‘Thank an Advisor’: Students Share Words of Thanks, Appreciation for College of Education Faculty, Staff

In April, the Advising Professional Development Committee at NC State University facilitated the “Thank an Advisor” program, inviting undergraduate and graduate students to recognize the work of their advisors and mentors. 

Below are some of the messages students wrote for their advisors in the College of Education.

Jenn Ayscue, Associate Professor in the Department of Educational Leadership, Policy, and Human Development (ELPHD)

• Dr. Ayscue, many thanks for your dedication to my success. Your guidance and care have gotten me over the most challenging part of this doctoral degree: finishing the dissertation. Thank you!

Susan Barcinas, Associate Professor in ELPHD

• Dr. B., I wanted to take a moment to express my heartfelt gratitude for all of your support and guidance. Your caring, kind and thoughtful approach has made a significant difference in my college experience. You’ve always been there with helpful advice, encouragement and a genuine concern for my success. I truly appreciate everything you’ve done for me. Thank you again for being such an amazing advisor!

• Sue was my instructor and was kind enough to take the time to talk through two different concentrations my program offers. She made a meeting with her and another faculty member to brainstorm these two concentrations and how they align with my goals. When my advisor announced retirement, she even agreed to take me on as an advisee.  Just having these meetings and talking through my goals and what courses would best support that was a major help to me. She was not assigned to me at the time, and I greatly appreciate the advice and support she has already given me and look forward to working with her as my advisor!

Krispin Barr, Assistant Teaching Professor in ELPHD

• Thank you so much for your expert guidance, enthusiasm and encouragement as my advisor through this program. I am so lucky to have someone so invested in my success. I truly believe your presence makes this program so special among any other graduate program. I appreciate you welcoming me into NC State, and I appreciate your advisement with Preview the Pack. Thank you for everything!!

• Thank you, Dr. Barr, for everything you do! I’m truly grateful for the wisdom and patience you bring to every conversation. The group advising sessions at Jubala are such a meaningful blend of community, reflection and shared insight — from both you and fellow colleagues. I feel incredibly fortunate to have received your support and guidance since 2021!

April Bartley, University Supervisor in the Department of Teacher Education and Learning Sciences (TELS)

• April, thank you for all that you do for your student teachers. You have always given such good feedback and been a wonderful listening ear. Everything you have ever assured me of, most of the time it was that everything would be okay, was always true, and I needed to hear that a lot! You have prepared us all well to have our own classrooms and be great teachers. I could not have asked for a better supervisor. Thank you for all of your time and dedication to the College of Education. You are a blessing to many!

Amanda Beller, Director of Advising with Student Success 

• Mrs. Beller, you are absolutely amazing! I appreciate how much time you take to be thorough and make sure I’m on the right track!

• Mrs. Amanda, thank you so much for all that you have done. Every time I have met with you, you have always been extremely nice and helpful. Your support is greatly appreciated. Your willingness to seek first to understand, then to be understood is unmatched. You always listen and try your best to give the most thoughtful feedback/advice. I am sure that your schedule is extremely packed, however, you are very good at responding to emails in a timely manner. Again, thank you for being great! I am so thankful for such an amazing advisor.

• I am very thankful for the advising that you have given me. If it wasn’t for your guidance and attentiveness, my college experience would not be full. I have had various experiences with advising, but none will compare. Whenever I go, in person or through Zoom, you always greet me with a smile. It is very welcoming. At times, I have come in confused or with many questions. By the time I leave, I am confident and ready to take on what comes ahead. Once again, thank you for all that you do!

Drinda Benge, Assistant Teaching Professor in TELS

• Throughout my completion of this program, you have been so patient, kind and understanding. After 10 years in law enforcement, switching careers and being  seven months pregnant, I was not sure how the transition into a master’s program would be. For having a different route than other students and residing in Colorado, you always treated me as if I was any other student. Your quick email responses helped ease anxiety in multiple instances. You made me feel like you didn’t just care about my education, but also who I am as a person. I was able to make it through this program smoothly because of your support. I am forever grateful! 

