La Jerne Terry Cornish is chair and associate professor of the education department of Goucher College. She is responsible for identifying department goals; overseeing the secondary education concentration; and overseeing collaboration in the social sciences division and between undergraduate and graduate programs. She also teaches courses on adolescent development; teaching social studies in the elementary and special education classroom; and reading, writing, and assessment in the secondary content area.
She was assistant principal at Baltimore’s Canton Middle School after serving several schools as an instructor and team leader.
La Jerne has obtained grants and funding for local and international education. She also has authored several papers and publications on educators, race, and literacy.
La Jerne acted as leader, co-chair, and member of many Goucher College committees for more than a decade, including the Curriculum Transformation Committee and the Educational Opportunity Program Search Committee. She helped develop the college’s strategic vision, Transcending Boundaries, Transforming Lives.
She earned a Ph.D. in language, literacy, and culture from the University of Maryland, Baltimore County. La Jerne also holds a B.A. and M.Ed. from Goucher College.