Few professors exhibit Romano’s passion for learning and education. 

"It takes years of teaching to affect students," said Romano.  "It is an investment in human life, and you can only sometimes see the results of your work."

She has invested in thousands of student’s lives over the years, but one student particularly affected her teaching.

"When I was a classroom teacher, I had an extraordinary student who I lost to cancer.  She never complained, even when she was in extraordinary pain.  She just wanted to learn," said Romano.  "Even if a person dies at 17, they still have a thirst for knowledge."

That student motivated her to work hard in the classroom, even where school districts are in dire condition.  As a college educator, she is motivated to not only teach but continue learning by encouraging class participation.

"Learning is not passive, it requires student interaction," said Romano.  "I tap into their experiences and they help me understand."

To get student participation in any level of classroom, Romano said that the conditions in the classroom need to be open, safe, and curious. 

She also emphasizes research in her classrooms, and teaches students to gather and interpret data.  She poses conceptual questions that allow them to see both sides of an issue. By helping pre-service teachers to become intellectuals, she helps them better serve future students.

Liberal arts universities, Romano said, offer students a chance to become not only teachers but scholars.

"It’s important to know more than the subject they are teaching," explained Romano.  "A robust liberal arts degree helps teachers make more out of their subject matter."

A former professor at the University of Washington and Antioch College, a feeling of adventure and uniqueness led her to Athens, Ohio and the Ohio University community.

"It’s not money that is the treasure here, it is the people that care about things and one another," said Romano. "A lot of people never leave here because the magic sucks them in."

To Romano, teaching is closely linked to public advocacy. 

As the former director of Creating Active and Reflective Educators (CARE), a partnership focused on school funding, she works with about 30 junior education majors to teach sixth-grade students about school funding.

Romano’s office, warm and inviting, is lined with "Faces of Hope" posters, newspaper articles and pictures, as well as photos of students in the Consortium for Overseas Student Teaching (COST) program, which sends students to 17 different countries to live and teach in a foreign environment.

She has been COST coordinator for seven years.  When she began, only 15 students had participated in the program.  Now more than 120 students have taken advantage of the opportunity, which, Romano says, is "life changing" for most of them.

"They learn about the power of human connections, and when they come back, they can imagine the work it takes to change things," said Romano.

In addition to public advocacy work, she also does writing and research about democratic education and cross-cultural relations.  

Romano recently wrote a chapter for the book "Teacher Education with an Attitude" about ways to use theater to help student teachers understand pre-teen and high school dynamics. She also contributed a chapter to a book about John Dewey, an educational reformer in the Great Depression era.  

Romano's teaching does not end when a student leaves her classroom. 

"Few professions require you to bring your entire self into the classroom," she explained.  "When students leave the class, they don't leave me; they take a part of me with them."