DIANE ROBINETTE

ASSOCIATE PROFESSOR OF EDUCATION
Extension: 5029
Email: drobinette@tusculum.edu
Office: Knoxville

BIOGRAPHY

Dr. Diane Robinette, Associate Professor of Education, joined the faculty of Tusculum College in 2001. She taught courses on the residential campus for eight years in classroom management, assessment, learning environment, education of the talented and gifted, and special education. Recently she has transferred to the Graduate and Professional Studies program in Knoxville and is currently serving students who are seeking K-6 licensure.

She has served on the Programs and Policies Committee, the Honors Committee, the Disabilities Review Committee, and the Teacher Education Screening Committee.

A graduate of Carson-Newman College with degrees in Elementary Education and Music Education, Dr. Robinette began her career in the elementary classroom in Tullahoma, Tennessee. She continued her education at Gallaudet University in Washington, D.C. As a hearing student, she experienced the essence of Deaf culture at Gallaudet and graduated with an M.A. degree in Education of the Deaf and Hearing Impaired. She earned her doctorate from the University of Tennessee in Curriculum and Instruction with American Sign Language and Teaching English for Speakers of Other Languages (ESOL) as her collateral areas.

Dr. Robinette taught Deaf and hearing students in grades 7-12 at The King's Academy in Seymour, Tennessee. Her teaching responsibilities included courses in American Sign Language, English, American History, Tennessee History, and Bible. She also directed the Sign Choir, interpreted classes for Deaf students, and accompanied the Academy Chorus. She served as the coordinator of the program for Deaf students for several years. The King's Academy afforded her the opportunity to teach students from 12 countries on five continents

After adopting a daughter from Guatemala, Dr. Robinette's career path turned to interpreting for Deaf students at the University of Tennessee, Pellissippi State Technical College, and Knoxville Area Vocational School. She served as a parent advisor with the Tennessee Early Intervention Services, working with preschool children with disabilities and their families. Her next teaching assignments included teacher at the Tennessee School for the Deaf, teacher of the Deaf and Hearing Impaired in Sevier County Schools, teacher in the Talented and Gifted (TAG) Program in Knox County, and ESOL instructor at Maryville College (K-12 and adult) and Lenoir City (K-12).

Recently she combined her interests in travel and teaching during a sabbatical from Tusculum College by serving as a consultant to Puerto Rico Deaf Ministries in Ponce. She continues to assist this ministry in establishing a school for the Deaf in Puerto Rico.

Diane is a member of First Baptist Church, Knoxville. She has served several congregations as church organist, and she is in the cast of the Knoxville Nativity Pageant. Her daughter, Karen, is a graduate of Carson-Newman College.

ACADEMICS

DIANE ROBINETTE

BIOGRAPHY