Dr. Debbie Price, Chair
Dr. Debra Price (Debbie), serves as a faculty member with SHSU and holds degrees from The University of Colorado in Boulder, Louisiana State University in Baton Rouge, and the PHD from The University of Texas at Austin. Prior to pursuing the doctoral degree, Dr. Price taught elementary school for 13 years. She served in the roll of professor and director of the Doctoral Program in Literacy in the department of Language, Literacy and Special Populations at Sam Houston State University (SHSU) for 17 years. During that time, Dr. Price taught courses in literacy and special education at the undergraduate, masters and doctoral level. She has authored numerous articles and has presented at several national and international conferences on the topic of literacy. In 2014, Dr. Price was named Associate Dean for Research and Graduate Programs in the College of Education. In that roll, she serves as a liaison between the 6 doctoral programs, the 15 master’s degree programs and the University Graduate Studies Department. Additionally, she leads and facilitates graduate programs in the college and advocates for graduate programs at the university, state, national and international levels. She works closely with the centers within the college and sponsors activities to promote research across all departments. Dr. Price has served in an advisory capacity for the SHSU Charter School since the charter documents were written and submitted for approval to the Texas Education Agency.
Dr. Kristina Vargas, Vice Chair
Dr. Kristina Vargo is an Associate Professor of Special Education at Sam Houston State University. Dr. Vargo is also a Board Certified Behavior Analyst-Doctoral (BCBA-D) and a Licensed Behavior Analyst in the state of Texas. She earned her M.S. in Behavior Analysis and Therapy, and her Ph.D. in Rehabilitation, both from Southern Illinois University-Carbondale. Dr. Vargo teaches courses primarily in the Low Incidence Disabilities and Autism program. Her research interests focus on the application of behavior analysis in educational settings, and she has published articles in journals including the Journal of Applied Behavior Analysis and the Journal of Behavioral Education.
Dr. Casey Creghan, Member
Dr. Casey Creghan currently serves as a faculty member in the College of Education at Sam Houston State University. Dr. Creghan earned his Bachelor’s and Master’s degrees from Texas State University and his doctorate in Educational Leadership is from Lamar University. Dr. Creghan has spent 24 years in Texas public schools serving in a variety of roles. Those roles include biology teacher, counselor, athletic director, principal, and as dean of students. Dr. Creghan joined SHSU as clinical professor nine years ago prior to moving into a tenure-track position, and now holds the rank of associate professor. Currently Dr. Creghan teaches Professional Roles and Responsibilities in the secondary education program and Educational Research in the graduate program. Dr. Creghan has authored numerous journal articles and has been awarded several state and national grants including 2 grants from the Library of Congress. This is Dr. Creghan’s first year to serve on the board of the Charter School.
Dr. Baburhan Uzum, Member
Dr. Baburhan Uzum received his BA and MA degrees in English Language Teaching from Middle East Technical University in Turkey. He completed his doctoral degree in Second Language Studies at Michigan State University in 2013. Dr. Uzum taught English as a Second/Foreign language courses at various levels for more than 15 years and has been teaching multicultural education and second language acquisition courses to teacher candidates at Sam Houston State University's Bilingual/ESL program for the last 6 years. Dr. Uzum's research interests include sheltered instruction of English language learners, discourse analysis, teacher intercultural competence, virtual intercultural exchange, second language teacher education, and interdisciplinary approaches to teaching and learning. Dr. Uzum has served at various capacities in the national organization of Teachers of English to the Speakers of Other Languages (TESOL) and is currently on the editorial board of various language teaching and learning journals. Dr. Uzum's current line of research investigates innovative ways to prepare teacher candidates to teach in linguistically and culturally diverse settings
Mrs. Susie Kamman, Member
Mrs. Susie Kamman is a retired teacher who is currently volunteering as a mentor for pre-service teachers during their field experience semester. She graduated from Sam Houston State University with a Bachelor of Science in Elementary Education with a Minor in English. She is certified in Elementary Self-Contained, Grades 1-8, Elementary English, Grades 1-8, and Second Language Supplemental, Grades 1-8. Mrs. Kamman taught in the Conroe Independent School District for 39 years and also taught 4 years at a Private Academy. During those years, she has been a mentor for many SHSU and Texas A&M student teachers. She has also been an ESL mentor for the Conroe Independent School District on several occasions. She had the privilege to pilot the Response to Intervention and Gifted and Talented Pilot programs for her school district. She is a Positive Discipline developer and presenter for classroom teachers. Mrs. Kamman helped to develop and present the SHSU Mentor Orientation Workshop to several school districts in the state of Texas.