06/17/2026
Congratulations to our First Lady, Dr. Louise Lawrence-Rose!
Today, we join together as a church family in celebrating an extraordinary achievement. With great joy and pride, First Church of the United Brethren in Christ congratulates Dr. Louise Lawrence-Rose on earning her Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.) in Instructional Leadership from La Sierra University.
This accomplishment is a testament to years of dedication, perseverance, faith, and hard work. Her dissertation, Parental Leadership in Special Education: Coping with Acculturative Stress and Parenting Special Needs in Greater New York, reflects her deep commitment to serving families and advocating for children with special needs.
Dr. Rose, your church family celebrates with you and thanks God for this remarkable achievement. May He continue to bless your journey, expand your influence, and use your gifts to inspire and transform lives for generations to come.
Please join us in congratulating Dr. Louise Lawrence-Rose, Ph.D. on this well-deserved accomplishment! 🎉👏📚
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Dissertation Title:
Parental Leadership in Special Education: Coping with Acculturative Stress and Parenting Special Needs in Greater New York
Abstract: Immigrant parents of children with special needs face the compounding demands of acculturative stress alongside the complex task of navigating special education systems that are often culturally and linguistically misaligned with their lived experiences. Her mixed-methods study examined how these parents exercised leadership - defined as purposeful advocacy, strategic decision-making, and institutional navigation, in the context of raising a child with a disability in Greater New York. Drawing on survey data and in-depth interviews with immigrant parents from diverse ethnic and cultural backgrounds, the study identifies patterns of coping, resource utilization, and engagement with social and school-based support structures. Findings revealed that acculturative stress significantly moderates parental advocacy behavior; however, religious and spiritual resources, alongside culturally resonant social networks, function as meaningful protective factors. Her research contributes to the literature on parental involvement in special education by centering the voices of immigrant and minority families. Dr. Rose is also co-author of Health and Family Life Education for Primary Levels — HFLE K–6 published by Macmillan Education. This series was developed under the CARICOM Regional Curriculum Framework and has been regionally distributed across Caribbean primary schools, including Jamaica, Trinidad, Barbados, and Belize. Her co-authorship spans multiple levels, explicitly including Level 3 (ISBN 9780230431782) and Level 6 (ISBN 9780230431843).
