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Here you'll find news stories and exciting announcements from around our SAU.
 

January, 2010
Learning Circle Connection
Winter 2010, Volume 1, Issue 1

November, 2009 - Campus Connections
NH HISTORY TEACHER OF THE YEAR
Edith Tatulis, adjunct instructor in the UNH Department of Education, was named the 2009 New Hampshire History Teacher of the Year by The Gilder Lehrman Institute of American History and Preserve America. She is also a finalist for the national award. Tatulis, a resident of Candia, NH, is a full-time teacher at the Deerfield Community School where she teaches 5th grade. She graduated from UNH with a bachelor’s degree in science in 1975.  She worked in the quality control laboratory at  

 

 

 

 

 

Edith Tatulus

Velcro until 1987 when she decided to change careers. She enrolled in a master’s degree program at UNH and earned her M.Ed. in Secondary Science Education.  Tatulis said she has always loved working with kids.  As a child she enjoyed playing school and helped teach her disabled sister how to read. Teaching just came naturally.  She said, “The children keep you honest, young, enthused and laughing. They give back to me 100 fold what I give to them.” She enjoys working at the Deerfield Community School and feels supported by the administration and parents. Tatulis said, “They encourage, foster and support innovative ways to teach and want children who can think and collaborate, not just children who can excel at standardized testing. It is the most exhausting job one could ever love. I am truly blessed to have job I love so much!” Parents and colleagues feel the same about Tatulis. One parent wrote on a local newspaper blog, “I can’t think of anyone more deserving of this award. Edith was one of our children’s favorite teachers.”  Tatulis also teaches Social Studies Methods Classes at UNH Manchester and has taken on other roles at the University such as cooperating teacher for interns seeking a master’s degree in Education, university-based supervisor of interns, and teacher-in-residence. She said sharing her experience with teaching students at UNH Manchester is icing on the cake.  “It gives me a chance to give something back to the profession,” she said.  Coordinated through the Preserve America initiative and co-sponsored by the Gilder Lehrman Institute of American History, the New Hampshire’s History Teacher of the Year Award honors outstanding teachers of American history across the country and supports the crucial importance of American history education. The History Teacher of the Year Award recognizes outstanding American history teachers from elementary school through high school across all 50 states and U.S. territories.

November 6, 2009
PUBLIC HEARING

November 6, 2009 Flyer
AUTISM ABILITY ADVENTURE WITH CAROLANN EDSCORN
Presented by the SAU #53 Learning Circle
"WHILE I WAS DIAGNOSED with Asperger Syndrome in 1994, my early childhood and school life was more typical of classical autism. I didn’t talk until I was four years old.  I did not participate in story time, recess games, or class discussions. I was teased, bullied, and misunderstood.

I was also an accomplished artist by second grade, a musician, writing short stories my teacher thought publishable, and composing symphonies by eighth grade.

 

 

 

 

 

 

CarolAnn Edscorn

I love the stars, music, words, my family, and my computer.

I am a stranger in a strange world. I believe in life, love, and laughter."

"CarolAnn Edscorn is a dynamic and moving speaker who describes her full life as a person with autism. Her vivid descriptions, ability to connect with the humanness in all of us, and humorous anecdotes offer a perspective about people with autism that enlightens parents and professionals alike. You’ll never look at people with autism the same after hearing CarolAnn speak.”  Cheryl Jorgensen, Institute on Disability at UNH
 
Date: Tuesday, November 17, 2009
Time: 3:30-5:30
Place: Pembroke Academy Auditorium

September 17, 2009 - Hooksett Banner
SPECIAL VOTE SEPT. 30 ON $3.6M BOND
By Ginger Kozlowski
PEMBROKE - Pembroke voters are asked to come to a special school district meeting on Wednesday, Sept. 30, to hear about and vote upon a proposal for a $3.6 million bond.  The bond would pay for changes to make three schools more energy efficient.  If approved, the School Board expects to be reimbursed by state aid.

Jonathan Burnham, director of maintenance, stressed that between savings in energy costs and aid to the school district, the town would face no new expenses if the bond is approved.

The bond would allow the school district to enter into a 15-year lease-purchase to be funded by interest free/low interest qualified school construction bonds in the amount of $2,623,210 and the balance of the lease, $976,790, at a rate of not more than 6 percent.

This would allow construction of a biomass heating plant and replacing temperature controls for Pembroke Academy and Three Rivers School, as well as replacing window and temperature controls at Hill and Village Schools.

If the bond is approved the School Board would be eligible for state building aid, utility rebates and any other government or private funding.

A two-thirds majority ballot vote is required for the bond to pass.

The meeting will take place at the Pembroke Academy auditorium at 6:30 P.M.  The vote will take place immediately after the public hearing.

 


September 11, 2009
2009/2010 PEMBROKE PEER RECOGNITION WINNER ANNOUNCED
 
Nancy Corbett, a speech specialist at Three Rivers School, was recently selected as the 2008/2009 Peer Recognition Award winner.  The award, sponsored by the Pembroke School Board, is given to employees of the Pembroke School District who are nominated by their peers for their outstanding overall performance.  
 
Corbett was consistently described by her peers as someone who not only goes out of her way to assist all students, but is also the first person to help other teachers, often times stepping out of her “official” role to do so.  Described as the “go-to” person, Corbett is involved in extra-curricular activities and continually champions the rights of all students, pushing them to reach their potential and actively supporting their every success.
Corbett (right) pictured with Three Rivers
School Principal, Deb Bulkley (left).   
 
Pembroke School Board Member Tammy Boucher (right) presented a plaque to Corbett (left) in recognition of her efforts.

