English Education Certification

Mike Metz is an associate professor of English education in the Department of Learning, Teaching and Curriculum at the University of Missouri. He serves as the emphasis area leader for English education and places a focus on teaching critical language awareness.

His research examines culturally sustaining pedagogies for English classrooms and explores English teachers’ knowledge and beliefs about English language variation, and students’ responses to learning about language, identity and social power. 

Robert Petrone (he/him/his) is an associate professor in the Department of Learning, Teaching and Curriculum at the University of Missouri. He is also co-editor for the international academic journal, “English Teaching: Practice & Critique,” co-director of the Missouri Language & Literacies Center and coordinator for the Language and Literacies for Social Transformation Doctoral Program.  

Dr. Petrone’s research examines “adolescence” as a cultural construct, the lived experiences of people known as “adolescents” and pedagogical practices to improve the schooling experiences for young people, particularly those from historically underrepresented communities. 

Dr. Christy Goldsmith is the associate director of the Campus Writing Program and an assistant teaching professor of English education at the University of Missouri. She was the former president of the Missouri Council of Teachers of English (MoCTE) and is a teacher-consultant in the Missouri Writing Projects Network (MWPN) where she frequently interacts with stakeholders at the state department of education and in Missouri public schools. These roles combined with Christy’s eight years of high school English teaching experience provide her opportunities to work closely with practicing teachers seeking to improve their literacy instruction in both secondary and postsecondary settings. As the emphasis area coordinator for the English Education undergraduate degree program at Mizzou, Christy teaches courses and mentors other instructors in methods of teaching literature, writing and media literacy. Further, through her inquiry into teachers’ identities as writers and as teachers-of-writing, Christy’s research explores the tensions inherent in teaching writing and disciplinary literacy, including professional development design at the secondary and post-secondary levels. 

Renee Stites Kruep is an assistant teaching professor in the Department of Learning, Teaching, and Curriculum at the University of Missouri. She draws on over a decade of teaching middle and high school English as well as leading curriculum redesign and professional development. Dr. Kruep primarily teaches graduate level literacy and English courses for Missouri Online and is also the coordinator of the online Master of Education in Literacy Education program.

Dr. Kruep serves as a professional development consultant for Linking Science, Math, and Literacy for All Learners, and as a CAEP reviewer for the National Council of Teachers of English and as a reviewer for NCTE and ALAN journals. Her academic interests, publications and conference presentations include topics such as sustaining teachers through quality professional learning, integrated literacy instruction and inclusive young adult literature to inspire adolescent readers.