News & Events

New Appointment: Lauren Canaan


Randall University is pleased to announce the appointment of Mrs. Lauren Canaan as the new Supplemental Academic Coordinator and Director of the Associate in Arts Program.

Having earned a B.S. in Education and an M.Ed. in Instructional Leadership and Academic Curriculum with a focus in Reading Education, both from the University of Oklahoma, Mrs. Canaan began teaching English at Randall in 2016. Since starting at the university, her focus and commitment has been on helping freshmen students succeed in their mastery of writing and reading. With that mission, she helped facilitate and start the new remediation courses on campus and implemented the Supplemental Academic Instruction (SAI) courses for English Composition I and Reading.

Mrs. Canaan has a passion for helping students discover their own academic abilities. In 2016, she was instrumental in helping Randall University become one of the first schools in Oklahoma to adopt a co-requisite model of remediation, which stands in contrast the the developmental model. In the developmental model, a student must complete 0000 level courses to gain academic knowledge before advancing to a traditional credit-earning course such as English Composition. The co-requisite model is more commonly referred to as "supplemental academic instruction" because students take the developmental course in conjunction with the traditional course. As a result, the student receives "just-in-time tutoring" and instruction tailored to her or his needs. This new model has proven effective at Randall by increasing retention rates!

Mrs. Canaan was one of five faculty members involved in this transition from the outset. She has proven that she has a true passion for remediation and leading, as she has continued to research and teach others at Randall how to continually improve our processes.
In addition to her role as Supplemental Academic Coordinator and continuing to teach English courses, Mrs. Canaan has also been appointed Director of the Associate in Arts degree program. Dr. Brent Sykes, Academic Dean, said the following of Mrs. Canaan's credentials:

"Over the past few years in her English classrooms, I have witnessed Mrs. Canaan's ability to connect with students and desire to help them achieve their goals. I have no doubt that she will be an excellent academic advisor and champion for the liberal arts at Randall."

Please join us in welcoming Mrs. Canaan to her new roles!