Tag Archives: Elementary Teachers

Sp Ed teacher Christine Galvan-Manzello earns NYC 2023 Big Apple Award

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Elementary Special Education teacher Christine Galvan-Manzello has earned a 2023 New York City Big Apple Award. Photo credit: New York City Public Schools

The city of New York is very proud of their public school teachers. In fact, city educational leaders regularly recognize exceptional teachers with their annual Big Apple Award. In 2023, one of the educators so honored was Christine Galvin-Manzello, a Special Education teacher from Queens.

Christine works with fifth graders in an Autism Spectrum Disorder program at PS 91 Richard Arkwright. In her classroom, she supports her students’ academic and social-emotional needs to foster their growth as learners and citizens. And she works diligently to make her classroom very safe and very personal. ”I try to connect with them on a personal level,” the honored teacher explains. “I am good at cracking jokes. I get messages from parents —they are so happy to be going to school every day,” Christine continues. “I try to make them believe they can be anything they set their mind to. I love celebrating small moments with each other,” she asserts.

Christine honors the special gifts of her students. She encourages them to take part in school community activities such as student government, debate, and music programs, which help build confidence and leadership skills.

In addition to her work with students, Christine contributes to the school community through her weekly case conferences with teachers, paraprofessionals, and service providers and by facilitating meetings with school staff members and families about how to best support students with ASD. She also conducts professional development for her school community.

The Big Apple Award was presented to 20 New York City teachers. Each one was nominated by their principal for work in the profession that inspires students, models great teaching, and enriches school communities. The recipients were chosen through a rigorous selection process that includes community nominations, principal recommendations, classroom visits, an interview, and a review by a board of judges. To learn more about the program and this year’s recipients, click on this link to Big Apple Awards.

Sarah Lancaster named Minnesota’s first AAPI Teacher of the Year

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Elementary teacher Sarah Lancaster of Onamia, Minnesota, is the first educator of Asian Pacific Islander descent to be named her state’s 2022-2023 Teacher of the Year. Photo credit: Brainerd Dispatch

It is always my pleasure to shine a spotlight on exemplary educators who have earned honors for their work with young people. Today, the spotlight falls on Sarah Lancaster, an elementary school teacher from Onamia, Minnesota. She was selected 2022-2023 Teacher of the Year for the state of Minnesota. Sarah is the first educator of Asian Pacific Islander descent to earn the honor.

Sarah teaches first graders in Onamia Public Schools District #480. Her career there spans ten years. This hardworking educator believes in the power of strong relationships and the importance of building connections with her students. Her teaching philosophy is student-centered, and emphasizes communication, consistency, and transparency. Teaching in a rural area has taught her the importance of culture and tradition, and recognizing a student’s individuality and identity. She makes every effort to connect not only with her students, but also with their families.

As a native-born resident of her home town, Sarah feels a strong sense of connection and dedication to her community. She seizes every opportunity to give back, including coaching over 20 seasons of athletics and arts programs, directing three of the annual high school musicals, and volunteering with local youth groups. She also serves as President of the Onamia Area Civic Association.

In addition, Sarah, who is half Filipino, has become more active in advocacy for an increase in persons of color in professions such as teaching. This representation can help more students overcome the things that are holding them back as students, she believes. “I can’t tell you the last time I saw a teacher of color as a speaker or panel member at a teacher conference,” Sarah says. She wants to change that.

Sarah earned her Bachelor’s degree in Education from Saint Cloud State University in 2013. In 2020, she completed the requirements for her Master’s degree in Curriculum Instruction and Design from Saint Mary’s University of Minnesota.

Teacher Clara Comstock helped orphan children find homes

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Clara Comstock

Teacher Clara Comstock, second from right, with a colleague and a group of orphan children she escorted on an Orphan Train. Over the course of her career, Clara helped place more than 12,000 orphans into loving homes. Circa 1910. Photo credit: Children’s Aid Society, New York

Throughout our country’s history there are many examples of dedicated educators going above and beyond in order to help young students, both inside the classroom and in their personal lives. One of these was Clara Comstock, a hardworking teacher from New York who helped placed more than 12,000 orphan children into loving homes.

Clara was born on July 5, 1879, in Hartsville, New York, the daughter of hardy pioneer stock. Her father was a farmer and blacksmith. As a young girl, Clara was educated at the Canisteo Academy in the neighboring town of Canisteo, New York. She graduated in 1895 at the age of 16 and spent the next several years completing her teacher training courses.

Clara inaugurated her career as a teacher in 1903 at the Brace Memorial Farm School in Valhalla, New York. Her students were New York City “street Arabs,” homeless boys that were orphaned, abandoned, or removed from their homes because their parents were deemed unfit or unable to adequately care form them. At the Farm School, these kids were taught fundamental literacy skills such as reading, writing, and mathematics, some vocational training, including carpentry, shoe-making, and box-making.

