Peter Smagorinsky
Peter Smagorinsky (born October 24, 1952) is an educator, researcher, and theorist currently working at The University of Georgia. He holds the title of Distinguished Research Professor of English Education.[1]
| Peter Smagorinsky | |
|---|---|
| Born |
October 24, 1952 Princeton, NJ, USA |
| Residence | United States |
| Nationality | American |
| Fields | English/Literacy Education |
| Institutions | Westmont HS (IL); Barrington HS (IL); Oak Park and River Forest HS (IL); University of Oklahoma; The University of Georgia |
| Alma mater | Kenyon College (1974); University of Chicago (1977, 1989) |
| Known for | Teaching writing, literature, and language in secondary schools; teacher education; character education; mental health and inclusion; teacher evaluation |
Education
Smagorinsky's father, pioneering meteorologist Joseph Smagorinsky, moved his family from Princeton, NJ, where he was a researcher at the Institute for Advanced Study, to Alexandria, VA, when Peter was an infant. Tall for his age and an advanced reader, he began first grade at age 5 in a small, makeshift private school because he was not yet eligible for public school enrollment. He then enrolled in public schools for most of the rest of his primary and secondary school education, changing schools frequently—all while living in the same house—because of the rapid population growth in Fairfax County and annual construction of new schools to accommodate the increasing number of students. Joseph Smagorinsky then moved the family back to Princeton in 1968, where he became director of Princeton University's Geophysical Fluid Dynamics Laboratory and where Peter spent his last two years of high school, playing football, basketball, and track. The schools attended included:
1958-1959 Chichester School (Fairfax County, VA)
1959-1963 Rose Hill Elementary School (Fairfax County, VA)
1963-1964 Wilton Woods Elementary School (Fairfax County, VA) (now an administrative building)
1964-1965 Mark Twain Junior High School (Fairfax County, VA)
1965-1966 Ascension Academy (Alexandria, VA) (now St. Stephens/St.Agnes Middle School)
1966-1968 T. A. Edison High School (Fairfax County, VA)
1968-1970 Princeton High School (Princeton, NJ)
Following high school, Smagorinsky received his Bachelor of Arts in English Literature from Kenyon College in Gambier, Ohio in 1974. He went on to receive a Master of Arts in Teaching (M.A.T.) in English Education from the University of Chicago in 1977. During his career as a high school English teacher, Smagorinsky continued his education at the University of Chicago, receiving his Ph.D. in English Education in 1989.
Career
After working as a hall monitor and substitute teacher in New Jersey (primarily the public schools in Trenton) after graduating from college in 1974, Smagorinsky began his teaching career as an English teacher in the Upward Bound/Pilot Enrichment Program under the direction of Larry Hawkins, in Hyde Park on Chicago's South Side, where the University of Chicago is located. He taught in UB/PEP while attending Chicago's master of arts in teaching program in English Education, studying under George Hillocks. After he received his M.A.T. in 1977, he went on to teach in several high schools outside Chicago: Westmont HS (1977-8), Barrington HS (1978–1985), and Oak Park & River Forest HS (1985–1990). He was the assistant varsity track coach for his one year at Westmont HS and the assistant sophomore basketball coach for three years at Barrington HS.
A year after receiving his doctorate (awarded in 1989), Smagorinsky accepted a position as assistant professor of English Education at the University of Oklahoma. Smagorinsky moved to The University of Georgia in 1998 as an associate professor of English Education in the Department of Language Education (now Language and Literacy Education). In 2000 Smagorinsky was promoted to full professor, and in 2011, Smagorinsky received the title of Distinguished Research Professor from The University of Georgia, where he continues to teach today.[2]
He is the author of many books, journal articles, book chapters, op-ed essays, and other publications; and has been featured in a number of interviews and videos talking about educational issues. During his career he has also been presented with many awards for his research, teaching, and service to the profession.