Treats for Troops!!!!

LMEA teamed with Philadelphia Treats for Troops to gather and pack 30 boxes of necessities for US military personnel stationed in Afghanistan. The goods were collected at Harriton and Lower Merion High Schools over the course of a week and then transferred to the LMHS cafeteria on November 22, 2011. Once there, the goods—everything from foodstuffs and candy to personal toiletries and reading materials—were sorted and prepared for transport. The team assembled boxes and filled them with a mix of the different items. Numerous volunteer high school students wrote personalized messages for inclusion in each 40lb. care package. The team of workers consisted of a number LMEA members, LMEA family members, the students, and Philadelphia Treats for Troops staff. An active member of the military was also there to share information as well as help pack. It was an excellent night of service for all involved.

LMEA will be organizing and leading two more efforts this school year. The next one will be led by our six elementary schools and will coincide with Valentine's Day, and the third one will be conducted by our two middle schools around Memorial Day. LMEA intends to lead triannual collections on behalf of Philadelphia Treats for Troops next school year too.

This program was a HUGE success and we have heard back from one of our recipients. To hear how your donations and time help cheer him up please read his email below.

Dear Freddie and Grass roots Organization,

My name is Msg Kenneth Schaeffer serving overseas with the 728th CSSB. I would like to take this time to thank you and your organization for the special package you sent to me.I shared this package among all the soldiers that work for me on our special mission.It's organizations like yours that keep the morale of the soldiers high. I would also like to thank the young students and faculty from the Harriton High School and Lower Merion High School for the treats they sent and the kinds words in letters that I appreciate more than words could ever say. I read every letter and would like to thank every student for taking time out to do this for soldiers like me. I'm proud to serve my country and its people like you and your organization that keep me in good spirits.I would also like for you to say thank you to General Gronski for me.I know the General knows how each and every soldiers enjoys the special thought that is put in to these packages you send to us. May God Bless you and your organization for being so kind to all the soldiers serving this great nation.

Sincerely Greatful
Msg Kenneth Schaeffer

LMEA members participate in the 3rd annual Alex's Lemonade Stand Lemon Run

On November 13, 2011, LMEA members from various schools and departments were part of the 2,000 runners and walkers who participated in the Alex's Lemonade Stand Foundation's 3rd Annual Lemon Run. Participants completed a 5K course through Fairmount Park to raise money to help find a cure for pediatric cancer. The Foundation started 11 years ago when Alex Scott, a Penn Wynne Elementary School student, organized the first lemonade stand.

For more information and some more pictures from this great event click here.

Pictured are, from left to right: Betty Stallings, Transportation; Maureen Morrison and Dayana Melendez, Penn Wynne Elementary School (who organized the LMEA team); Lisa Guidetti, Penn Wynne Elementary School; Marie Sweeney and Mike Acerba, Bala Cynwyd Middle School. 

Harriton's Mescolotto, LM's Reed featured as "Top High School Teachers" in Main Line Today

Harriton science teacher Lee Mescolotto and Lower Merion social studies teacher Tom Reed are featured in the October education issue of Main Line Today Magazine, which profiles 12 of the area's top high school educators. Mescolotto is praised for his ability to make challenging subjects more approachable and creating a classroom environment that inspires enthusiasm and a love of learning among students. Reed is noted for his unyielding dedication to students both in the classroom and beyond the school day, especially through his work as sponsor of the school's largest community service organization (buildOn).

Notable quotes in the article:

"We're presenting complex information here, but we're doing it in a way that makes even the most boring aspects of our curriculum something the students can be enthusiastic about. I love the material, and I want them to love it as much as I do."

-- Lee Mescolotto

"Education is not just about textbooks and computers. The classroom is a place for young people to develop their self-confidence, to have positive and rewarding experiences with peers and teachers, to learn the importance of helping and having compassion for others and to understand the importance of the role they play in society."

-- Tom Reed

To view each teacher's profile, click here. The complete article can be found in the print issue of Main Line Today, available on newsstands in October.

Merion's Penny Glackman earns Presidential Award for Excellence in Mathematics and Science Teaching

Merion School third grade teacher Penny Glackman has earned the nation's highest honor for K-12 science and math educators. President Barack Obama announced last week that Glackman was one of 85 recipients of the Presidential Award for Excellence in Mathematics and Science Teaching.

The Presidential Award for Excellence in Mathematics and Science Teaching is awarded annually to outstanding K-12 science and mathematics teachers from across the country. The winners are selected by a panel of distinguished scientists, mathematicians, and educators following an initial selection process done at the state level.

Winners of this Presidential honor receive a $10,000 award from the National Science Foundation to be used at their discretion. They also receive an expense-paid trip to Washington, D.C., for an awards ceremony and several days of educational and celebratory events, including visits with members of Congress and the Administration.

President Obama has committed to strengthen science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) education and prepare 100,000 effective science and mathematics teachers over the next decade. These commitments build on the President's "Educate to Innovate" campaign, which has attracted more than $700 million in donations and in-kind support from corporations, philanthropies, service organizations, and others to help bolster science and technology education in the classroom.

"The teachers we honor today have demonstrated uncommon skill and devotion in the classroom, nurturing the young minds of tomorrow's science and math leaders," said President Obama. "America's competitiveness rests on the excellence of our citizens in technical fields, and we owe these teachers a debt of gratitude for strengthening America's prosperity."

