What Dr. Deborah MacPhee is most proud of in her seven-year tenure as director of the Mary and Jean Borg Center for Reading and Literacy is the development and growth of the tutoring program. She stepped down May 15 to focus on literacy education.
“Now is a really intense time in the field of reading education so I really want to be working more with undergrads again, teaching them how to teach children to read,” MacPhee said. “I’ve been involved with the development of the Comprehensive Illinois Literacy Plan and look forward to supporting teacher candidates and practicing teachers with its implementation.
Dr. Erin Mikulec, interim director of the School of Teaching and Learning, acknowledged MacPhee’s leadership.
“The School of Teaching and Learning is grateful to Dr. MacPhee for her hard work and dedication to the Borg Center over the past seven years. The literacy tutoring program she developed has supported many children and families in the Bloomington-Normal area. We wish Dr. MacPhee nothing but the best as she continues her work as a faculty member.”
MacPhee said she focused on providing programs that benefitted educators throughout their careers, but was especially proud of the tutoring program, which supports K-8 students.
“It touches on everything,” she said. “We hire and train undergraduates as tutors and involve graduate students in research. A lot of our research is to inform educators on the best ways to work with children, and we offer professional development for practicing teachers. We try to support literacy development across the lifespan.”
She expanded the tutoring program, which supports students in grades K-8. What started off with a few students has grown to include children from Metcalf Elementary, district 87, Unit 5, as well as Lexington and Mahomet schools. Private school and homeschooled children have also enrolled.
Parents have helped spread the word, she said.
“Families in the community have been really responsive. We are a very small center and we don’t do any advertising. Word of mouth has built the tutoring program.”
Tutoring is a fee-based service, but the center has been able to keep the fee lower than private tutoring, she added.
MacPhee also led a campaign to raise more than $4,000 to significantly increase the diversity of the center’s lending library, which is used by teacher education students.
The center offers professional development to area educators with the School of Teaching and Learning faculty offering short courses, and site-based customized programs on a wide range of literacy topics. Some of the work has been presented at the American Educational Research Association Conference.
“It’s been a wonderful experience,” MacPhee said.
Dr. Robyn Seglem, professor of middle level literacy and technology, has been named the center’s new director.
