EHEA WAVELENGTHS May 2018 Editor: Beth Sklar

Jeff Leake, left, won the contested election for Connecticut Education Association President and Tom Nicholas, right, won the contested election for CEA vice president. Jeff and Tom will begin their three year terms on July 15, 2018.

Thanks to Steve Archibald, Jon Baine, Kristen Keska and Kathy Conklin for attending the CEA Representative Assembly last weekend. It was the 170th CEA Representative Assembly. Go here to read information about our new CEA leaders: CEA Elections

Please attend the East Hampton Education Association General Membership meeting on Thursday, June 7, 2018. The location will be posted on the website: EHEA Website

The following teachers are being honored at the EHEA Teacher Appreciation Program on May 24, 2018:

Judy Foberg

Memorial School Special Education Teacher

I would like to nominate Judy Foberg for the TAP

award this year from Memorial School. My name is Stacey Gibson. I am the Smart

Start Pre-k teacher. Judy Foberg is a special education teacher across the hallway

from me. She teaches small groups of children every day and often our children

engage in activities together to support each other. We play. We sing. We learn and

grow together daily.

It is not uncommon to see her stretching in yoga, dancing to go noodle, dressing

up like a Dalmatian for the 101st day, geared up in her snow clothes building forts or

snowmen, or sporting her cheetah gear at school. Judy has a heart of gold and always

shows it each day at school. She is full of school spirit and has clear daily goals for her

children to meet.

Judy works with a small group of children daily but goes over and above for each

of the. She carefully plans out individual plans for each child, knowing what is best for

each of them. She works extensively with interventionists, therapists, and other

teachers on a daily basis. You can definitely say Judy works well with others.

When I first transitioned over to pre-k this year, Judy was the first to welcome

me, help me, taker her time to help me unload daily car loads full of stuff, and offer

guidance. Just the other day, I was expressing this to a colleague and they said the

same thing, when first hired at Memorial Judy was one of the first smiling faces she

saw and was there to to welcome help.

Judy extends this kindness throughout the school. She is the go to Thanksgiving

planning/cooking woman each year for the staff. She goes over and above each year

to create an awesome feast!

For these reasons and many more, I know Judy Foberg deserves a TAP award.

It is said, “If you can be anything be kind”. Whoever was quoted saying this must have

been talking about Judy. She will support you, help you, teach you and always will

choose kind.

Lisa Forcellina

Memorial School Kindergarten Teacher

It is with great enthusiasm that I nominate Lisa Forcellina to be

recognized at the East Hampton Education Associations’ Teacher Appreciation

banquet. Lisa has been teaching at Memorial School for going on three years and has

proven herself a stellar teacher and supportive colleague in that time.

Lisa shows best practices, enthusiasm and innovation in her teaching techniques

and is willing to share these techniques with her colleagues. Whether it is sharing out

a parent communication template, a student reflection piece that she has had success

with, or discussing one on one classroom management strategies, Lisa is a true team

player. Working with our youngest learners, Lisa has the ability to remain energized

while keeping her students focused.

Lisa demonstrates leadership at the building level by being an active member of

the PBIS committee, regularly attending BOE and PTO meetings, helping to plan and

organize school wide reading events, and participating in various school events and

initiatives. In addition, Lisa seeks out ways to bring school and community members

into the classroom to foster new learning experiences for her students. She invests a

great deal of time and energy into grade level fundraisers and community projects and

models genuine community spirit for her students. I believe that Lisa is an exemplary

example of what a teacher should be!

Ian Lynch-Passarelli Memorial School Special Education Teacher

I would like to nominate Mr. Ian Lynch-

Passarelli for a TAP award this year. Mr. Lynch-

Passarelli dedicates an amazing amount of time and effort in order to promote student

learning and success. He is often one of the last people to leave the building on any

given day.

