Donor Spotlight: Kenneth and Fran Cadenhead

College of Education Donor Support Spotlight

Auburn’s College of Education is grateful for Kenneth and Fran Cadenhead and their family’s generous naming support of the Kenneth and Fran Cadenhead Huddle Room in the new College of Education building that’s set to open for classes in fall 2025. Below are details about the Cadenheads, their named room and the College of Education's new building:

New Education Building room name:

Kenneth and Fran Cadenhead Huddle Room

Named after:

Kenneth and Fran Cadenhead

Their story:

Kenneth and Fran Cadenhead had a passion for teaching and making a difference in the lives of others – both young and old. Kenneth Cadenhead received his doctorate degree from Auburn University.  He was named professor emeritus after serving the Auburn University College of Education for 30 years. His career began in a one-room schoolhouse at Oak Mountain School in Carroll County, Georgia, and his career included being a teacher, principal, professor, researcher, author and innovator. He was known for getting teachers/professors to work in teams to create exciting student learning environments. His emphasis was always on breaking down walls to share ideas across disciplines.

Fran Cadenhead was a classroom teacher who taught while raising her four children. She taught first grade at Wrights Mill Road Elementary School in Auburn, where she is remembered as a very kind and caring teacher who worked with students to meet their individual learning needs. She was passionate about educating people of all backgrounds and, during retirement, was highly involved with the Lee County Literacy Coalition. Their children, Michael, Melanie, Mark, and Milton, and two of their five grandchildren, Maria and Sara, are all graduates of Auburn University.

The Cadenhead family desires future teachers to know of the contributions to the important profession of teaching made by Dr. and Mrs. Cadenhead.

The room’s area of focus:

This huddle room will be a space for students, faculty and staff to have collaborative group meetings and study sessions to advance the three-prong mission of the college.  

Q&As (answers provided by the children of Kenneth and Fran Cadenhead):

Why did your family decide to name a room in the College of Education’s new building:

Kenneth and Fran Cadenhead's legacy in the field of education needs to be remembered.  The decision to name a discussion room after our parents is because this mode of teaching was their focus.  Not only did they teach but also desired to learn from their students through discussions.  Both of our parents were advocates of John Dewey's educational theories:

Students learn best through active participation and real-world experiences, and that education should be child-centered and democratic:

-Learning by doing
Dewey believed that students learn best through hands-on activities that are relevant to the real world.

-Social learning
Dewey believed that learning occurs within a social environment and that students should be encouraged to share experiences and reflect on what they've learned.

-Critical thinking
Dewey believed that critical thinking is an important part of education, and that students should be taught to think effectively. He associated critical thinking with a scientific technique of experimenting with ideas and examining evidence.

-Democratic schools
Dewey believed that schools should be communities where children learn to participate in democratic life.

-Teacher quality

Dewey believed that the best indicator of teacher quality is the ability to watch and respond to the movement of the mind.  

What excites you most about the College of Education’s new building?

Having a building dedicated to the College of Education shows that this degree is now viewed as important as engineering, business, pharmacy, etc.  Teachers need to be uplifted as a valuable profession to students at AU.  

There’s so much to love about Auburn and its College of Education. What do you love most?

Having grown up in Auburn, our family values, the Auburn Family and The Auburn Creed. 

What do you hope future generations will know about your family and the importance of the room that bears your family’s namesake?

The teaching profession is one of the most important careers that can make a difference in this world.  In this room our desire is for future teachers to have an environment where discussions are held and students can learn from each other.  Our hope is for students to "seek first to understand, then to be understood" as an invaluable teaching tool.