Biography:
Dr. Bumgarner is an Associate Professor in the Department of Education and the education department chair. She began at Westminster in 2013, she has been teaching reading and writing education courses, along with teacher preparation courses focusing on the exceptional individual and literature for children and youth. In 2014, Dr. Bumgarner began teaching a digital literacy course, getting current students to embrace the 1:1 movement in order to better prepare for the schools in which they will teach. Dr. Bum spearheaded the Westminster Advisory Technology Team (WATT) that led to the campus going 1:1 with iPads and Apple pencils. She is the coordinator for Digital Blue which continues to oversee the program and conduct professional development for faculty and staff to teach with and to the devices. It is her singular mission to keep campus educators relevant with 21st century learners.
Dr. Bumgarner also leads professional development in Missouri schools, aiding practicing teachers with their teaching of reading, writing, and technology to preK-12 students. She spends time in area classrooms to stay current on authentic teaching practices and trends in education, most recently attending workshops on response to intervention, standards-based grading, and . Along with her teaching and professional development work, Dr. Bumgarner is an author, giving presentations across the state and the country about her books and the craft of writing.
Education
She earned her Ph.D. in English Education and Digital Literacy from the University of Missouri at Columbia; M.Ed. in Curriculum & Instruction from the University of Missouri; and Bachelor of Science Degree in English and Pre-med from the Missouri State University in Springfield, MO.
Background and Courses Taught
Dr. Bumgarner, referred to by her students as Dr. Bum, teaches education classes, many of which focus on teaching future teachers how to teach reading and writing in Language Arts, how to be relevant with technology in a 21st century classroom, as well as other content areas. She also teaches education of the exceptional child, children's and YA literature, and infuses all of her courses with digital literacy. She enjoys incorporating technology as a tool and as an application and is inspiring that philosophy with all her students.
Dr. Bum supervises student teachers, teaches online courses, and shares her fifteen years of experience in the public school classroom. Now with over thirty-one years of teaching experience at all levels, ranging from early childhood, secondary classroom experience, and seven years teaching in the education department at University of Missouri to now beginning her ninth year at Westminster. While teaching junior high school in Columbia, Bumgarner published her first novel 8 Days, a sci-fi thriller that was the culmination of her love of writing, her interest in the future of technology, and it landed her on an FBI watchlist. Her newest novel, Fifty Cents for a Dr Pepper, will be released in the fall of 2021.
Scholarly/Professional Highlights
After her first novel was published, Bumgarner devoted time to her writing, publishing two more novels in the next three years, as well as publishing academic articles, teacher education articles, and numerous short stories. She gave hundreds of presentations to schools, organizations, and professionals, gave an international talk at the annual IWAC conference, and gave national workshops at NCTE and NWP's Technology Liaisons Retreat. While teaching at MU, she was recognized as an exemplary instructor, winning the prestigious High Flier Award twice, was nominated for the Donald K. Anderson teaching award, and received numerous scholarships for her academic and research success. During her tenure at Mizzou, Dr. Bumgarner began coordinating and implementing professional development work with area schools via the Missouri Writing Project and as a practicing teacher and author.
Since coming to Westminster College, Dr. Bum was awarded a grant to conduct research for the 1:1 initiative, was awarded the Buschman Dean Junior Faculty of the Year Award, given a Winney Award, won a second Buschman research award in 2017, a third in 2020, and won the President’s Award for Excellence in Teaching in 2020. She is a certified Apple Teacher, and after leading the campus to go 1:1, she and the WATT committee continue to lead professional development to keep Digital Blue current and relevant.