Ian works tirelessly to collaborate with teachers and is flexible with changing his

schedule to meet the needs of others. He shares his new learning and takes time to

explain lessons, successes and new technologies being used in his classroom.

Ian communicates with families on a regular basis and shares communication

with others. He demonstrates professionalism and wisdom when speaking with

parents and others about his student’s needs.

When observing Ian working with students his patience and insight is evident.

He inspires and empowers his students to try new math and reading strategies that

help his students to succeed. He shares new cutting edge technology that helps

students write with more stamina and understanding.

Mr. Lynch-Passarelli works tirelessly to track and share date that will help direct

lesson planning and promote greater student understanding.

Ian is an example to other teachers and colleagues and we are so fortunate to

have him here in East Hampton.

Lois Sprague

Center School Music Teacher

It is with great pleasure and excitement that I nominate Lois Sprague for a 2018

East Hampton Education Associations’ Teacher Appreciation Award. Lois is the

Center School music teacher, instrument teacher, and the leader of the fourth, fifth,

and combined fourth and fifth grade bands.

Her instructional technique is noteworthy as are her enthusiasm for learning,

teaching, and student success. Lois’ enthusiasm and love for the profession is most

evident when one of the bands is performing in public. During every number her joy

and love of teaching is evident by her vibrant smile. She truly relishes in the success

of each and every one of her students and beams after each performance.

Lois is a skilled communicator with all stakeholders in East Hampton’s education

system. Expectations of practice and commitment to “learning” an instrument are clear

and shared with families of students at Center. An event that involves students from

several buildings is the instrument petting zoo that she helps coordinate. It is wildly

successful and fosters interest in furthering music education among students entering

fourth grade. Lois played an integral role in the recent “Step-Up Concert” which

involved the entire district’s schools performing together. This was an incredibly

successful event.

It’s fitting to end on a positive note, or should I say, a PBIS note! Lois is a

member of Center School’s Positive Behavior program. She always has a lot of

innovative and fun ideas during meetings when the team is tasked with creating new

and exciting initiatives at Center.

Lois is a great candidate for this award because of all of the reasons shared in

this letter. It is important to point out that all of her contributions to the learning

community of Center School can’t be outlined in one page. Lois is a consummate

professional and East Hampton is a better place because she is a part of it.

Mindy Wilkie

Center School Reading Specialist

Although a recent addition to our Center School

family, our reading specialist’s commitment and

dedication to both the students and staff or our school

community make Mindy Wilkie worthy of being nominated for this year’s TAP award.

From the moment you walk into her classroom, her love for all things literacy is

obvious. She has created an inviting oasis where even the most reluctant readers feel

welcome. Her efforts to “build” a collection of high interest books at differentiated

levels to support all learners in just a short amount of time is commendable. Her door

is open to all students despite their reading level, and she willingly shares favorite titles

hoping to instill a love of learning in every student. Walking by her room, you are apt to

see her making book recommendations or assisting readers with their “shopping” as

they fill their book buckets with their selections for the week.

Likewise, Mindy works hard to be a supportive peer colleague to all staff. She

often meets on a daily basis to help plan a scope and sequence of lessons, offer her

fresh perspective to written curriculum, and provide feedback to enhance lessons. As

a support staff member often assigned to work in our classrooms, her collaboration

skills are seamless. She is able to enter the classroom, often mid-lesson, assess the

needs of the learners, and immediately begin co-teaching or conferring. Her

knowledge of current trends in both reading and writing is impressive however she

continually challenges herself to grow professionally by seeking out new learning which

she enthusiastically shares with her ELA teachers.

As part of her responsibilities as Center School’s reading specialist, Mindy takes

a leadership role to coordinate and facilitate bi-monthly ELA meetings as well as

monthly coffee talks across the district. She is a member of the district’s report card

committee and Center School’s PBIS team. This year she also volunteered as a co-

advisor to the Center School Press, our school newspaper, and was instrumental in

coordinating our Read Across America festivities including her very own photo booth!

