NEW PALTZ — The SUNY New Paltz School of Education will honor seven exceptional teachers in the Mid-Hudson Valley for outstanding and effective work with students by presenting to them the Dean’s Awards for Excellence in Teaching. The awards will be presented at 4 p.m., Sept. 26, at a ceremony to be held at The Terrace Restaurant at SUNY New Paltz.
Since 1984, the School of Education at New Paltz has collaborated with area school districts to recognize teachers in the Mid-Hudson Valley for being superior in their fields and endeavors. This year, these seven distinguished teachers represent districts in six counties of the Mid-Hudson Valley.
“We are very proud to honor these excellent teachers,” said Dr. Robert J. Michael, dean of the School of Education. “It is our hope that the Dean’s Award will inspire students, parents and school administrators to recognize the efforts and dedication of all the teachers in the Mid-Hudson Valley.”
As recipients of this award, each of the seven teachers will receive an honorary appointment as an adjunct clinical professor within New Paltz’s School of Education. They will also be recognized by the Mid-Hudson School Study Council at a ceremony later this year.
Nominations for outstanding teachers are made by school principals and district superintendents. The awards are given by the Office of the Dean of Education at SUNY New Paltz based on recommendations from a review committee of education professionals. The winners are teachers who have demonstrated their commitment to teaching, to excellence and, most importantly, to children and their education.
Recipients of the 2002 awards are: Marcie Davis (Ulster County), Susan Gottlieb (Sullivan County), Gary Rubin (Ulster County), Anne Benjamin (Putnam County), Alissa Perreault (Dutchess County), Eileen Kane (Orange County), and Bonnie Kaplan (Rockland County).
Editors note: The following information was generated from materials of recommendation from each recipient’s school district administration.
Marcie Davis teaches nursing for Ulster County BOCES (grades 11 & 12). Experience: Eight years (Ulster County). Davis is a Career & Technical educator at Ulster County BOCES. She personally exemplifies the intelligent, well-informed, well-prepared health care professional; and she is a master teacher of nursing. During her tenure at BOCES, Davis has served as a role model for literally hundreds of men and women seeking careers in health occupations. Davis effectively melds care and compassion with firm, high-performance expectations in the classroom and hospital setting. She delivers instruction based on a demanding curriculum to students with diverse academic abilities. The position of Licensed Practical Nurse Instructor is extremely challenging. In this position, Davis has earned the respect of students, nurses, doctors and hospital administrators as well as her colleagues and administrators. She possesses a passion for the profession of nursing that generates the sense of commitment from her students. Davis maintains certificates as a medical-surgical nurse and is pursuing her master’s degree in nursing.
Susan Gottlieb is a K-2 reading teacher and literacy coordinator at George C. Cooke Elementary School. Experience: 22 years (Sullivan County). Gottlieb teaches and works as literacy coordinator in the Monticello Central School District. Gottlieb pursued her passion to teach reading by completing additional course work to become the district’s first Reading Recovery teacher. She then enrolled in Lesley University Literacy Collaborative as a literacy coordinator. Gottlieb is now teaching a 40-hour course to another 20 district colleagues. Her expert modeling, support, classroom visit and after-school course have drastically changed these teachers’ beliefs about teaching children to read. Her efforts are paying off as more and more students become better readers. On the recent fourth-grade ELA test, all of the Monticello district’s students scored above the desired New York state level.
Gary Rubin teaches N-6, 7-12 social studies and 5-8 computer in the Ellenville Middle School. Experience: 27 years (Ulster County). As a teacher, Rubin is by far among the best. He gives of his time generously. He works with adults, senior citizens, faculty, students at all levels of learning and administrators, sharing his expansive knowledge and expertise of technology. Rubin is sincere and generous in sharing his expertise with SUNY’s student teachers and Inclusion Program students. He worked individually with student teachers to instruct them in the use of Smart Board and whole class Internet research technologies. Rubin is always interested in meshing his instruction with the objectives and goals of those with whom he works. For the spring 2002 semester, he designed a series of workshops to introduce all district student teachers and Inclusion Program students to various IT classroom applications.
