February 4, 2016

To Whom It May Concern:

I am writing this letter in strong recommendation of Ms. Stephanie Mackey. I have known
Stephanie since fall 2014 when she entered the University of Michigan School of
Education undergraduate teacher certification program in elementary education. I was
Stephanies instructor for a course titled Education in a Multicultural Society (ED 392)
in fall 2014 and fall 2015; and an instructor for her field based practicum seminar (ED
307) in winter 2015. Education 392 is a course that addresses inequities in education as
they are associated with race, class and sociocultural identities as well as the role that
teachers can have in providing equitable learning opportunities to their students. The
course also provides a critical opportunity for intending teachers to attend to historical
inequities in American society and to develop an understanding of the impact of those
inequities on modern day schooling. In field seminar, I work with a co-instructor to
support our students in identifying practice-based challenges of teaching and in devising
solutions, often in the space of classroom management and teacher language. Within
these course contexts, Stephanie stands out as a student who possesses many
significant strengths.
When the program began, I immediately noted Stephanies deeply thoughtful demeanor
and her diligence in completing coursework in a reflective and thorough manner. She
also had a deep intellectual curiosity about the work of teaching and educational reform
that she consistently brought to individual conversations with me and to class
discussion.
A unique element of ED 392 is that in fall 2014, my students engaged in a set of home
visits with the family of a middle-school aged student. These visits were housed in the
course but were part of a larger research project that I direct, the Learning Initiatives for
Families and Educators (henceforth LIFE) project. The primary goal of the LIFE project
is to support elementary pre-service teachers in learning to partner with diverse families.
In Stephanies case, because of her Spanish language proficiency, I paired her with a
Spanish language speaking family. Stephanie worked with a peer who does not speak
Spanish and supported that peers comprehension during and following the visits.
Stephanies work related to these home visits was stellar. I had the opportunity to view
the visits, as they are video recorded; and I met with Stephanie and her partner to
engage in discussion together about their learning. Stephanie was exceptionally talented
during these visits at making all parties present feel comfortable. She possesses a
quality of friendliness that puts others at ease, even across a language divide. During
these visits, she interacted warmly with middle-school aged students, their parents, as
well as their infant sibling. At first glance, perhaps the ability to engage with others
warmly and genuinely may not appear significant. However, I believe that it is a
significant skill that is critical for good teaching. Because Stephanie is able to put people

at ease, they tend to share with her openly. She built relationships with the family
members in a way that allowed her, as an educator, to recognize their enormous
strengths and knowledge bases. In conversation and in her written assignments,
Stephanie elaborated on these strengths in articulate and insightful ways. These are
important accomplishments, particularly because of the fact that English-learner families
and students are often depicted as having severe deficits. Stephanies work pushed
deliberately against such an orientation. She was able to articulate the critical need to
know and understand students and families, and to recognize their strengths and
knowledge bases that ultimately would inform her instruction.
This year, Stephanie continued to build upon her initial learning in her student teaching
placement classroom. Stephanie carried out specific plans to interact with families of her
students by building relationships with both children and parents, and by exploring the
neighborhoods in which her students live. She wrote detailed papers documenting her
learning, demonstrating an acute awareness of the particulars of students lives, the
environments in which they live, and their needs that she would attend to as a teacher.
In addition, she studied the historical context of her school community to develop a
stronger understanding of the issues that were of significance to the community
members.
When it comes to matters of race and equity, Stephanie demonstrates a level of insight
that makes her stand out amongst her peers and a skillset that I believe will enable her
to be a particularly strong teacher of students from diverse backgrounds. This was
evident both in her written coursework that she completed as well as in the interactions
that she had with families. I believe that Stephanies aptitude for building relationships
and for working hard to identify strengths, where others often see only deficits, is a
significant skill that informs her work with diverse students. This is a skillset that I believe
is critical in the role of modern day educators in our multicultural society. I hope you will
have the opportunity to work with her, as she has my strongest recommendation. Please
do not hesitate to contact me if I can be of any further assistance.
Sincerely,

Debi Khasnabis, Ph.D.

Clinical Assistant Professor of Education
University of Michigan, School of Education
610 East University, Room 1302E
Ann Arbor, MI 48109-1259
debik@umich.edu