Without a doubt, Mindy is a valuable and important member of Center School.

We feel fortunate to have her as part of our literacy team and look forward to our

continued collaboration with her in the future.

Keri Parsons East Hampton Middle School Social Studies Teacher

Greetings from East Hampton Middle School! My name

is Jody Dumeer and i would like to nominate Keri Parsons as

a TAP honoree. She and I have worked together for a number of years. She is a

professional staff member who could be used as a role model for novice teachers.

Keri develops exciting lessons for the students who are lucky enough to have her

for social studies. When I am walking by her class I can hear students talking about

Mesopotamia, Ancient Egypt, Greece and South America. The kids have haptic “labs”

from time to time in her classes, and these activities add a great deal of fun to the

learning process.

Keri is so interested in reaching her students and meeting their needs that she

has set up an early morning tutorial session from 7:15-7:45 five days a week. This

innovative practice allows time outside of the school day for one-on-one sessions

wherein Keri can create a tailor-made lesson in an area of need for the children who

attend the A.M. workshop.

Keri is also on top of her game when it comes to communicating with parents. In

team meetings, when we discuss a child who is not doing well, Keri will volunteer to

email or call the parent(s) that need a meeting or a current readout of how their

youngster is doing in school. She also sets up meetings with parents and takes

minutes during those meetings.

One of Keri’s faults is that she does not know how to say “No”; so at this time she

is an original member of the PDEC committee, Team 6/7/team leader, a member of the

negotiating committee, and is earning her 092! She is one busy lady, but she actually

appears to thrive when she has work to do and people to see and events or activities

to plan.

I am proud to endorse Keri parsons as a TAP honoree for the 2017-2018 school

year.

Angela Caldara

East Hampton Middle School Language Arts

Teacher

I would like to nominate East Hampton Middle

School English & Language Arts Teacher Angela Caldara as a recipient of the 2017-

2018 East Hampton Education Association Teacher Appreciation Program.

Ms. Caldara has the gift of creating a deep enjoyment of reading in all students.

In today’s data driven Lexile level SRBI SBAC testing culture, Ms. Caldara conveys a

superb ability to instill reading comprehension, confidence and success in all learners.

Ms. Caldara also has real love for East Hampton Middle School. Whether it’s

discussing strategies to improve reading skills, asking a question at a faculty meeting,

talking about jazz music, or even reminiscing about a recent golf outing, her bright

personality lights up a room with her enthusiasm.

I hope East Hampton Education Association recognizes Angie as a recipient for this

award.

Carl Pastor

East Hampton Middle School Art Teacher

I would like to nominate East Hampton Middle

School Art Teacher Carl Pastor as a recipient of the

2017-2018 East Hampton Education Association

Teacher Appreciation Program.

Mr. Pastor is a very talented art teacher and artist and he brings out the best

from all students in his art classes. Simply walk into Mr. Pastor’s classroom; student

artwork on the walls, desks, and tables rivals work seen in an art museum! In addition,

students in Mr. Pastor’s classroom create and save their beautiful artwork on a variety

of Chromebook apps that can then be presented as a portfolio to their friends and

families and at their Student Centered Conferences.

Mr. Pastor also contributes many hours to the East Hampton community outside

of his teaching schedule. He is the assistant EHMS Cross Country Coach, and

currently is Specials Team Leader. In addition, Mr. Pastor has created special art

projects for the East Hampton 250th birthday celebration, and created a special new

EHMS East Hampton 2025 District Vision of Education Panther logo.

EHMS and the East Hampton community is a great place to be because of

EHMS art teacher Mr. Pastor.

Steve Archibald East Hampton High School Spanish

Teacher

Steve Archibald is a champion for all

students and teachers, and he is very

deserving of this award. Steve is often seen chatting with students and he has created

a great rapport with them. He is a teacher who always put his students’ well-being first;

he teaches the core values of our school community by living our values.