After a few years, in order to be of greater service to homeless kids, Clara accepted a position with the Children’s Aid Society (CAS), an organization which still exists today to benefit needy children. The CAS organized the famous Orphan Trains, small groups of children that were transported west and placed in foster homes on farms and in rural communities. Clara escorted many of these groups, conducted background checks on prospective foster parents, and made periodic checks on the children she placed. She did this work until her retirement in 1928, then she spent another two decades working for the CAS in-state foster care program.

During her lifetime, Clara placed more than 12,000 homeless children in homes, painstakingly keeping track of each one of them until they reached adulthood. She kept a personal diary and filled several trunks with meticulous records of the children she worked with. Decades later, these records became invaluable resources for Orphan Train riders who were seeking information about their origins.

You can read more about this amazing and dedicated teacher and the orphan train system in my book Chalkboard Champions, available on amazon.

Montana’s Catherine Matthews named her state’s 2023 Teacher of the Year

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Pre-school Special Education teacher Catherine Matthews of Bozeman, Montana, has been named her state’s 2023 Teacher of the year.  Photo credit: Montana State Office of Public Instruction

Many fine classroom teachers have earned recognition for their work in the classroom. One of these is Catherine Matthews, an early childhood Special Education teacher from Bozeman, Montana. She has been named her state’s 2023 Teacher of the Year.

Catherine’s career as an educator spans 26 years. For the past 20 of them, she has taught Pre-K Special Education at Hyalite Elementary School in Bozeman.

In her classroom, Catherin works diligently to build an inclusive environment that celebrates every child’s talents and encourages a love for life-long learning. She collaborates with families, colleagues, and the community as a whole to foster a classroom culture of acceptance and diversity in which all her students feel welcome. “They respond to her, they love her, and you can feel the love when you walk in her classroom,” asserts Hyalite Principal Heather Chvojka. “If you’ve ever seen Catherine teach before, it’s like watching a magic show. The things that she’s able to do with these kids is amazing,” Chvokja continues. “Even when she’s walking through the school, her love and care for the families is contagious,” Chvojka says.

Catherine extends opportunities for learning beyond the classroom. She runs an organic farm, and she is also a beekeeper. Through these activities, she hopes to create additional learning activities and provide local, farm-to-table, healthy food options. Her husband, Jason Matthews, is an advocate for wildlands and animals, and together the couple runs an animal sanctuary.

Catherine earned her Bachelor’s degree in Elementary Education from Montana State University, Bozeman. She earned her Master’s degree in Special Education from Montana State University, Billings.

To learn more about Catherine Matthews, see this article published about her by the Bozeman Daily Chronicle.

 

Idaho teacher Anna Attebury garners coveted Milken Educator Award

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Idaho elementary school teacher Anna Attebury has garnered a coveted 2022-2023 Milken Educator Award. Photo Credit: Milken Foundation

I also enjoy sharing the story of an exceptional teacher who has earned recognition for their work with young people. One of these is Anna Attebury, an elementary school teacher from Idaho who has garnered a coveted 2022-2023 Milken Educator Award.

Anna Attebury teaches first graders at White Pine Charter School in Amman, Idaho. The honored teacher ensures her instructional time is engaging and challenging, balancing setting clear expectations with encouraging students to explore concepts and find their own way to solutions. Her approach achieves remarkable results. During the 2021-22 school year, her first graders averaged 127% growth in reading and 111% growth in math.

Well-versed in STEM, this honored teacher leads lessons in human anatomy by building models of different body systems—including the respiratory, circulatory, muscular, and skeletal systems—in layers on life-sized, human-shaped cutouts. In addition to the STEM lessons in her classroom curriculum, Anna also leads an after-school STEM club for students in grades one through five. The club explores coding, works with drones, and uses 3D printers. In fact, in 2020, her STEM club students submitted a drone video to Idaho’s National Laboratory Earth Day competition.

Anna makes significant contributions to her school. She serves as the coordinator for her school’s Core Knowledge curriculum, and she organizes a school wide showcase to share grade level projects, displays, and performances. During the pandemic, she created an online version of the showcase so the entire school community could participate from home. Anna also leads professional development, and she leads White Pine Elementary’s Positive Behavioral Interventions and Supports (PBIS) team. She is a member of the leadership team created by the director of schools, and she mentors new teachers.

Anna earned her Bachelor’s degree in English in 2004, and a second Bachelor’s degree in Political Science in 2012, both from Brigham Young University, Idaho.

The Milken Educator Awards have been described by Teacher Magazine as the “Oscars of Teaching.” In addition to a $25,000 cash prize and public recognition, the honor includes membership in the National Milken Educator Network, a group of more than 3,000 exemplary teachers, principals, and specialists from all over the country who work towards strengthening best practices in education. To learn more about the program, click on Milken Educator Awards.