Cristina Braga, Assistant Teaching Professor in ELPHD

• Thank you for everything that you do. Your spark and passion for what you do is infectious. We can tell how much you care about your work as a professor and clinician. It’s inspiring. Thank you for always being willing to listen and showing us that there’s room for everyone to grow.

• Dear Dr. Braga, thank you for all that you do for us as students; you go way above and beyond every year that I’ve had you in all of the classes. You are sincerely my designated (shh favorite professor) because you are so sweet, kind, thoughtful and helpful. Every class is so engaging,gmai and I learn a lot from everything you post in the Moodle space and what we do with our time virtually. I also really appreciate how you try to keep the mood positive and check in on us to see how we are doing during practicum because it shows how personable and compassionate you are.

Christy Byrd, Associate Professor in TELS

• Thank you for your patience and openness, always! I appreciate the ways you express yourself and would like to learn how to do it myself, too.

Maria Coady, Goodnight Distinguished Professor in TELS

• Thanks for sharing with me your knowledge and wisdom. Your support has been invaluable and deeply appreciated every step of the way. You’ve not only guided me but also inspired me to keep growing. I’m truly grateful for everything you’ve done for me in this time.

Dennis Davis, Associate Professor in TELS

• I want to extend my heartfelt thanks for your unwavering support, guidance and encouragement throughout my graduate journey. Your insights, feedback and belief in my potential have played a pivotal role in my growth as both an educator and a leader. I am deeply grateful for the time and care you’ve invested in helping me succeed. Thank you for being such a steady presence and for always pushing me to think critically, stay reflective and lead with purpose. I will carry the lessons I’ve learned from you into the next chapter of my career with great appreciation.

• Thank you, Dr. Dennis Davis, for your steady encouragement and thoughtful challenges. Your feedback always pushes me to think more deeply and sharpen my ideas, and I’ve grown so much because of it. I especially appreciate the time you take to ask questions that help me reflect, clarify and move forward with confidence. Your support of the projects I care about and your willingness to engage with them so meaningfully have made a real difference in my experience. I’m grateful to learn from and work with you.

• Thank you for everything you do and more! You speak life into your students and see something in us even when we don’t see it ourselves. Thank you for doing it all with a positive attitude and a smile!

Cameron Denson, Associate Professor in the Department of STEM Education 

• Dr. D is the best advisor I have had in my life. Period. Respectful. Helpful. Listens. All of the above. 

• Thank you for your unwavering support and guidance throughout my doctoral journey. Your wisdom, encouragement and belief in my work carried me through every stage of this dissertation. I’m deeply grateful for your patience, constructive feedback and the time you invested in helping me grow as a scholar. You saw potential in me, even when I doubted myself, and your mentorship has made a lasting impact on both my academic and personal growth. Thank you for everything

Timothy Drake, Associate Professor in ELPHD

• Dr. Drake, thank you so much for investing so heavily in my development as a first year Ph.D. student. I am particularly grateful for your commitment to weekly check-ins and consistent feedback/support via email. I also appreciate that you have exposed me to so many projects and have confidence in me to complete research tasks even when I do not have the same confidence in myself. You are such a positive force in my professional life, and I always notice the countless ways you look out for me. Thank you for your support and genuine care for me as an individual and young researcher. I have loved my first year at NC State.

Cyndi Edgington, Associate Teaching Professor in STEM Education 

• Dr. Edgington is one of the best advisors! She is always so helpful with courses and offers us support in them. As my advisor, she is also my professor for one of my courses, and I really enjoy it! She does such a great job preparing us for what teaching math will really be like! The course content and the continued support she offers, makes it fun! I am thankful for Dr. Edgington and all she does.

Danielle Moloney Gallagher, Assistant Teaching Professor in TELS

• Thank you for all your support and assistance as my advisor! I appreciate you being willing to help me in this part of the program, and that you are so willing to answer all my questions and provide support. I appreciate that, as my advisor, you care and support me both as a student and as a person, checking in on me in all areas of life! I also appreciate your willingness to provide me additional resources and go the extra mile in supporting me. Thank you for all you do!