Steve’s compassion is demonstrated daily with everyone who comes into contact

with him. Steve will listen and immediately act to help. If a teacher needs him to

remedy an issue, Steve is on it.

Archy, as he is affectionately called, will go to bat for his students too! He

contributes to our school community in ways some people may not ever notice. Steve

organizes Tennis Club in Glastonbury for a team that he no longer coaches, but is

committed to the team and its success. He also makes great efforts to bring diversity

to East Hampton High by bringing our students to Youth Forums around the state. Oh,

and let’s not forget that he (are there kids in the room?) shh… is Santa every year for

many kids… he has even been known to go to colleagues’ homes as Santa.

Steve is an EHPS must-have. He is an advocate for over 160 peers and untold

numbers of students. He is logical and sound when he helps colleagues with issues.

He has also been on a number of negotiation teams to help obtain a fair and

reasonable contract.

It is indeed a privilege to nominate Steve Archibald as a TAP honoree!

Kristen Keska East Hampton High School Social Studies Teacher

No one knows what EHHS would do without Kristen

Keska. She is a passionate teacher, a motivated

advocate, and an amazingly productive person.

Kristen doesn’t just “demonstrate” an enthusiasm for learning and teaching; she

exudes it! Her interest in all things social studies is avid and evident; she’s always

looking for new information and angles to present to her students, whether in modern

US history or AP government. She was one of the first teachers at the high school to

pilot Google Classroom as an instructional tool. She quickly became an expert not

only at using its many features to enhance instruction and assessment for her

students, but also offered to train other teachers. Now, thanks largely to her, it’s a

widely utilized web tool at our school. Kristen doggedly pursues excellence and

inspires her students to do the same. For example, research papers are something

many people might consider dull or dry, but not in Mrs. Keska’s class. I once heard her

tell a class that their introductions should be “soul-hurtingly good”. If students’ work is

not up to par or if they are behind on work, they can be assured that she will call them

in during X block and help them achieve what they are capable of. No one falls

through the cracks in her class.

Kristen is actively and enthusiastically involved in the community of the high

school and of East Hampton. She advises the Interact club, which involves organizing

and overseeing dozens of high school students participating in myriad community

service projects. In this capacity, she also makes lasting connections to community

organizations both within and beyond East Hampton’s borders, such as the ABC

Women’s Shelter. Though she lives far away, she’s the first one to volunteer to help

out at or attend school events such as Cabaret Night or chaperoning field trips. In

these ways, she gets to know students outside of the classroom setting and also

shows her colleagues that she admires and supports their efforts.

As the EHEA’s membership chair, Kristen keeps us all up to date about options

and opportunities afforded us as CEA members, including discounts, freebies, and

social activities. Furthermore, she’s always happy to lead professional development

workshops and informally share tips and tricks. She also is constantly interested in

learning new strategies and ideas herself. She even came in over the summer to

participate in a training session on our school’s new Makerbot 3D printer.

Kristen’s energy and efficiency are remarkable. Everyone at EHHS know that if

you want to get something done, she is the person to call. We’re very lucky to have

her as our colleague.

Lia Straub

East Hampton High School Math Teacher

Lia Straub is one of the most dedicated

teachers you could meet. She is constantly striving

to better herself both personally and professionally

and is not happy unless she is putting in 200%. Lis

has developed many cooperative learning activities

with her colleagues. The students love these

activities as they help them apply math to real world situations. Some of these

activities are breakouts, coding activities, a battle drones activity, balancing chemical

equations, a slope name art mini project and ordered pairs project to name just a few.

With the high school going one-to-one this year with chromebooks, Lia has been

a leader in

the math department with implementing different technologies. She is always willing to

share what she is doing with her department and has taken suggestions from her

colleagues to further increase her technology use with the students.

