Millburn, N.J., Educator Audra D. Berger Earns Doctorate at College of Saint Elizabeth

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Millburn, N.J., educator Audra Berger has successfully defended her doctoral dissertation at the College of Saint Elizabeth.

MORRISTOWN, NJ (02/28/2013)(readMedia)-- Audra D. Berger, elementary instructional supervisor in Millburn, N.J., public schools, has successfully defended her dissertation at the College of Saint Elizabeth (CSE), 2 Convent Road, Morristown, N.J., to earn her doctorate in educational leadership. Berger's dissertation is entitled, "Helping Teachers and Students: A Study of Intervention and Referral Services at the Elementary Level." She is a resident of Livingston, N.J.

"My CSE experience helped me solidify the connection between school leadership and the important work that teachers do each day," said Berger. "As teachers and administrators, we must lead by example every day to serve those we took the jobs for – our students. In the CSE doctoral program, leadership was paramount... I also came to realize the importance of being a life-long learner."

Berger, who grew up in Livingston, N.J., has extensive teaching experience. She began her career at Rolling Green Elementary School in Boca Raton, Fla., where she developed an affection for literacy education. After returning to New Jersey several years later, she worked as a language arts teacher in New Providence, N.J., and advanced within the district to become Language Arts Department Head for grades K-6. In 2008, she assumed her present position in Millburn.

Berger holds a bachelor's degree in English and elementary education from Rutgers University in New Brunswick, N.J., and a master's in education administration from Montclair State University in Montclair, N.J. She and her husband Gary have a nine-year old daughter, Lexi.

The doctoral program at CSE, which is dedicated to preparing leaders who are committed to social justice and ethical practice, began in 2007. "Integrated into all course work and learning activities are the central values and beliefs necessary for school leaders to function as morally purposeful stewards for their school communities," states Msgr. Thomas J. McDade, Ed.D., course of study coordinator for the CSE doctoral program in educational leadership. "This philosophy of servant leadership represents a major shift from the traditional paradigm of school leaders as managers of resources which is so prevalent in today's practices."

Sponsored by the Sisters of Charity of Saint Elizabeth, Convent Station, N.J., the College of Saint Elizabeth enrolls more than 1,700 full- and part-time students in more than 25 undergraduate, 10 graduate, and two doctoral degree programs; an Ed.D.in educational leadership and a Psy.D. in counseling psychology. For information on other activities or programs, visit the College of Saint Elizabeth web site at www.cse.edu.