CUE January 2026 Newsletter

Welcome Anna Winston and Courtney Goertz, two new professors at the Center for Urban Education

Two new professors recently joined the UNC Center for Urban Education (CUE) faculty, and we welcome them with open arms. Dr. Rosanne Fulton, Director of CUE, said, “It is so important to us to recruit faculty with expertise and up-to-date knowledge about life in urban classrooms.” We asked the professors about their experience with the Center and what they enjoy most about interacting with our teacher candidates.

New CUE professor Anna Winston on a hike with her husband

Anna Winston

Anna Winston will teach the Culture of Special Education course this spring. She has taught for more than 25 years and started her career as a general education teacher in grades one through six. She has been a special education teacher for the last eight years in moderate-needs and severe-needs settings and currently serves as a severe-needs teacher in Cherry Creek Schools.

Winston will graduate with her doctoral degree from the University of Alabama this month with an EdD in Special Education. The topic of her dissertation is clinical vs. educational rates of autism identification nationwide.

New CUE professor Anna Winston with her family, including recent CUE graduate, Conner Winston

In terms of how she got connected with the Center, Winston said, “My son was a student at the Center for Urban Education and had a wonderful experience. He recently graduated and was hired on at Cherry Creek Schools. His experience was so valuable, I reached out to see how I could be a part of something so meaningful.” And we are grateful she did!

“I absolutely love teaching and want to share my passion and dedication to children—especially those with learning differences and difficulties—with our next generation of teachers and leaders,” said Winston.

She is a first-generation college graduate surrounded by a family of educators. “My brothers married teachers, my husband is in education, my son is a recent education graduate, and my daughter is a freshman at CU studying education,” said Winston.

In her spare time, she loves to read a good book and hike, camp, and spend time with her family.

New CUE professor Courtney Goertz

Courtney Goertz

Courtney Goertz will teach the Teaching Methods and Approaches of Teaching Culturally and Linguistically Diverse Students course this spring. In the past, she taught culturally and linguistically diverse education courses at Regis University in the Master of Arts in Education program.

Outside of her classroom teaching experience, Goertz served in district- and school-level leadership roles focused on instructional improvement, professional learning, and equity. She has served as a principal and assistant principal, where she led turnaround efforts; improved student achievement; and built collaborative, data-driven cultures.

At the district level, Goertz has designed coaching systems, professional development programs, and instructional frameworks across multiple schools. Most recently, she served as a Culturally and Linguistically Diverse Education Lead. In that role, Goertz collaborated with district leaders and community partners to strengthen instruction, family engagement, and outcomes for multilingual learners. “All of the communities I have served have been culturally and linguistically diverse, which has afforded me to opportunity to learn so much,” said Goertz.

She was already connected with the Center for Urban Education through Dr. Rosanne Fulton, the Director of the Center. “She and I worked in collaboration many years ago when we served a community school in North Aurora,” said Goertz. “We focused our work on creating equitable learning experiences for historically marginalized communities,” she added.

New CUE professor Courtney Goertz with her family

One thing Goertz is looking forward to about working with CUE students is, “…learning with the incredible students I’ve heard so much about. Each one of us brings experiences to the classroom that will make us all better equipped to serve culturally and linguistically diverse and multilingual learner communities.”

When she’s not hard at work educating students and teacher candidates, she drives her three teenage kids to competitive softball and baseball games and tournaments. She also loves to be on the water… not in it, but on it!

Lastly, Goertz says she is obsessed with everything that has to do with coffee. And apparently cows, too, because she hopes to one day open a coffee shop where people can feed and pet mini-cows. When this business comes to life, it will be named Cows & Coffee.

Dr. Fulton welcomes these talented and experienced professors to her team. “Thanks, Anna and Courtney, for choosing to dedicate your energy to the success of our teacher candidates at the Center for Urban Education!” said Fulton.