Zora M. Wolfe, EdD
- Associate Dean of the College of Health & Human Services
- Interim Director of Center for Education
- Graduate Program Director
- Associate Professor
- Education
Affiliated Programs
- K-12 Educational Leadership (EdD)
- K-12 Educational Leadership (MEd & Certifications)
- Instructional Technology (MEd & Certification)
- Education (PA Certifications & Endorsements)
- Education (Certificates)
Education
- EdD, Educational Leadership (2013)
University of Pennsylvania (PA) - MA, Secondary Science Education (2000)
Columbia University (NY) - BS, Psycho-Biology (1997)
Binghamton University—SUNY (NY) - Principal Licensure Program, Principal Certification (2004)
University of Denver (CO)
About Me
My education career has spanned teaching kindergarten in an American school in Taiwan, to teaching high school math and science in New York City and Denver, CO, as well as mentoring beginning math and science teachers across the United States through an educational non-profit organization. I was part of the founding staff and Principal of a charter high school, and I also have experience as a CEO/Principal, Assistant Principal, and Curriculum Director at the K-12 levels. Recently, I've also had the privilege of designing and facilitating professional development for teachers and administrators across the US, Africa, and Asia.
My philosophy for teaching graduate courses in educational leadership revolves around the importance of integrating theory and practice. I believe my courses need to be grounded in research and theory related to students' particular areas of study, and also provide opportunities for students to apply that research and theory to practice. Understanding this process of relating theory to practice is essential to critically integrating theory and practical knowledge as students develop a personal theory of practice. In addition, as doctoral students and leaders in the education field, I believe our students must also be prepared to share their knowledge and become contributors to the field, thus fulfilling the model of excellent scholar-practitioners.
Research Interests
My areas of expertise include organizational leadership, collaborative inquiry communities, and developing mentor practices. My current research focuses on how to develop and support productive learning communities within schools and classrooms, including how to support faculty and graduate student success. In addition, I focus on the development of these ideas through the use of instructional technology in online spaces, such as through online and hybrid courses, and faculty and school-based professional development.
Media Expertise
- K-12 education
- Teacher and Principal preparation
- Professional development
- Online Teaching & Learning
Publications
Ciampa, K., Wolfe, Z., Bronstein, B. (in press). ChatGPT in K-12 education: Transforming digital literacy practices. Journal of Adolescent & Adult Literacy.
Wolfe, Z. (in press). Program supports for first-generation education doctoral students: A faculty perspective. In Parker-Shandal, C. (Ed.) First-Gen docs: Personal, political, and intellectual perspectives from the first-generation doctoral experience. Brill Academic Publishers.
Wolfe, Z., Knudsen, K. & Mahaffey, A., (2023). Distribution of instructional leadership roles within a school organization. Excelsior: Leadership in Teaching and Learning, 15(1), 21-30.
Wolfe, Z., & Newman, P. (2022). Developing teacher leadership skills in pre-service teacher education. In Polly, D., & Gavin, E. (Eds.) Preparing Quality Teachers: Advances in Clinical Practice. (pp. 129-154). Information Age Publishing (IAP).
Ciampa, K. & Wolfe, Z., (2020). From isolation to collaboration: Creating an intentional community of practice within the dissertation proposal writing process. Teaching in Higher Education. https://doi.org/10.1080/13562517.2020.1822313
Wolfe, Z., & McCarthy, J. (2020). Building on existing brick-and-mortar practices in online spaces. In Ferdig, R.E., Baumgartner, E., Hartshorne, R., Kaplan-Rakowski, R. & Mouza, C. (Eds.) Teaching, Technology, and Teacher Education during the COVID-19 Pandemic: Stories from the Field. Association for the Advancement of Computing in Education (AACE). Retrieved from https://www.learntechlib.org/p/216903/
Ciampa, K., & Wolfe, Z. (2019). Preparing for dissertation writing: Doctoral education students’ perceptions. Studies in Graduate and Postdoctoral Education, 10(2), 86-108.
Wolfe, Z. (2019). “You explore, I guide, we learn!”: Developing an inquiry-based teaching curriculum, Childhood Education, 95(4). 30-35. doi:10.1080/00094056.2019.1638710
Furtak, E., Glasser, H., & Wolfe, Z. (2016). The feedback loop: Using formative assessment data for science teaching and learning. Arlington, VA: NSTA Press.
Professional Affiliations & Memberships
American Educational Research Association (AERA)
Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development (ASCD)
News
In the Media
- Inside Higher Ed
- KYW Newsradio
- Edutopia
- Delaware Valley Journal
- Parents
Noteworthy
- Article by Faculty and Staff Published in Journal of Research on Technology in Education
A new article authored by Katia Ciampa, associate professor and director of reading programs, Zora Wolfe, associate professor and associate dean of the College of Health & Human Services, and Jessica Storey, director of teaching and learning with technology, has been published in the Journal of Research on Technology in Education.
The article, titled “Faculty perceptions of the impact of professional development on online teaching practices,” examines the success of the trio’s one-year cohort in the Online Teaching Fellows Program at Widener.
The 14-week program included graduate and undergraduate faculty from across the university for professional development activities and discussions focused on creating authentic and equitable learning opportunities for students.
- Faculty Publishes Book Chapter on First-Generation Doctoral Students
Zora Wolfe, associate dean of the College of Health & Human Services and interim director for the Center for Education, has published a chapter in "First-Gen Docs: Personal, Political, and Intellectual Perspectives from the First-Generation Doctoral Experience.” This newly release is the third volume in The Doctoral Journey in Education series of books.
Wolfe’s chapter, titled “Program Supports for First-Generation Education Doctoral Students: A Faculty Perspective,” gives her personal insight into working with first-generation doctoral students pursuing a degree in the field of education.
This book serves to highlight the determination and resilience of the first-generation doctoral student population.
Share link: https://www.widener.edu/news/noteworthy/faculty-publishes-book-chapter-first-generation-doctoral-students
- Education Professors Publish Article in Teaching in Higher Education
Dr. Katia Ciampa, an assistant professor in the Center for Education, and Dr. Zora Wolfe, an associate professor in the Center for Education, published a peer-reviewed article in "Teaching in Higher Education" in September 2020. The article, titled "From isolation to collaboration: creating an intentional community of practice within the doctoral dissertation proposal writing process," was a retrospective case study to examine the implementation of peer-review practices in a doctoral dissertation proposal course.
Share link: https://www.widener.edu/news/noteworthy/education-professors-publish-article-teaching-higher-education
- Education Professor and Alumna Publish Two Manuscripts About Online Teaching During COVID-19
Associate Professor Zora Wolfe, director of K-12 educational leadership programs, and alumna Jeanne McCarthy '20 EdD co-authored two peer-reviewed manuscripts in the Association for the Advancement of Computing in Education's "Teaching, Technology, and Teacher Education During the COVID-19 Pandemic: Stories from the Field" publication.
The first manuscript, "Engaging Parents Through School-Wide Strategies for Online Instruction," focused on how they assisted a school in revisiting their school-wide processes and online learning plan to incorporate parent-centered, school-wide strategies that supported students and parents learning at home together.
The second manuscript, "Building on Existing Brick-and-Mortar Practices in Online Spaces," focused on how the knowledge and expertise developed by educators in brick-and-mortar classrooms can be useful in online teaching environments.