BOONE, N.C. — A $2 million gift from the C.D. Spangler Foundation has established the Spangler Distinguished Professorship of Early Child Literacy at Appalachian State University, the first named professorship in App State’s Reich College of Education.

The new professorship is part of an $8 million donation by the Spangler Foundation, divided equally among four University of North Carolina System institutions, to support the achievement of reading proficiency by North Carolina’s children. The professorships are designed to recruit and retain nationally recognized scholars who will support the training of future teachers and in-service teachers while also preparing future literacy faculty.

App State’s Board of Trustees approved the creation of the distinguished professorship last month.

“App State has a strong legacy of preparing educators to lead and serve, and we remain steadfast in our commitment to recognize the promise each student possesses,” App State Chancellor Sheri Everts said. “This commitment is carried forward by the educators who teach in classrooms across the state and the nation.”

Everts thanked the foundation and its director, Anna Spangler Nelson, for their investment in children and in educators.

“North Carolina’s reading proficiency levels, already disturbingly low, have declined further over the course of the pandemic,” said Nelson, who also serves on the UNC Board of Governors. She continued, “Our investment in this work seeks to elevate the importance of early child literacy across North Carolina, enhance the preparedness of our teachers and acknowledge our shared responsibility for doing better for our children and their futures.”

App State’s distinguished professor will be assigned to the Reich College of Education’s Department of Reading Education and Special Education, and a national search will be conducted to fill the position.

The Spangler Distinguished Professor will:

• Develop scalable programs to ensure the preparation of teacher candidates in evidence-based practices in reading instruction.
• Prepare future faculty to assume positions in early literacy in colleges of education.
• Teach and conduct research in the university’s educator preparation programs to advance the field and establish a strong presence for the Reich College of Education in the state and nation as a leader in reading instruction.
• Work with school leaders in university–school partnerships to design and deliver high-quality professional development for teachers that will significantly enhance the capacity of schools to employ evidence-based practices in reading instruction.
• Engage in and enhance collaboration with other educator preparation programs in North Carolina as a community of literacy champions to share effective, evidence-based literacy practices for teacher candidates and practicing teachers across the state.
• Enhance grant and research capacity for evidence-based practices in literacy instruction through independent and network programs and projects.

Reich College of Education Dean Melba Spooner said the Spangler Distinguished Professorship will build on existing efforts to prepare teacher candidates using evidence-based practices in reading instruction, conducting research and collaborating with school partners and others across the state and the UNC System.

“Our faculty are innovators and have demonstrated strong leadership in the area of literacy and teacher education, and this is a testament to that focus on leading and engaging at the state and System levels,” Spooner said.

The late President C.D. Spangler Jr., who served the UNC System from 1986 until 1997, believed that literacy was the key to economic and social progress for all North Carolinians.

“It is critically important that the University accept responsibility for eliminating disabling illiteracy in our people,” Spangler said during his inaugural address. “It is not only cruel for us to permit illiteracy to exist, it is also unwise. Productivity, no matter how you measure it or for what purpose, is not possible without a literate people. Because these teachers reach across the state and into every home, I cannot imagine a more proper effort for the University to pursue.”

Spangler Distinguished Professorships were also established at East Carolina University, North Carolina Agricultural and Technical State University and UNC Charlotte.

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Anderson Reading Clinic

The Anderson Reading Clinic, under the direction of Dr. Devery Ward, provides direct service to children with reading problems. Each child receives approximately 15 hours of one-to- one reading and writing instruction. The Clinic, based on the Appalachian campus, has operated additional off-campus branches in Davie County, Burke County, and Yadkin County.

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Appalachian State University’s Reich College of Education (RCOE) has been selected by the UNC System to serve as a Literacy Innovation Leader (LIL). The LIL initiative is designed to create synergy between higher education and K-12 schools to address the continuum of educator preparation and development with the common goal of improving students’ reading achievement. Meet the 21 Literacy Leaders, who are in-service teachers, administrators, and curriculum leaders in Wilkes County Schools and at the Appalachian State University Academy at Middle Fork.

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About the Reich College of Education

Appalachian State University offers one of the largest undergraduate teacher preparation programs in North Carolina, graduating about 500 teachers a year. The Reich College of Education enrolls more than 2,000 students in its bachelor’s, master’s, education specialist and doctoral degree programs, with offerings that span multiple fields — from teacher preparation, counseling, and therapy, to higher education, school and student affairs administration, library science, educational leadership and more. With over 10,000 alumni employed in North Carolina public schools, there is at least one Reich College graduate in every county in the state. Learn more at https://rcoe.appstate.edu.

About Appalachian State University

As a premier public institution, Appalachian State University prepares students to lead purposeful lives. App State is one of 17 campuses in the University of North Carolina System, with a national reputation for innovative teaching and opening access to a high-quality, cost-effective education. The university enrolls more than 21,000 students, has a low student-to-faculty ratio and offers more than 150 undergraduate and 80 graduate majors at its Boone and Hickory campuses and through App State Online. Learn more at https://www.appstate.edu.

About the University of North Carolina System

The University of North Carolina System enrolls 242,500 students at 17 institutions, including the state’s 16 public universities and the nation’s first public residential high school for academically gifted students. The UNC System is among the strongest and most diverse higher education systems in the country, with more than $1.9 billion in research expenditures and campuses that serve every region of North Carolina. Affiliate organizations include PBS North Carolina, with 12 public television stations across the state, and UNC Health, with 19 hospital campuses and an extensive healthcare network. Learn more at northcarolina.edu.