Member News -- September 26, 2017
Game On!
STOYS invade ESPN's College Gameday

A group of committed teachers and college football fans found themselves in the spotlight Saturday during ESPN's program, College Game Day. See if you can spot Megan Allen (Florida 2010), Lauren Danner (Connecticut 2017, with husband Adam and sons Jacob and Nathan), Mike Flynn (Massachusetts 2008), Monica Goncalves (New Jersey Finalist 2017), Ann Neary (who was at our conference), Argine Safari (New Jersey 2017), and Lea Wainwright (Delaware 2014)!


Weigh In On
2018 Conference
What topics interest you?

Tomorrow (Wednesday) is the last day to weigh in areas of focus for our 2018 national teacher leadership conference. Please take a brief survey indicating what problems of practice you would most like to solve. 

Not Exactly by the Numbers
DoDEA Educators Build Their Teacher Leadership

At the second annual DoDEA Teacher Leadership Summit in Alexandria, Virginia, STOYs and Finalists who teach around the globe found themselves navigating teacher leadership.

Educators from Guam, Japan, Italy, England and Germany were celebrated and recognized for their teacher leadership. Seven from 2018 were officially welcomed into the NNSTOY family, including 2018 STOY Kara Ball. 
 
The cohort participated in three days of   NNSTOY's Teacher Leadership Professional Learning Courses, breaking in Course IV ( Helping Colleagues Improve Instruction) for the first time. 

"I honestly have no words to describe the inspiration and passion for learning that is facilitated by the content provided in the NNSTOY courses," Daniele Massey (2013) told us. "It is challenging, reflective, engaging, and provides me the tools to go back into my school and district to stretch my leadership as a teacher inward, outward, and beyond." 
 
"After a week with our Teachers of the Year and NNSTOY, I am certain that the change can and will come from teacher leaders like me," added
Kenneth Jankowski (Finalist 2018).
 
Before the presentation, Derek Olson chews the policy fat with NNSTOY Policy Advisor Jane West. Olson told a packed audience, "Teachers need the ability to drive their own growth."

Latest NNSTOY Research Discussed 
ETS Policy Forum

At an educational forum in Washington, DC, last week, Derek Olson (Minnesota 2009), Katherine Bassett (New Jersey 2000), and researchers Laura Goe and Caroline Wylie of Educational Testing Service (ETS) presented findings of NNSTOY's latest research, Teacher Evaluation and Support Systems .

The research, performed in partnership with ETS, makes a number of important recommendations about the most productive ways to use teacher evaluation to support teachers. David Bosso (Connecticut 2012) also wrote the report with Bassett, Olson, Wylie and Goe. 

What We Are Reading
Interesting and emerging ideas about education

New Ways To Engage 
Plug into teacher leadership outside of your school

Apply for the Global Learning Fellowship. The NEA Foundation's Global Learning Fellowship provides professional development in global education K-12 public school educators. Apply by February 5, 2018. 

Attend tonight's webinar with Celine Coggins and Megan Allen (Florida 2010). Coggins and Allen will engage educators in a rich discussion about how they can be heard by policymakers and administrators. Register for the event that begins a 8:00 PM ET tonight!

Teach Tolerance.  The NEA, in partnership with Teaching Tolerance, is excited to offer a three-part webinar series Wednesday, September 20. The series will cover several topics: assessing a school's climate, creating a plan for incidents of bias and hate, preparing for and engaging in conversations about race, and speaking up in the face of biased remarks. Learn more and  register here . 

Remember the Breakthrough Challenge! Only five days until the deadline for Breakthrough Junior Challenge! All entries are due  Sunday October 1 .  To take part in the Challenge, students age 13 to 18 submit a  3-minute video  on a theory or concept in  math, physics or the life sciences .  T he winner will also be invited to the internationally broadcast 2017  Breakthrough Prize  ceremony at NASA Ames, where the prize will be awarded in front of the superstars of science, Silicon Valley and Hollywood.

Take advantage of the Fund for Teachers. If you could go anywhere and study anything, where would you go and what  would you study? Fund for Teachers allows teachers a chance to have a dream  come true. Research and self design your own professional development  opportunity as an individual or a team. Complete the application on line  and budget request up to $5,000 for an individual or $10,000 for a team.  The new application cycle will begin in October 2017 and deadline will be in  January 2018. To see if you state has funding, visit fundforteachers.org or  contact [email protected].

Choose the right education program for you or a colleague.  BestColleges.com has free guides for prospective students on what to expect from a teaching program and what to consider when choosing the right school. Check out their guides for  Bachelor's ,  Master's , and  Doctorate  programs in education.

STOYs Earn Teacher Leadership Stripes
NNSTOY Professional Learning Courses

Three DoDEA State Teachers of the Year became certified this week to teach the NNSTOY Teacher Leadership Professional Learning Courses.  

Sarah Loomis (2015) and  Kelisa Wing (2016) earned training certificates for Courses I and III and Daniele Massey (2013) earned hers for Courses I and V. They are pictured at right with the head of the DoDEA Teacher of the Year program, Linda Beaulieu.
 
