Dr. Monica Noraian ‘07 was named the acting director of the Cecilia J. Lauby Teacher Education Center. As acting director, Noraian will lead the center in managing teacher education clinical experiences, licensure processes and placement of over 800 student teachers each year. She will also be responsible for state licensure requirements, education data, and teacher education policy initiatives.
“We are thrilled to have Monica as the new director of the Lauby Center,” said James Wolfinger, dean of the College of Education. “Monica has a passion for education and a desire to give all of Illinois State’s future teachers a first-rate experience in the classroom. I’m confident she’ll do an excellent job.”
With over 20 years at Illinois State, Noraian has extensive knowledge and experience in teacher preparation. She taught history and social sciences in suburban high schools in the Chicago area for 10 years. She began her career at Illinois State in 1998 as a supervisor and advisor for student teachers in the Department of History. She earned her doctorate in Educational Administration and Foundations. Since then she has served as coordinator of the History-Social Sciences Teacher Education program. Most recently, she was an associate professor and the director of the History-Social Sciences Teacher Education program. She served for many years on the Council for Teacher Education and as the Lauby Center liaison and chair for the secondary/K-12 education program committee.
Her love for history and teaching, began early in her life as her father was a museum curator at the Henry Ford Museum of American Innovation in Dearborn, MI which is the largest historical attraction in the country. When he was curator on duty, she had the opportunity to explore the museum on her own and found a passion for history.
“With over 30 years in education, I’m excited to begin this new chapter in teacher education and build on partnerships with schools and community organizations throughout the state,” said Noraian. “I love working with students and in this role, I have the opportunity to work with more students across campus which is really exciting.”
