Amanda Deliman Joins USU Salt Lake as Assistant Professor in Elementary Literacy Education

Utah State University's Salt Lake Center and the School of Teacher Education and Leadership have announced the hire of Amanda Deliman as a tenure-track assistant professor in elementary literacy education.

In her role, Deliman will support and further contribute to TEAL’s mission of inspiring and preparing reflective and effective educators, scholars, and leaders while engaging in community outreach and building positive connections across Salt Lake City’s diverse communities.

"I am excited to have Amanda Deliman join our campus community to teach our elementary education classes. She brings a wealth of knowledge and, as a tenure-track faculty member, she will be conducting valuable research in education," said David Vernon, Associate Vice President of the Wasatch Region. "Teaching is meaningful work that positively impacts the lives of youth and benefits the community. This sense of purpose and challenge of teaching attracts people who want more out of a career and is why our enrollment in the elementary education program has been increasing. Having a passionate and dynamic faculty, including Amanda, will strengthen the learning and prepare our students to be excellent educators."

A native of Pittsburgh, Pa., Deliman received a Bachelor of Science in elementary education at Indiana University of Pennsylvania. While in the program, she taught in Pittsburgh Public Schools and worked in an international school while living in Copenhagen, Denmark. After graduation, Deliman spent 10 years working as an early childhood and elementary educator in Indiana.

While teaching in public schools, Deliman earned a master's degree in educational leadership and policy studies at Indiana University. After being awarded a teaching fellowship with the School of Education at Indiana University, she began teaching in the teacher preparation program while pursuing her doctorate in literacy, culture, and language education.

"I have always found great success in linking real-world teaching experiences to course content in the university setting," Deliman said. "I want to draw upon my national and international teaching experiences to further expand on TEAL’s mission to prepare our students for informed participation while engaging in critical conversations about teaching and learning practices across our local and global communities."

Prior to joining the TEAL department at USU, Deliman spent one year working as a visiting assistant professor at the University of Colorado, Colorado Springs in the Department of Teaching and Learning, where she taught a variety of literacy and special education courses in several elementary and early childhood education teacher preparation programs.

Deliman said her core values as an educator directly align with the TEAL department’s commitment to inspire students and help prepare them to become creative and innovative educators.

"As a new faculty member at USU-Salt Lake, I want to not only draw on our students’ personal histories, rich stories and cultural traditions to strengthen our classroom community, but I also want to use those rich conversations as a jumping-off point to consider how humanizing pedagogical practices could enhance community and motivate even our youngest learners across the Salt Lake City communities," Deliman said. "My scholarly trajectory and vast teaching experiences will complement the robust elementary education degree programs at USU, which aligns with our mission to welcome diverse knowledge and thought."

Utah State’s elementary education degree program for teacher preparation, called the Bridge to Professional Practice, helps guide the students toward professional practice by drawing on real-world experiences to enhance the students’ learning and engagement while procuring licensure.