Laurie Elish-Piper
Laurie Elish-Piper, Ph.D., is dean of the College of Education at Northern Illinois University.
She is also a Presidential Engagement Professor and a Distinguished Teaching Professor in the Department of Literacy and Elementary Education (LEED), and served a term as NIU’s Presidential Advisor on College and Career Readiness.
She also served as the director of the Jerry L. Johns Literacy Clinic for 15 years and as co-director of the Center for the Interdisciplinary Study of Language and Literacy for seven years. Elish-Piper has provided leadership to professional organizations, including her service as the president of the Association of Literacy Educators and Researchers and as a member of the International Literacy Association Board of Directors.
Elish-Piper’s scholarship and teaching focuses on literacy leadership, literacy coaching, teacher professional development, literacy assessment, and struggling readers. She has co-authored eight books and more than 80 articles and chapters. She is a regular presenter at international, national, state and local conferences.
Before starting her career in higher education, she was an elementary teacher and a middle-school language arts/reading teacher in Indiana. Elish-Piper has been on the faculty at NIU since 1995.
Laurie is been married to Steve and they have one son, Michael. An avid reader, Laurie also enjoys traveling, watching cooking and design shows, and playing fetch with her dilute calico cat, Lyla.
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Laurie Elish-Piper asks us to consider the words of Nelson Mandela: “The true character of society is revealed in how it treats its children.”
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There's a shortage of qualified Early Childhood teachers — but Laurie Elish-Piper says there's good news that can help turn that around.