SPARKS – “It was worth giving up a Saturday for!”

Members of the HCEA SPARKS class of 2008 are pictured with members of the IPD Committee and HCEA President Ann DeLacy. Participants put in an eight hour day on Saturday but got a lot out of it. According to Laurie Ressler, Media Para Educator at Veterans Elementary, “Every new employee to the school system needs to hear the information HCEA shared with us today. Thanks so much – definitely worth taking a Saturday to attend and learn!”

Amy Hagler teaches kindergarten at Bollman Bridge Elementary and said, “This workshop really filled in the gaps from my roles in the classroom to how to obtain a masters degree and even how to improve my credit! I will definitely recommend this in the future”.

HCEA’s own Matt Martini, math teacher at Oakland Mills High, got things rolling with his presentation on classroom management. He started off by having participants work in teams to unleash a rubber ball! Participants commented that they liked Matt’s “energy and presentation … you rock!”

Dr. Mark Stout, HCPSS Coordinator for Secondary Social Studies worked with the group on best practices. Everyone enjoyed the discussion, the only complaint being they wished there could have been more time!

Ken Gill, University Partnership Liaison, and Lois Witte from the Office of Human Resources provided useful information regarding cohorts and certification issues. Lots of questions and answers!

Representatives from the HCTA Federal Credit Union provided terrific information on how to earn and keep a good credit rating, how to obtain your free credit report and more! And they gave away free prizes!

The last speaker of the day was MSTA Attorney Jim Whattam. Jim gave a serious – but also at times hilarious – overview of job related legal issues. Jim’s years of insight helped educators understand they need to pay strict attention to their interaction with students in the classroom!

Overall the participants seemed pleased that they had given up their Saturday to spend a day with HCEA. Trish Woods from Veterans Elementary summed it up when she said, “Everything said really will benefit you 100% in life!”

If you would like to be included in our next SPARKS training contact Mary Jo Neville at HCEA at mjneville@mstanea.org or 410-997-3440.