Michele Augustin approaches education with a student-centered perspective to learning where teachers provide opportunities for students to apply basic theoretical concepts to real-life situations. With a strong background in the legal aspects of education, she is a teacher at heart and has a particular passion for guiding pre-service teachers through their final stages of learning under the tutelage of experienced educators within K-12 institutions.
Michele’s experiences within the field of education span forty years, including opportunities to serve the St. Louis community as a teacher, school psychologist, district coordinator, director, consultant, and clinical educator. She first joined the Department of Education at Washington University in 2005 as a lecturer in the field of special education while finishing her career as Director of Related Services at Special School District of St. Louis County. Following her retirement from K-12 instruction, Michele earned her doctorate in education from Missouri Baptist University where she developed her research interests in progress monitoring, response to intervention, and differentiating instruction to meet the needs of diverse learners.
In 2016, Michele transitioned to full-time work at Washington University as the Field Placement Specialist where she coordinated all aspects of field and clinical experiences in the elementary and secondary teacher education programs. Currently, she serves as the Director of Teacher Education and Academic Services with responsibility for managing all activities and programs associated with teacher education for undergraduate, post-baccalaureate, and graduate students at three certification levels (elementary, middle, and secondary) in 20 certification specialty subject areas, including providing instructional leadership for the Teacher Education program, advising elementary, middle, and secondary teacher certification candidates, and representing Teacher Education to internal and external stakeholders.
Michele is a retired Nationally Certified School Psychologist and holds a Career Student Services Certificate as a K-12 School Psychologist along with Lifetime Certification in counseling, elementary education, mental handicaps, learning disabilities, and behavior disorders with the state of Missouri. She served as a special education teacher for eight years before accepting a position as a school psychologist with Special School District, a role she held for 16 years. After receiving her initial special ed administrator certificate, she served as an administrator for the last five years of her career in K-12 education. Following retirement in 2008, she received her specialist degree in curriculum and instruction and a doctorate in teacher leadership while she established an educational consulting firm assisting local K-12 districts and Missouri’s Department of Mental Health. Currently, Michele is serving as Treasurer for the Missouri Association of School Psychologists after holding a variety of other board positions, including President (2017-2019), President Elect (2016-2017), Awards and Scholarship Chair (2011-2016), and Newsletter Editor (2008-2011).