Devon Graves, Assistant Professor in ELPHD

• Thank you for asking about my academic thoughts and challenges. Thank you for genuinely engaging in academic discourse. Thank you for also asking how I am doing and feeling every single time we meet. I appreciate your pushes to think and your support.

Jill Grifenhagen, Associate Professor in TELS

• Thank you for supporting me during the big transition that is junior year! Your work has not gone unnoticed, and I am thankful that I was assigned to you!

Shiyan Jiang, Assistant Professor in TELS

• Thank you for encouraging me to pursue a higher level of lifelong learning. Your guidance and wisdom have been like a light in the dark, helping me find direction even in the most uncertain moments. I deeply appreciate your time, support and thoughtful suggestions throughout this journey.

Jill Jones, Assistant Teaching Professor in TELS

• Thank you, Dr. Jones, for being such an excellent and influential instructor and advisor! I appreciate all the times you have been there for me to highlight my successes and achievements. You inspire me to make an impact in the field of education, and I am thankful for your influence on my life! Thank you!

• Dr. Jones, there are not enough words to thank you for everything you have done for me, my peers and the whole College of Education. You continuously go above and beyond to help your students, and your passion for helping us learn how to teach and become great educators is truly inspiring. You get to know all of us on a personal level, checking in on us with our outside lives and make it very clear how much you support us in everything we do. Thank you for being such a huge part of my educational journey and for giving me so much I can use when I become a teacher. I can’t wait to see what this next chapter holds for me and am excited to continue to keep you in the loop with where I am in life, showcasing how much I grow over the years. Thank you! Thank you!  Thank you! You are the best!

Betsy Knight-Watkins, University Supervisor and Instructor in TELS

• Beyond being a guide through all of the confusion of classes and what is needed to get to graduation, Mrs. Knight-Watkins has been so incredibly helpful by being a terrific mentor for all things education and giving life advice as well. Thank you for all you have done to make my journey at NC State go as smoothly as possible.

Erin Krupa, Associate Professor in STEM Education 

• Thank you, Erin, for finding me and giving me five years of experience of engaging with project-based learning in mathematics education through research, curriculum development, professional development and student implementation. You gave me the opportunity to work on a variety of contributions to this pedagogy I am so passionate about, which not only was an amazing education for me but also made my graduate experience incredibly enjoyable and meaningful. I am so appreciative of all of the mentorship you have provided me over these graduate years, and I am so thankful to be one of your “academic kids.” I look forward to continuing to spread the joy of Design & Pitch to students and teachers and feel so very thankful to have been part of the project and the team. You are the best!!!

Pooneh Lari, Assistant Teaching Professor in ELPHD

• I would like to extend my deepest gratitude to my advisor, Dr. Lari. Your unwavering support, encouragement and guidance made all the difference.  You are the best advisor, always believing in your students. Thank you for inspiring me to push forward and finish strong. 

Hollylynne Lee, Distinguished University Professor in STEM Education

• Thank you for all of your hard work and dedication to math education! I appreciate all of the time and effort you put into making sure I was able to graduate on time.

Michael Little, Assistant Professor in ELPHD

• Dr. Little was a formative part of my Ph.D. experience. He encouraged me to pursue my passion project for my dissertation, which directly facilitated its completion. I appreciate the kind candor with which he gave feedback and hope to carry that kind of support forward into my career.

Trisha Mackey, Director of the Transformational Scholarships Program

• I am so grateful for all of your support these past few years! You always do your best to make sure we have what we need to be successful, thank you for being amazing, it means a lot!

Meghan Manfra, Professor in TELS

• I just wanted to write a quick note thanking you for all the tremendous support and help you have given me across my time at NC State. It has meant the world to me! Thank you so much for all your thoughtful and caring support.

Samantha Marshall, Assistant Professor in TELS

• Thank you for supporting me in my journey as a Ph.D. student. Your support, kindness and empathy means a lot to me. I enjoy working with you and learning from you, and I hope we can continue to do so in the future.

• Sammie, thank you for being such an amazing advisor. You consistently go above and beyond to support me and my work, and your dedication to teaching, research and community building doesn’t go unnoticed. I appreciate you immensely!

