 |  |
M.L. Honors and Awards Committee
Minutes from meeting of 11/8/2004
Connecticut Association of SchoolsMiddle Level Honors and Awards Committee
Minutes
November 8, 2004
In attendance: Rochelle Schwartz, Norma Posocco and Earle Bidwell
1. Fall Celebrations
a. Teacher of the Year: Norma Posocco reported on a very nice reception for Judy Abrams at the Leonard Tyl Middle School in Montville. The afternoon reception was attended by two state representatives, the superintendent of schools and educators, students and parents. The Norwich Bulletin was represented by a reported and photographer. A feature story appeared on the front page of the newspaper.
b. As a follow-up to last month’s discussion about a writing sample from teacher of the year candidates, it was concluded that each would be asked for a one page reflective piece with broad latitude in the choice of topic. It could be one’s philosophy of teaching, an enlightening moment or a glimpse of ones beliefs and personality. The common thread would be that it be ‘from the heart” and personally reflect the candidate.
c. Principal of the Year: A meeting of the CAS Celebrations Committee and representatives of the middle and elementary levels concluded that celebrations for CAS principals and assistant principals of the year were inconsistent and sometimes redundant. In an effort to create one opportunity to honor all awardees equally, and to support an event that all friends, colleagues and supporters could attend, it was decided to make the Celebration of Distinguished Administrators, the Farmington Club event, the one vehicle to recognize honorees at all levels. The event will be moved to a larger venue and there will be no restrictions on attendance.
d. Implications: The middle level will support this endeavor and not pursue a separate event in the future.
2. Beyond the Celebrations:
a. This year’s teacher of the year has been a keynote speaker at the Middle Level Leadership Conference, keynoter at NELMS Unified Arts Conference and will be honorary co-chair of the Scholar/Leader Banquet. The school of the year hosted the MOYA press conference and will present at the CAS Winter Conference. Additionally, they will be encouraged to write for the “Climate” issue of IMPACT. The principal of the year will co-chair the Scholar/Leader Banquet and will be asked to write a reflective piece for the CAS Bulletin.
b. It was concluded that rather than highly structure the utilization of the talents of various award winners, the committee should “play to their strengths.” There might be times when journal articles might be more appropriate than presentations, or presentations more appropriate than keynote addresses.
3. School of the Year Program Review: The new clarifying language for the school of the year application that was requested at the last meeting was reviewed, slightly revised and confirmed.
Previous winners may not apply for a period of five years and clearly must show significant change from the previous application.
Finalists (schools receiving site visits) must wait until the third school year following the visit before re-applying.
Schools not selected as one of the two finalists are welcome to re-apply at anytime.
.
a. Review of Initial SOY Application
i. The committee affirmed past practice and determined that, due to time constraints and other factors, finalists should be limited to two middle schools, and those schools should be visited on the same day. To facilitate a clear delineation among entries, readers would be instructed to use only whole numbers in scoring the various items and, in the event of a very close point total, to be able to cite evidence in the application supporting their numbers.
ii. A review of the initial application was begun. It was suggested that the language of the eight bullets be examined to be sure that they reflect “This We Believe, Successful Schools for Young Adolescents” as well as the referenced work, “Turning Points 2000.” Norma Posocco volunteered to work with Earle Bidwell to develop a draft for the next meeting. A cautionary note was that whatever the outcome, the assessment tool should reflect any adjustments.
b. The visitation procedure will be the primary topic of the next meeting. It was concluded that the committee is most effective when each member of the team has an assignment, questions are developed to ferret out vital information, and that not all members of the committee should meet with all groups of the school community.
Next Meeting: January 10, 2005
It was determined that there was no need for a December meeting
