Guest Speaker: Joyce Boland-DeVito, How To Be A Cool Teacher,Wednesday, 4/8, 4-5pm

Joyce Boland-DeVito, Esq., is the second highest rated professor on the popular mtvU website RateMyProfessors.com, home to information on over 6,000 schools, one million professors, and eight million opinions. Boland-DeVito has received 165 ratings, revealing a winning scorecard of 4.9 (out of 5.0) for overall quality, with 4.7 for easiness; 4.0 for helpfulness; 4.9 for clarity, and a “hotness” total of 66 points. Wrote one student on March 17, 2009,” [I] love her! [S]he[’]s amazing. Best teacher ever. [S]he[‘]s so much fun that [I] actually go to her class!” And another on January 22, 2009, “You'd be a fool not to take her! :)”

In January Professor Boland-DeVito was interviewed by Teachers College Record, in which she offered a fresh perspective on “How to Be a Cool Teacher.” The acronym, COOL, can be elaborated for the classroom: Comfortable, Organized, Open, and Lively, with a special recipe tossed in to her commentary: “1) Break down the most difficult concepts to their simplest elements so that you completely understand them and can share them with the students; 2) Garnish with some interesting ways to present the materials; 3) Fold in some respect and genuine concern; 4) Sprinkle in what you continue to learn; and 5) Let gel for one semester.”

Join us as we warmly welcome Professor Boland DeVito who will share her experiences and offer some insightful tips for discussion on the art of successful teaching. Boland-DeVito is a Professor of Business Law at Saint John’s University. She earned her B.S. from St. John’s University; her J.D. from Fordham University; and her M.B.A. from Hofstra University. A born and dedicated teacher with an average of 60 students per class, four classes per year, Boland-DeVito has been in the field of full-time teaching for twenty-one years. Awards from Saint John’s include: Faculty Outstanding Achievement Medal (2007); Excellence in Teaching and Scholarship Award (2003); and “Teacher of the Year” (1996, 1988). Boland-DeVito has appeared on major news and cable stations in connection with high profile cases; served on a round table panel with (then) Homeland Security Secretary, Tom Ridge, in her capacity as instructor for C.A.P.E. Education (Continuing Legal Education classes in Newton, Pennsylvania); and has served as an arbitrator, associate counsel, and attorney in Nassau County and New York City. Specializing in communications law, she is licensed to practice in New York State and Pennsylvania.

Where: 305 Russell