Master's Student Chamanthika Wickramasinghe Participates in Holmes Program at Eastern

2016 Nov 9

Sri Lanka-native Chamanthika Wickramasinghe of Willimantic is one of two students participating in the Holmes Program at Eastern Connecticut State University. She is in pursuit of a master's degree in Early Childhood Education.

A project of the American Association of Colleges for Teacher Education (AACTE), the Holmes Program supports students from historically underrepresented backgrounds who are pursuing careers in education. Eastern is one of only two colleges in the state and 45 across the country to participate in the Holmes Program.

"The future of the world is built upon what children learn and how we guide them. One of the best ways to influence the future of education is to be a well-educated teacher," said Wickramasinghe regarding her decision to pursue a master's degree at Eastern. After working as a teacher, she eventually hopes to earn a Ph.D. so she can teach future teachers and conduct research on best practices.

"It's a tremendous opportunity for me to be at Eastern and work with such a well-educated faculty," said Wickramasinghe, who is intrigued by educational technology and special education. "The small class sizes allow me to work with my lecturers directly, and the people are so friendly, you never feel homesick."

Education Professor Tanya Moorehead, program advisor at Eastern and Holmes alum, added, "Hosting the Holmes Program fits in with the mission and vision of Eastern. The education field as a whole is predominately white female, particularly in elementary school. This gives us a way to recruit and develop different faces and backgrounds in the teaching world, because the faces that we're teaching aren't always represented by the faces that are teaching them."