Lia has a wonderful relationship with her students. Many of her former students

visit her, confide in her, and bring her small tokens of their appreciation. Students are

always happy to see her, have a positive relationship with her, and respect her.

Students who may not come across as caring about their school work are eager to

work for Lia and want to do their best in her class, she brings out the best in many

students!

Lia’s sense of humor is another great quality, maybe one of her best. She is able

to find the humor in any situation and always makes her colleagues and students

laugh. We know in this profession that laughter is very important! Lia makes EHHS a

better place and we are lucky to have her!

THINGS TO KNOW….● July 1, 2018 there will be some changes to our health

insurance. Find out what they are. Also, make sure you know what the HEP requirements are.

●Please let Kristen Keska, EHEA Membership Chair know if your contact information has changed. This includes your phone number(s), address and home email account.

● NEA has some super discounts and great deals:NEA cash rewards card, travel savings, loans, ideas on how to manage stress, insurance, travel tips, reduced rates at parks, museums and more!

●Check your teaching certificate to see when it expires. Be sure to put your paperwork in early if it is time to renew! CT SDE Educator Search

●If you are retiring, check out the CEA Retired membership brochure. Membership does have some fabulous benefits!

●In the time it takes to drink a cup of coffee, you can email your state legislator and thank him/her for supporting our issues!

●Teachers in your building are serving on the team negotiating our next contract. Thank them for the time they’ll be spending on the contract this summer!

●Please speak with your building representative and go to cea.org to find out about Summer Leadership. There's still time to register: CEA Summer Leadership 2018

And now a few words from Kristen Keska, EHEA Membership ChairHello and Good Morning!

Your friendly neighborhood membership chair here trying to encourage activism in our profession and union causes and here to save you money and to make the most out of your EHEA/CEA/NEA membership. Please check our website often. https://eheateachers.wordpress.com/. Not only does it celebrate the awesomeness of our colleagues in EHEA and nationally, but it has valuable insurance information.

Question/Straw Poll- If I was able to get group tickets to Marvel Universe Live! Age of Heroes at the XL Center, would you be interested? I would aim for the Saturday, November 3, 2018 3 o’clock performance. If I get responses totaling over 15 seats, I can investigate ticket prices. Please only respond if interested (send me at text at 860-944-0522 or email me at mrskristenkeska@gmail.com). Here is a link to the performance: http://www.xlcenter.com/events/detail/marvel-universe-live-age-of-heroes   

Here are May’s highlighted discounts:

CEA:1. Yard Goats! I am planning on Friday, July 27 but there is a game on Friday August 24. A night game,

fireworks, 100s of my closest union buddies, what could be better? Please consider joining me and other EHEA members at the game: http://www.cea.org/memberbenefits/

2. Not CEA/NEA related, but I love this program: Free Fun Friday’s, Massachusetts: “Our Free Fun Fridays offer visitors no-cost admission to many of the most treasured cultural venues in Massachusetts. This program was created to increase access and enrichment opportunities for children and families throughout Massachusetts during the summer months. Every Friday, from the end of June through the end of August, multiple sites are open for free. We reach out to schools, veterans groups, libraries, seniors centers, and many other community organizations to ensure that everyone knows that they are also welcome.” http://www.highlandstreet.org/programs/free-fun-fridays

3. Mohegan Sun Women’s Basketball: Save up to 27% and get tickets as low as $20. http://www.cea.org/memberbenefits/attractions/sports-entertainment/

NEA:1. Who wants $500??? “https://secure.neamb.com/sweepstakes3-entry.htm

“NEA Member BenefitsMember Appreciation Giveaway

Prize: Win a $500 Visa® Reward Card! (5 winners)

NEA Member Benefits celebrates you throughout Member Appreciation month with this special giveaway! It’s our way of saying “thank you” for your dedication to education.

You can enter daily to increase your chances of winning a $500 Visa Reward Card. This sweepstakes is only available to registered NEA members, so be sure to login each time you visit neamb.com.”