Delaware County 2012 Excellence in Teaching award winners

Tuesday, April 17, 2012

Voucher advocate Finn: Six good reasons to pass on vouchers

Delaware County 2012 Excellence in Teaching award winners:
Delco Times April 17, 2012

http://www.delcotimes.com/articles/2012/04/17/news/doc4f8c4f92088db471567178.txt?viewmode=fullstory

More info on the awards: http://www.fmfcu.org/fmfcuinfo/education/excellence.htm

Mindy Nguyen-Balli

School: Chester Upland School of the Arts
Grade/Subject: First grade

Years in Education: 15
Greatest Satisfaction: Seeing students grow as members of a learning community.

Mary Acchione

School: DCIU Coopertown Elementary School
Grade/Subject: Multiple Disability Support
Years in Education: 36

Greatest Satisfaction: Seeing a student reach a goal after persisting for a significant amount of time with patience and effort.

Shanna McGarry

School: Garnet Valley Elementary School
Grade/Subject: Third grade
Years in Education: Nine
Greatest Satisfaction: Working with wonderful students and families. Also, having the opportunity to develop a lifelong love of reading and writing in students.

Michelle May

School: Manoa Elementary School
Grade/Subject: K-5 special education
Years in Education: Six

Greatest Satisfaction: Making a difference in the classroom each day by coming up with new and creative ideas to meet the needs of my students.

Sue Maze

School: Interboro High School
Grade/Subject: Ninth-12th-grade life-skill learning support
Years in Education:18
Greatest Satisfaction: Getting to work with great people and watching my students grow and become successful.

Elizabeth Landes

School: Marple Newtown High School
Grade/Subject: Biology/environmental science
Years in Education: Six

Greatest Satisfaction: Knowing that I may be making a real difference in the life of one of my students.

Christina McGovern

School: Ridley High School
Grade/Subject: Ninth-12th-grade dramatic arts, 10th-grade English literature
Years in Education: 14
Greatest Satisfaction: Watching my students enter the world after college as artists, singers, innovators, actors, teachers and a multitude of other things.

Carl Rosin

School: Radnor High School
Grade/Subject: English, interdisciplinary, philosophy and various electives.
Years in Education: 15
Greatest Satisfaction: When a student recognizes feeling joy in learning and wanting to learn more ... I revel in seeing kids finding interest, exploring intellectual curiosity and appreciating (instead of fearing) challenges.

Anne Hofmann

School: St. Anastasia School
Grade/Subject: First grade
Years in Education: 11
Greatest Satisfaction: Watching my students grow academically and spiritually, not just in first grade, but through their years at St. Annie’s.

Thomas Imburgia

School: Cardinal O’Hara High School
Grade/Subject: Ninth-, 10th- and 12th-grade biology, AP biology and human anatomy and physiology.
Years in Education:10
Greatest Satisfaction: Being able to watch the students I know realize their goals.

Thom Houghton

’School: Delaware County Christian School
Grade/Subject: Sixth-grade language arts, Eighth-12th-grade writing skills and 9-12th-grade creative writing.
Years in Education: 27
Greatest Satisfaction: My greatest satisfaction ... is the opportunity I have to participate in the maturation of young writers.

Matthew Santini
School: Pennell Elementary School
Grade/Subject: Autistic Support
Years in Education: Six
Greatest Satisfaction: Seeing students grow toward independence and make progress in their own individual ways.

Jayne Walker

School: Media Elementary School
Grade/Subject: Second grade
Years in Education: 33
Greatest Satisfaction: My greatest teaching satisfaction is watching my students grow as learners and knowing that when they leave me ... I have given them the best I have to give.

Susan Ball

School: Academy Park High School
Grade/Subject: 11th-grade American literature, photojournalism
Years in Education: 16
Greatest Satisfaction: It’s awesome when students return to tell me how well they’re doing and to relate how what they learned in my class was beneficial.

Stephanie Santella

School: Harvey C. Sabold Elementary School
Grade/Subject: Third grade
Years in Education: Nine
Greatest Satisfaction: I love it when I can really connect with my students and their families. When I can make an impact on my students’ lives both academically and personally, it’s incredibly rewarding.

Marie Neeson

School: Chichester Middle and High schools
Grade/Subject: Enrichment studies teacher
Years in Education: 28
Greatest Satisfaction: From colleague: “Marie Neeson is responsible for hundreds of ‘ah ha!’ moments in the educational paths of her students. To say that she touches and influences her students’ lives is just not saying enough about Marie. She teaches students in the gifted program who she challenges, nurtures, then challenges some more, to independently learn about themselves and the opportunities available in life.”
(Neeson will receive her award posthumously.)

Jennifer Cifuni

School: Bell Avenue Elementary School
Grade/Subject: Fifth grade
Years in Education: Nine
Greatest Satisfaction: Getting an opportunity to work with students and forging relationships with them. I love not only being a teacher, but also a mentor, someone they can count on and look up to.

Bill Sweeney

School: Strath Haven High School
Grade/Subject: 11th-12th-grade physics
Years in Education: 36
Greatest Satisfaction: As a teacher, coach and class adviser, I have been able to wear several hats and get to interact with teenagers in many rewarding ways, perhaps more rewarding to me than anyone.

Margie Tavakalian

School: Beverly Hills Middle School
Grade/Subject: Seventh-Eighth-grade English language learners
Years in Education: 30
Greatest Satisfaction: Nourishing multiculturalism, ethnic diversity and fostering a sense of belonging for my ELL students.