Glackman, a classroom teacher at Merion since 1990, is best known for her passion for aerospace and exploration. Last month, she was one of seven teachers nationwide to win the 2011 American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics Foundation (AIAA) Foundation Educator Achievement Award, one of the most prestigious honors in the U.S. for STEM teachers. The award is given every two years to precollege educators who have demonstrated exemplary efforts in exciting students in grades K–12 about the study of mathematics, science, and related technical studies, and in preparing them to use and contribute to tomorrow's technologies.

Students in Glackman's class connect to the real world in myriad ways, through visits from astronauts, engineers, authors and academicians, annual Space Day celebrations, video conferences with NASA, simulated space missions, the design and launch of model rockets, and other hands on activities.

Continually involved in professional development over the years, Glackman has attended programs sponsored by NASA, the Civil Air Patrol and the National Space Biomedical Research Institute. She is a member of the National Science Teachers Association Aerospace Committee, and is educator liaison for the Philadelphia Section of American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics. Glackman received the National Space Society's Award for Excellence (earning a personal congratulations from Buzz Aldrin) and has been published in AdAstra.

Glackman is a member of the Lower Merion School District Science Task Force, Green Council, and Cultural Proficiency Cadre. She has been a Technology Mentor and workshop leader and has presented at conferences in science and mathematics, locally and nationally. She holds a B.A. in psychology from the University of California, Berkeley, Magna Cum Laude, Phi Beta Kappa. She received an M.A. in child development and education from Bryn Mawr College.

Glackman becomes the third classroom teacher in District history to earn the Presidential Award for Mathematics and Science Teaching. Former LMHS science teacher Carl Duzen won the award in 1986. Former Gladwyne teacher Kathleen Horstmeyer won in 1996. Current Supervisor of Secondary Science & Math Joey Rider-Bertrand earned the honor in 2006.

Additional resources:

• For Penny Glackman's official "Meet the Awardees" page on the PAEMST website, click here.
• For the official White House press release, click here.
• For the National Science Foundation fact sheet about the award, click here.
• For coverage in Ardmore Patch, click here.

Ashley McClain publishes her first book

A little bit about Mrs. McClain: Mrs. McClain graduated from The Pennsylvania State University with a Master's Degree in Education with an emphasis in Elementary School Counseling in the spring of 2008. While in graduate school, Mrs. McClain also became a National Certified Counselor (NCC). Mrs. McClain attended Penn State for undergraduate school as well, from which she graduated with a Bachelor of Arts Degree in Psychology in 2005.

Prior to working in Lower Merion, Mrs. McClain was an Elementary School Counselor at Anna B. Pratt Elementary School in North Philadelphia.

Mrs. McClain is currently splitting her time between both Penn Wynne Elementary School and Gladwyne Elementary School. At Penn Wynne, she works with second and fifth grades; at Gladwyne, she works with kindergarten and second grade. Mrs. McClain is at Penn Wynne on Wednesdays and Fridays; she is at Gladwyne on Mondays, Tuesdays, and Thursdays.

Throughout her work as an Elementary School Counselor, Ashley McClain has worked with children on a variety of personal/social issues, such as enhancing social skills, developing healthy coping skills, and facilitating the development of a positive self-concept. Mrs. McClain's work to help a particular child overcome perfectionism was a significant component of her inspiration to write this book. It is hoped that this book can be used to help teach children the invaluable lessons that it is okay to make mistakes, and most importantly, that no one is perfect.

Additional resources:

• Not so perfect Polly write up on the SunGazette.com, Click here.
• Purchase Not so perfect Polly at Barnes and Noble, Click here.
• Purchase Not so perfect Polly at Amazon, Click here.

LMSD's John Welsh wins bus safety competition, team places third overall

LMSD bus driver John Welsh (pictured, far left) is the winner of the 2011 Montgomery-Bucks School Bus Drivers Safety Competition. Eighty-two school bus drivers from 11 Bucks and Montgomery County school districts competed in the event -- commonly known as the "School Bus ROAD-EO" -- held last week at Central Bucks South High School. The event includes a 12-part bus inspection, written exam and comprehensive driving test. During one part of the test, drivers had to navigate through a 100-foot-long gauntlet of poles that narrowed until there were just two inches of clearance on either side of the bus. The overall winner (team and individual) is determined by the highest combined score in the twelve event components. A Pennsylvania state trooper was among the team of judges who observed and rated each bus driver.

Welsh earned his third individual title at the competition and has established himself as one of the most accomplished drivers in the area.

"I try to take each obstacle one at a time," said Welsh. "If I do good or bad, I try to move onto the next obstacle and do the best I can on it."

Welsh also noted that the competition is a reminder of the special bond he shared with his father, who passed away three years ago.

"My father came to these competitions to watch me for many years," Welsh explained. "Whenever I placed in one and my name was called, he loved it - we are both John. He would tell me afterwards how much he liked hearing his name called. I always say 'Let's do this, Dad' before I start out. He is my navigator from above."

Lower Merion placed third in the team competition, missing second place by just one point. Lower Merion's team included Welsh, Ted Dubbs, Beth McGowan, Kim Bringhurst and Leo Alfonso. Dubbs, in just his first year with the District, placed sixth. McGowan placed tenth. Dubbs and McGowan will join Welsh at the Pennsylvania State Competition to be held in June in State College.

"Again this year, our team exemplifies the outstanding quality of all Lower Merion school bus drivers," said LMSD Transportation Foreman Rich Segal. "We are so proud of our Road-EO team and we wish John, Ted, and Beth good luck and continued success at the state competition."

Additional resources:

• Lower Merion school bus driver keeps skills sharp by scoring at national competitions 10-7-11, Click here.
• Lower Merion bus driver is a safety champ 9-28-11, Click here