Anne Benjamin teaches 9-12 humanities, photojournalism, studio art, advanced placement art, drawing and painting at Brewster High School. Experience: 31 years (Putnam County). Benjamin has worked in the Brewster Central School District for more than 27 years. During this tenure, she has touched the lives of many students in the district and demonstrated dedication to and unflagging enthusiasm for her work. She is willing to take that “extra step” with integrity. She is innovative and embraces new ideas that challenge her students to provide them with many rewarding experiences. One of her students writes, “Mrs. Benjamin has influenced me to expand my love for art. Prior to her class, I was convinced that I couldn’t draw. Had I not had her for a teacher, I may be equally discouraged with art today. Mrs. Benjamin surpasses any definition of ‘teacher,’ for she goes above and beyond what needs to be done, all to create a love for art for her students.”
Alissa Perreault teaches eighth grade science at Wappingers Junior High School. Experience: 15 years (Dutchess County). Perreault works tirelessly and imaginatively to provide her junior high students with real-life activities that make science come alive. She teaches her students daily life skills appropriate for middle level education. As the teacher in charge of the science department, Perreault is fair and compassionate with her colleagues and has encouraged interdisciplinary teaming. She used her grant- writing skills to secure funds from the Dutchess Country Arts Council to have a guest artist work with a team of students in her classes. In 1992, she received the Outstanding Science Teacher Award from the Science Teachers Association of New York. She earned the Certificate of Special Congressional Recognition Award in education from the Museum of the Hudson Highlands. Since then her students have attained awards in the Science Olympiad and she authored the Dutchess County Water Resources Curriculum Project through the Dutchess County BOCES. Outside the classroom, Perreault has been involved with the Wappingers Creek Project in conjunction with the Institute of Ecosystem Studies in Millbrook.
Eileen Kane teaches seventh-and eighth-grade mathematics at Warwick Valley Middle School. Experience: 30 years (Orange County). Kane has dedicated the past 30 years to the pupils and staff of the Warwick Valley Central School District. In these three decades, Kane has taught mathematics to middle-level students in grades 7 and 8. She has been actively involved in building-level teams including teacher interview teams, administrator recruitment teams, and numerous curriculum and instruction committees. Most recently, Kane has served as the “scoring trainer/leader” for the New York State Grade 8 Mathematics Assessment. In the words of one of her students, “I believe that Mrs. Kane’s kindness and enthusiasm influenced me in my choice of career. Through Mrs. Kane’s inspiration, I acquired an appreciation for mathematics and will be entering my senior year at Marist College with a double major in accounting and finance with a minor in economics.”
Bonnie Kaplan teaches 8-12 English and drama at Pearl River High School. Experience: 27 years (Rockland County). Through the years, Kaplan has established herself as a leader in the Pearl River High School English Department. Her love of literature and writing has enriched the English experience for all her students. She designs engaging, creative lessons that encourage students of all ability levels to take responsibility for their learning and to excel. Last year, Kaplan’s monologue project, “Discovering Voice – Creating Character Through Monologue Writing” was selected by the New York State Council of English Teachers to be presented at their meeting in Albany. She is a “teachers’ teacher” as well as a classroom teacher. Recognizing her talent, the Pearl River assistant superintendent for curriculum asked her to teach an in-service class for her colleagues based on her successful experience with monologue projects. Kaplan is also co-director for the Hudson Valley Writing Project, a program for teachers from all grade levels interested in strengthening the teaching of writing in their own classrooms. In this project, she models for her colleagues the same creativity and passion that she brings to her high school classroom.
Note to editors: Media wishing to attend this event should contact the SUNY New Paltz Public Affairs Office at 257-3245 by Sept. 25 for directions and parking instructions. Please arrive at the event by 4 p.m. and see the dean of the School of Education, Robert Michael.