New and Noteworthy
Tools and Opportunities for #TeachersLeading




In Memorium
Honoring State Teachers of the Year 

The education community suffered a great loss this August with the passing of Michelle Vickers Forman (Vermont State Teacher of the Year and National Teacher of the Year 2001).  Michele taught World History at Middlebury Union High School for 29 years. Her classroom was a joyous jungle of giant plants, student art, maps, posters, provocative slogans, old couches and new ideas.  Michele was selected as the National Teacher of the Year in 2001, an honor announced by President George W. Bush in a Rose Garden ceremony at the White House. He cited her work in the classroom, her introducing the study of Arabic language and culture to her students, her scholarship, her work on education policy in the US, and her tireless service to history teachers across the country. Read more on her incredible legacy here. 

Our condolences go to Linda Reid (Oklahoma 2007) lost her husband to a hit-and-run accident January 3. Cards may be sent to her at 8505 E. 98th Street, Tulsa, OK 74133. Our prayers and thoughts are with you, Linda.

NNSTOY is also remembering the life of Bruce Amos, husband of Betty Amos (Kansas 1984). Bruce was an active part of the NNSTOY family, sharing his talents in Service Projects in Tennessee and participating in NNSTOY conferences for many years. He and Betty dedicated a significant part of their retirement to projects for children.
Kudos, Shout-outs & Accolades
Within the NNSTOY family

Josh Parker's (Maryland 2012) new piece in EdPost is up and it is fabulous! In "When 'Good Enough' Isn't Good at All for Our Students of Color," Parker points the persistent inequities in American schools experienced by young students of color. Parker writes, "You have heard it said that it takes a whole village to raise one child. It also takes a village to miseducate one. When we consider all of the ways that good enough can become the standard when it comes to educating our most school dependent children, we have to consider which village we are really in."

Mary Pinkston (Delaware 2010)and Monica Washington (Texas 2014) served on an assessment panel at ETS this weekend. 

Be sure to check out "Let's Be Honest: Professional Bullying in Schools Is a Thing,"  Angie Miller's (New Hampshire 2011) new post on EdWeek. Angie puts it all out on the table: " Professional bullying takes many forms. One of the most dangerous? When dominant teachers attempt to coerce colleagues into their  way of teaching, a way that does not always play to the strengths of all teachers or benefit all students." Read more on about Angie's ideas to stand up to professional bullying on the NNSTOY Blog. 

Congratulations to Lee-Ann Stephens (Minnesota 2006), newly-inducted board advisory member for Education Reimagined!

Gay Beck (Utah 2011) is quoted in this Daily Herald article about Utah NNSTOY members working with the Hope Street Group to advance teacher voice. In the article, Beck discusses the importance of teacher voice in policy discussions and tells about an aha moment when this became clear to her.

Utah State Teachers of the Year Katherine Bassett worked with teachers in the Hope Street Fellowship last week. They include  Allison Riddle, Mohsen Ghaffari, Gay Beck, Leigh VandenAkker, Sharon Gallagher-Fishbaugh, Melody Apezteguia  and V alerie Gates . 

In his post, "Finding the courage to support queer youth," on the Center for Teaching Quality's blog, Rich Ognibene (New York 2008) reflects on his commitment to advocate for LGBTQ youth. Ognibene writes, " Successful navigation requires content knowledge, self-awareness and hope. For queer kids, we too often fall short on the latter requirements. Today the excuses end."

Rebecca Mieliwocki (National Teacher of the Year 2012) is at it again! This time, reflecting on challenges in being a principal in EdWeek. In her post called "When Principals Forget How Learning Works," Mieliwocki says, " I wish school leaders could cede some of this space and work to their teachers who know better than anyone else how learning happens and how to make that new knowledge stick." Read more on the NNSTOY blog.  

Two outstanding STOYs are featured in the recent post on LearnED by Pearson! Barbara LaSaracina (New Jersey 2000) and Topher Kandik (District of Columbia 2016) sat down with Pearson to discuss their craft, their students, and the future of teaching. Check out the "Many Pathways to Teaching - and How It Became a Calling," to view the video interviews. 

Patrick Kelly (South Carolina Finalist 2014) weighs in on some of the most highly debated issues of 2017 in his new EdPost piece, "Don't Like 'Take a Knee'? Take a Civics Class." Kelly writes, " A strong social studies curriculum can help students learn about tolerance, civil rights and civil liberties, and lessons about our nation's past-even, and especially, the parts that are hardest to discuss. Our ability to identify solutions to our nation's legacies of slavery and racism will continue to be limited without a more complete understanding of our history."  

Be sure to check out Nate Bowling's (Washington 2016) latest post on his blog, A Teacher's Evolving Mind. "The Power of Books: The NNSTOY Social Justice Booklist," underscores the importance of finding for our students "...just the right book at just the right time." Now is the time for social justice.

"How to Make Homework Meaningful for Students," is Curtis Chandler's (Kansas 2011) new post on MiddleWeb. Here, Chandler offers concrete, research-based recommendations on how to make homework meaningful. Read them all on MiddleWeb!

Dr.  Elizabeth Primas (District of Columbia 2000) has a new article on Black Press USA. "It's Up to All of Us to Improve Academic Achievement in the Black Community,"  c alls for all of us to strengthen outcomes in student achievement. One recommendation: "To improve academic achievement, let's first equip teachers with the skills to recognize natural talents that support and encourage academic achievement." 

Casey Bethel (Georgia 2016), sixth from the left, was recently honored as one of the University of Georgia's "Top 40 Under 40"!