Florence Martin, Professor in TELS

• Thank you so much for your guidance, leadership and friendship. I could not continue forward with my dissertation without you. I appreciate your help more than I can express with written words! Thank you!

• I truly appreciate Dr. Martin’s encouragement. It meant so much to me, and to learn the interests of research and possibilities and projects was just as encouraging. I have a journey ahead of me, and I am glad to be taking it with Dr. Martin going forward in the Ph.D. program. I trust her guidance, and I look forward to what is in store. Thank you for lighting the path ahead for me. With what I had going on at the time of application, it was like Dr. Martin was placed there in my path. I felt I was standing at a stop sign regarding my dad [being treated for cancer]. She cut down the stop sign and held a different one up for me; it felt like a sign that instead said  “This way, just ahead, keep driving forward,” directing me through that fog with an interview that was encouraging.

Keon McGuire, Associate Professor in ELPHD

• Although you are not my academic advisor, you have been an all-important pillar of my success in this program thus far. I wanted to take the time to thank you for your unwavering support, encouragement and grace that you have shown me in my first year. I admire your professionalism, intelligence and enlightened nature. It is obvious that you care deeply about your students, and you pay close attention to our needs. It means the world to me, and I appreciate you abundantly. Thank you!

Julia McKeown, Associate Professor in TELS

• Dr. McKeown, thank you so much for your guidance towards completing my graduate degree over the past five years. Your advice and directions have been instrumental and invaluable in me being able to complete my goals.

James Minogue, Professor in TELS

• I truly lucked out with the best advisor! Dr. Minogue brings humor and the kind of energy that makes the whole teaching journey feel exciting instead of overwhelming. Every meeting, he makes me feel like I’ve got this. He’s someone I genuinely look forward to meeting with. He takes the time to get to know me beyond just school stuff, which makes me feel seen and supported. His ability to keep things low-stress while still being intentional and caring is something I’ll never forget. I always leave our conversations feeling lighter, more confident and even more excited to be a teacher. Thank you for making this experience not just manageable, but genuinely joyful.

Steven Miller, Assistant Teaching Professor in STEM Education 

• Thank you so much, Dr. Miller, for being such a wonderful advisor. You were kind, understanding, patient and did everything possible to ensure my success here at NC State. Your presence has added to my time here at NC State, and I can tell you are passionate about the work you do. Keep up the phenomenal work!

Rolanda Mitchell, Assistant Professor in ELPHD

• Thank you, Dr. Mitchell, for always being so encouraging and supportive. You have the gift of keeping your students uplifted and motivated at all times. After talking with you, I always feel like I can conquer the world! Continue to be the awesome educator and advisor that you are; your students need your positive light!

Kevin Oliver, Professor in TELS

• While coming to an unfamiliar country for my Ph.D., with no acquaintances or family around, the only comforting thought I had was that my supervisor knew me — and that I wasn’t alone. That feeling came through his comforting communication, which went beyond his academic responsibilities.

• Throughout my senior year, I was unsure of the next steps and classes that would best fit my interests in our major. You constantly provided detailed explanations and aided me while I figured out my next steps, both in your classes and for the future! Dr. Oliver introduced me to the Learning, Design and Technology program after I didn’t feel like I knew what I would do for the first 1.5 years of college. Without his guidance and interest in the field, I wouldn’t be here!

Soonhye Park, Alumni Distinguished Graduate Professor in STEM Education

• I wanted to sincerely thank you for your continuous support throughout my research journey. Your guidance and the opportunity to engage in meaningful research have been instrumental in enhancing my skills and deepening my understanding in STEM education. I truly appreciate your mentorship and the trust you’ve placed in me.

Jackie Relyea, Assistant Professor in TELS

• I just wanted to take this moment to sincerely express my gratitude to my amazing advisor, Dr. Jackie Relyea. She has made a truly meaningful impact on my academic journey at NC State. Through her consistent support and thoughtful mentorship, she has helped me grow not only as a researcher but also as a more confident and focused scholar. She always provides me with invaluable guidance, offering constructive feedback, helping clarify research directions and encouraging academic exploration. Her kindness, patience, and dedication have created a supportive environment in which I’ve felt both challenged and empowered. I’m deeply grateful for her mentorship and feel SO lucky to have her as my advisor.

