Deering named dean of the College of Education

Dr. Thomas E. Deering

Dr. Thomas E. Deering, an accomplished administrator with 30 years of education experience, has been named the new dean of ASU's College of Education effective July 1.

Dr. Deering comes to ASU from South Dakota State University, where he served as a professor of education and chair of the Department of Education.

While maintaining a busy teaching schedule that included graduate and undergraduate courses at the university, in 2001 he began serving in accreditation leadership for the National Council for Accreditation of Teacher Education (NCATE).

He has also written four books since 2000, including Readings in Higher Education, Issues in Teacher Education, Essays in the History and Philosophy of Education, and Teacher Education. He is also the author of 38 articles on the subject of teacher education and has presented at more than 70 national and international conferences. Dr. Deering has been named to Who's Who in American Education, Who's Who in the Midwest, and Who's Who in American Teachers. He is a member of numerous professional organizations, among them the American Association of University Professors, the Association of Teacher Educators, and the American Educational Studies Association.

He began his life's work in education in 1974 as a teacher in the Missouri Public School System and went on to hold a variety of positions, including principal at the Mississippi Valley State School for the Severely Handicapped and staff consultant for school law and grievance procedures for the Missouri State Teachers Association.

Dr. Deering's higher education career began as an assistant professor of education at Lambuth University in Jackson, Tenn. He has also served on the faculties of Central Methodist College, Fayette, Mo.; North Central College, Naperville, Ill.; the University of Missouri, Columbia; and Missouri Valley College, Marshall.

A native of Missouri, he earned a bachelor's degree in secondary social studies from the University of Missouri, Columbia. One year later, in 1974, Dr. Deering received a master's degree in the history and philosophy of education from the same university. He earned two additional master's degrees—one in American history from Southeast Missouri State University in Cape Girardeau and another in philosophy from the University of Illinois, Chicago. He also obtained two education specialist degrees as well as a doctoral degree in the history and philosophy of education, all from the University of Missouri, Columbia.