senior
seminar. I love both of these classes. Ways of Knowing is essentially
an epistemology course that asks the “big” questions, e.g., What do I
know? How do I know it? What is my purpose? What is God? Similarly,
American Experience asks students to redefine what they believe to be
the American Experience vis-a-vis history and literature. Very often
this course exposes students to previously unknown events or different
perspectives. Students discover that the first person published in
America was the poet Anne Bradstreet or that a slave, Phillis Wheatley,
founded the African American literary movement and they gain insights
into the perspectives of those vanquished in the name of progress. As
such, for many students, these courses are transformative experiences.
I share the same educational philosophy as people like Paulo Freire and
Jim Cummins, who stress that education is most meaningful when it is
transformative—and by and large the courses SNR offers are designed to
be just that.
Besides teaching, how are
you involved in the college community?
My title is Instructional
Staff, Letters, so, in addition to being an instructor, I am an
administrator and an advisor. My administrative duties entail
overseeing the English and Humanities courses and instructors as well
as the Access Center. Recently, I became the coordinator of our ESL
program. I also sit on the Assessment Committee where I have been
involved in curriculum review and development. And perhaps the best
part of my involvement is the work I do as an advisor. Spending time
with students on an individual basis is one of the perks of being an
instructional staff member.
What do you think makes
The College of New Rochelle a special College?
Its mission, its commitment
to service, its focus on the liberal arts, its egalitarian dedication
to underserved people, such as women, people of color, the
disadvantaged are all what make CNR unique. CNR is also special because
despite its attachment to tradition it has a pronounced willingness to
be unconventional. The School of New Resources is a good example of The
College of New Rochelle’s willingness to challenge established norms.
SNR offers students, who otherwise might not have an equal footing in
traditional institutions, an opportunity to earn a college degree.
What sort of student is
successful at SNR?
The School of New Resources
serves a non-traditional student population. Hence our students are 21
or older, perhaps returning to college, or working towards completing a
GED while earning college credit. Most often they are working adults
with families and full, sometimes complicated, lives. As a
result, students who are successful work extremely hard and are
tenacious. Moreover, they are resourceful. I am thinking of one student
in particular, for whom English is her second language. At first she
wasn’t doing very well. Her papers were returned with low marks and she
could have been easily discouraged. Yet she wasn’t—if anything, she was
more determined to do well. I see her every week working with an Access
Center tutor and I have seen her writing improve significantly. All her
hard work paid off; recently she received her first A.
Where do your students go
after leaving school?
I’m very proud to report that
two former students, Joseph Collazo ‘06 and Jennifer Sheridan ’06 went
on to graduate programs in theology at Princeton and Yale. I’m also
extremely proud of those students who have gone into teaching, social
work or nursing. Since CNR is a liberal arts college and perhaps
because we stress service, many of our students seek graduate programs
or careers in the helping professions. It is precisely this ripple
effect that makes being part of The College of New Rochelle
particularly gratifying.
