School of Professional Studies

Catherine O’Callaghan, Department of Education and Education Psychology

Katie O’Callaghan is a Professor of Education and Chair of the Education Department at Western Connecticut State University. She entered the teaching profession as a classroom teacher and continued her career with New York State literacy specialist certification. Teaching in New York City within diverse settings afforded her a wide range of teaching experiences. Her doctoral degree from Fordham University in Language and Literacy initiated her research interests in new literacies, critical literacies, teacher education, and intervention plans for helping striving readers and writers. O’Callaghan began working with pre-service and in-service teachers at St. Joseph’s College in the Child Study Department and as an adjunct at Fordham University.  She also taught in the literacy specialist program at Iona College for twelve years before moving on to Western Connecticut State University. She has published numerous articles and books including (as coauthors) Antonacci & O’Callaghan, Portraits of Literacy Development: Instruction and Assessment in a Well-Balanced Literacy Program, K-3 (2004); Antonacci & O’Callaghan, A Handbook for Literacy Instruction & Assessment Strategies K-8 (2006), Antonacci & O’Callaghan, Using Children’s Literature Across the Curriculum: A Handbook of Instructional Strategies K-8 (2010), Antonacci & O’Callaghan, Promoting Literacy Development K-8 (2012).