September 7, 2009 - Union Leader
CLASS CLIMB PROVIDES IMPORTANT LESSON
By Paula Tracy
While traveling through the tough sections of Mount Major in Alton, Alex Weiss needs a strong pull an push from the adults who joined the second-graders for the hike. (THOMAS ROY)
 
MATTHEW FERGUSON HAS taken his class on a hike at the beginning of every school year for his 23 years of teaching.
 
So when he discovered one of his second-graders at Deerfield Community School is in a wheelchair, he took action.
 
"If Alex couldn't go, none of us could go," Ferguson said of 8-year-old Alex Weiss.
On Friday, the entire class went on the hike, almost four miles round trip, aided by University of New Hampshire's Northeast Passage staff.

At the summit, Brett Weiss, the boy's father and a chaperone for the day, wiped his brow, smiled and admitted he never thought he would see this day.

"Never," he said.

Alex suffers from holoprosencephaly, which compromises his speech and motor skills. He has never been able to walk. For the trip up Mount Major in Alton, he was placed into a Terra Trek, an off-road wheelchair modified by Northeast Passage staff.

Its smaller, front set of wheels were removed. Rickshaw poles were placed on the front of the chair and used by Alex's classmates to pull him along the trail's wide and flat portions. Parents, faculty and Northeast Passage staff took charge on the rocky steeps of the trail, working shoulder to shoulder and boulder to boulder.

"Let's go, Alex! Let's go, Alex!" was the chant as the wide-eyed, smiling boy was unloaded from his wheelchair van in the trailhead parking lot about 9:30 a.m.

Lily Desgroseilliers, 7, had her father and her grandparents along for the field trip.

"This is the longest hike I have done. The view is great. Pushing Alex was a lot of fun because everyone was doing it together," she said.

Ferguson said the goal of the field trip was help his 15 students understand they are within a caring community where people feel safe to learn together and help each other. Also part of the community-building were the parents who got to know one another, he said.

David Lee, assistant director of Northeast Passage, said for 20 years the program has used specialized wheelchairs to make possible recreational opportunities for those with physical disabilities. The program offers kayaking, waterskiing, golf and ice hockey, along with hiking.

In this case, the assistance for Alex's hike was paid for by Deerfield's special education account.

James Bonnell, 7, and his classmate, Josh Heckman, took the front poles of the wheelchair toward the end of the hike about 2 p.m. They proudly marched their 70-pound classmate down the trail.

Behind the wheelchair was Cody Tanguay's father, Tom, who did much of the carry-out from the summit over the roughest terrain.

'"You have to learn when to hold on and when to give," Tanguay said.

Ferguson said the class will use the experience in English, math, science and other academic disciplines throughout the year. The students will have their own blog on the school's Web site to discuss the trip.

"We made it!" Ferguson shouted as the last student came running to the bottom.

He broke into a chant: "Great job, 2F! Rah, rah, rah!"


 

July 5, 2009 - Concord Monitor
ASSOCIATED GROCERS OF NEW ENGLAND in Pembroke is underwriting the School Investment Program at THE McAULIFFE-SHEPARD DISCOVERY CENTER for students in SAU 53 - Pembroke, Allenstown, Chichester, Epsom and Deerfield. The $3,000 sponsorship will provide students will free admission on field trips through next February.

July 4, 2009 - The Forum: News from the Towns Around Pawtuckaway
Paul Yergeau, Deerfield Community School Principal
Recently, Professor Krueckeberg, Ph.D. from Plymouth State University contacted me with great news that I was to share with Mrs. Edith Tatulis, a Deerfield Community School (DCS) fifth grade teacher! She has been nominated as the NH History Teacher of the Year. She is now a finalist for our state’s recognition. What an honor for her! And how proud of her are we? Very!

 

This award is coordinated through the Preserve America initiative and co-sponsored by the prestigious Gilder Lehrman Institute of American History, located in New York City.
 
Edith Tatulis shares her favorite Civil War book, Pink and Say, with 5th grade students at DCS.
The Institute of American History website can give you further information about their good work in the field of social studies education.  If selected as the NH Teacher of the Year, Mrs. Tatulis will automatically become our representative in the national competition. Edith’s creativity and imagination in addressing American History and literacy, evidence of thoughtful assessment of her students’ achievement, as well as her close attention to using primary source documents, artifacts and historic sites in her teaching, are the reasons for her nomination.
 
Preserve America is a White House initiative, started during President Bush’s administration, and was created for the purpose of encouraging and supporting community efforts to preserve and enjoy the nation’s cultural and national heritage. The overall goals of the Preserve America initiative include a greater shared knowledge about the nation’s past; strengthened regional identities and local pride; increased local participation in preserving the country’s cultural and natural heritage assets; and support for the economic vitality of communities. These are all values that DCS strongly supports in the daily implementation of our social studies curriculum.
 
As the next step, Mrs.Tatulis has submitted her philosophy statement, a sample extended project assigned to her students that demonstrates her creativity and decisions to provide an engaging curriculum for each student, as well as a short video where she has demonstrated a sample class project and her teaching practices. Congratulations to Mrs. Tatulis on being recognized for her hard work on behalf of Deerfield’s students. We all wish her the best of luck as she proceeds to the next step in this esteemed and rigorous competition.
 

 

 

 

 

 

Superintendents' Message January 2010
Our five districts of Allenstown, Chichester, Deerfield, Epsom, and Pembroke provide the pre-K -12 educational experiences for approximately 3500 students.  Pembroke Academy provides the high school experience for the communities of Allenstown, Chichester, Epsom, and Pembroke, while students in the Deerfield community travel to Concord for their high school program.  Read more...
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Map added 12/19/08

 

This page was last updated on 03/04/2010