By Jeff Murphy,
March 17, 2022
Ann McCoy, Ph.D., dean of the College of Education at the University of Central Missouri,
will be honored as the 37th recipient of the James C. Kirkpatrick Excellence in Governance
Award.
WARRENSBURG, MO – In recognition of her outstanding public service and for her efforts
to prepare Missouri educators, Ann McCoy, Ph.D., dean of the University of Central
Missouri College of Education, will receive the highest honor presented by students.
The UCM Student Government Association will recognize her publicly as the 2022 recipient
of the James C. Kirkpatrick Excellence in Governance Award at 7 p.m. Tuesday, March
22, in the read and relaxation area, near the west entrance of the Kirkpatrick Library.
The public is invited to attend this award presentation, which will be hosted by members
of the SGA.
McCoy will become the 37th person to receive the award, which was established in 1985
to honor the public service of Kirkpatrick, a university alumnus who served for 20
years as Missouri’s Secretary of State, and spent many years on the university’s governing
board. Recognition is given annually to an individual who – like Kirkpatrick - promotes
the public interest, practices good governmental procedures and has shown loyalty
to the university. The recipient is student nominated and selected by members of the
SGA.
Having an affiliation with UCM that extends more than 40 years, McCoy was named to
her current post in September 2021, after being appointed interim dean of the College
of Education in May of the same year. Her professional journey was made possible through
preparation that included receiving a Bachelor of Science in Elementary Education
with a minor in Mathematics from UCM, which she completed in 1983, followed by a Master
of Science in Curriculum and Instruction in 1988. This helped launch her education
career beginning at the Clinton School District, where she served for 22 years as
an elementary teacher, elementary math resource teacher, and middle school math teacher.
McCoy came to UCM in 2006 as a visiting assistant professor of mathematics education
in the School of Computer Science and Mathematics. She was promoted to associate professor
in 2012 and climbed the faculty ranks to become a full professor in 2017, when she
was serving in the Department of Elementary and Early Childhood Education. Her career
at UCM since then has included serving as a program coordinator of mathematics education;
coordinator of the K-12 and secondary teacher education programs; coordinator for
the elementary mathematics specialist program; coordinator of the Bachelor of Science
in Education for elementary grades 1-6 program; chair of the Department of Elementary
and Early Childhood Education; chair of the School of Teaching and Learning; and associate
dean for the College of Education.
While at UCM, she fell in love with working alongside future teachers and helping
them grow and develop as educators. As McCoy juggled her full-time responsibilities,
she continued study her field. This led to the completion of a Ph.D. in Curriculum
and Instruction with an emphasis in Mathematics Education at the University of Missouri-Kansas
City in 2011.
In addition to her work at UCM, McCoy has played a role in groups and other activities
that have had a statewide impact on education. This includes her appointment from
2014 to 2016 to the Missouri Department of Higher Education’s Elementary Mathematics
Standards Workgroup charged with drafting a new set of standards for elementary mathematics
in Missouri. She has also presented workshops designed to help schools in communities
such as Belton and Macon transition to new standards.
McCoy and her husband have three sons who all are all UCM graduates, one who has studied
Criminal Justice and two who studied Political Science. Both Political Science graduates
have now graduated from law school.