Matt Reynolds, Assistant Teaching Professor in STEM Education 

• Dr. Reynolds, you have been the biggest advocate for me during a very stressful time. I feel so much joy when you’re around. You always know what to do to help, and you do it with passion.

• Dr. Reynolds, thank you for everything you have done to help me accomplish my career goals and graduate college! You have been the biggest support, and I am very glad I joined you guys in science education. You were so welcoming, and you completely redid my whole schedule for me, completely limiting any stress I may have had. You truly are the best, and I will forever brag about how amazing you and the science ed program is at NC State.

• Dr. Reynolds, you go above and beyond for the students in science education, and I do not believe people thank you enough for it (I’m not even sure that it is possible to thank you enough for all that you do).  My love of science education has been shaped in a large way by your passion for science and science teaching! Thank you for everything.

Alyssa Rockenbach, Alumni Distinguished Graduate Professor in ELPHD

• Thank you for your unending support this year as I navigated my dissertation and the job market. I could not have imagined getting through a new and difficult season without an advisor and mentor like you! Your words of affirmation, advice, resources and just time offered to listen were monumental for me, and I hope you can feel my gratitude. Your efforts have made me feel seen and uplifted by this community, and I just want to say thank you for being so intentional in this way.

Erik Schettig, Lecturer in STEM Education 

• Thank you so much for your tremendous help during my student-teaching experience. You have been nothing but a help and guide during these past few months. You have been consistent in pouring into my peers and me, and providing us with thorough insight for the classroom. Anytime I had a question, I knew I could shoot you an email and know you would provide as much insight as you could! I can say that I am even more confident to enter the classroom because of your help!

Paul Umbach, Professor in ELPHD

• Dr. U., I just wanted to take a moment to thank you for being such a helpful and approachable resource. Although you aren’t my direct advisor, I truly appreciate knowing that I can turn to you when I need guidance or support. Your willingness to assist, offer advice and provide thoughtful insight has been invaluable to me. Thank you again for being so generous with your time and expertise. It means a lot to know you’re there when I need help.

Keith Walkowiak, University-School Partnership Coordinator in TELS

• Thank you so much for always caring and supporting every single person in the College of Education, including me! I could not be where I am without the support and direction that you helped me with in the last couple of years of college. Our meetings are always so lighthearted, and you make us all feel like we are truly a part of the college. Thank you for all that you do! I hope you know how appreciated you are!

Angela Wiseman, Associate Professor in TELS

• Thank you for all that you stand for, all that you do and all of the ways you inspire the people around you. Because of you, I have been able to stand when my legs are shaking, speak when my voice wants to remain silent and do when things seem impossible. You have set the bar in the stars, and there’s nowhere I’d rather rise to and no one I’d rather rise with!

• Dear Dr. Wiseman, thanks for allowing me to explore my research ideas without limitations. You’ve inspired me and made me reflect on the importance of being true to ourselves while also caring for others.

Samantha Worrell, Academic Advisor with Student Success

• Samantha Worrell has been the best advisor I could’ve asked for. She is such a light and creates a safe space for all students to feel welcome in! She is patient and understanding, which never goes unnoticed. I have loved getting to work with her in and outside of the classroom. I can’t wait for these next few years working with her! 

• Thank you for all of your help with finding me classes to fit into the multiple things I am interested in. I appreciate you responding to my email quickly and finding time for me to meet with all of the extra students you have now! It was very relieving knowing I am taking classes that count for all of the different options I am thinking of doing. 

• Sam is the best advisor I could have asked for. She is extremely knowledgeable about the university, and you can tell she has a passion for helping her students. Thank you so much for helping me get all of my credits straight and working with me to plan my schedule for next semester. Not only is she great at what she does, but she is also super funny, and I love all of her Southern sayings. Thank you so much Sam; I appreciate you!!

Carl Young, Associate Professor in TELS

• Thank you so much for the time and support you have given me! I appreciate all of our meetings and your help.