I’m madder than a snow bunny who made a wrong turn at Albuquerque over the fact that these weathermen today can’t get a forecast correct if they went back to the future and knew beforehand what was happening but weren’t smart enough to report it the right way in advance!
Look, you all know the ol’Screecher relies on a bunch of people on the Zenith in the living room to tell him when it’s safe to go outside without my famous ushanka or not, so you can sure as heck guess that I was beside myself this week when the sun came out on Tuesday afternoon!
Now, I don’t need to tell you it takes a heck of a lot of time to put snow tires and chains on Tornado, and once that’s done I make such a racket driving around the house that the misses demands I get outside for some fresh air and fresher bread.
And that certainly wasn’t a problem on Tuesday when, by mid-afternoon, not only didn’t I have to wear my favorite hat, I had to wear sunglasses!
So let’s chalk up another one for the weatherman, who continues to get it wrong no matter how many times I tell them to look out the window!
Now, while I get these dumb snow tires off my chariot, youse guys can read about BWECC!’s latest honoree, our educator of the year Erin Lynch! Woo-hooo! Listen to me while I cut-and-paste her bio in, and collect another check for a column well done!
“Erin Lynch is an educator who believes that all children have the potential to do great things if given the opportunity. She prides herself on creating an educational environment where students come first and expectations are high.
“She began her teaching career 15 years ago after graduating from St. Joseph’s College in Brooklyn with her first job teaching seventh and eighth grade Social Studies at St. Cecilia’s School in Greenpoint. Three years later she moved on to the Department of Education after earning her master’s in secondary education from St. John’s University. She later received a second master’s in school administration and supervision from Mercy College.
“Ditmas Junior High School became her home away from home for the following eight years. Erin went from teacher, to grade leader, and finally, to dean, rather quickly. She led the movement in curriculum writing to bring reading and Social Studies together to improve literacy rates in middle school. Her work got her recognized by the Teacher’s Network, earning its Set Tech Award.
“Her entire career has been focused on bringing technology into the schools, lives, and homes of economically challenged families. She was one of the organizers of a program partnership with JPMorgan Chase called Our Neighborhood Digital Education Community, or ‘OnDec.’ This brought digital literacy to hundreds of middle-school families by educating parents and installing free computers into the homes of every student at her school.
“In 2010 she had the pleasure of joining the team at Seth Low IS 96 as an assistant principal. Erin continued to work toward her goal of digital literacy for the students. With her new role as an administrator, she was excited about having the opportunity to bring technology into the classrooms.
“In 2011 at Seth Low Erin wrote and received a grant to become a Connected Learning school, which was a three-prong program to get school communities on the road to digital literacy. Every one of Seth Low’s students received free home computers. Families received a series of technology classes. Teachers were trained to learn how to bring technology into their classroom to differentiate instruction and improve student outcomes. Seth Low was given the opportunity to receive hardware and software support to sustain the program and create a digital home-school bond.
“As a result, she has raised expectations for her students and put them on a path of college and career readiness. Additionally, she received an ‘iLearn’ grant that trained and supported teachers to create blended learning classrooms. Seth Low quickly became a ‘Lab School,’ serving as a site where administrators and teachers from around the city can come to observe and learn how to introduce blended learning models of teaching into their schools.
“Last year Ms. Lynch became principal at Seth Low, and under her direction, students have made significant academic progress on New York State Exams. Every single teacher was rated ‘effective’ under the new teacher evaluation system.”
So join us on March 5 at our 54th gala at the fabulous El Caribe in honoring Principal Lynch and our other honorees. Call us at BWECC@aol.com for more info!
Screech at you next week!
