N.H. educators skydive for a cause: Seacoast education news

NH educators skydive for a cause 

CONCORD — On Wednesday, teachers from throughout New Hampshire and New England joined Commissioner Frank Edelblut of the New Hampshire Department of Education about 12,500 feet in the air.

Led by the Golden Knights, known as the U.S. Army’s Parachute Team, Edelblut and a group of educators gathered at the Lawrence Municipal Airport in North Andover, Mass., where they embarked on a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity far from their office desks and classrooms.

Each participant was paired with a soldier from the Golden Knights who joined them for a tandem skydiving jump. The purpose of the Tandem Camp event, which spans three days, is to provide soldiers with an opportunity to demonstrate the positive aspects of teamwork, courage, discipline, training and excellence within the operational force.

“The U.S. Army provides students with a number of life-building opportunities, including numerous educational benefits like tuition assistance for postsecondary education, and leadership and career development opportunities, to name a few. It was an honor to be here today and skydive with some of our great soldiers who are committed to bettering their academic and career paths while serving as role models for our youth,” said Edelblut.

To help promote recruitment efforts and bring awareness to the U.S. Army’s structure, discipline, leadership building and teamwork skills, several educators took the leap on Wednesday. In addition to Edelblut, the tandem jumpers included: Matthew Dee, an English teacher at Pembroke Academy; Molly McCrum, a French teacher for the Concord School District; Michael Nicolosi, a school resource officer for Oyster River Middle and High Schools; Christine Clark, administrative assistant at Oyster River High School; and Karyn Laird, administrative assistant for special education at Oyster River High School. In addition, Dan Morris, headmaster at Pembroke Academy, will take his flight on Thursday.

Dee, who launched the Armed Services Vocational Aptitude Battery and Enlistment Club at Pembroke Academy, is also enlisted as an Army Reserve medic. Dee said Wednesday’s jump was a great way to learn more about the ongoing recruiting efforts so that he can share that information with students interested in pursuing a career in the U.S. Military.

“These events showcase the diversity of our U.S. soldiers, their skills, backgrounds and various careers. This is a great way for the community to experience, up close and personal, the professionalism of our soldiers while they are actually airborne,” said Alyssa Salmon with the New England Army Recruiting Battalion. “This is also a great way to build and strengthen our presence in the region.”

SEED elects new board members

DOVER — The Seacoast Educational Endowment for Dover (“SEED”), a nonprofit organization dedicated to lifting academic excellence in Dover public schools, recently elected three new board members, each to serve an initial two-year term.

The board welcomed Audrey Gladu, a principal data engineer for Liberty Mutual. In addition to her work with SEED, Gladu participates in a Seacoast philanthropy committee, facilitates a volunteer tech initiative within a non-profit, and is a member of the Society for the Protection of NH Forests.  She earned her Bachelor of Science in Business from Sacred Heart University, with other certificates in Project Management and Personal Training.

Jennifer Fried is a realtor with Great Island Realty and a classical musician. A mother of triplet sons, Fried previously served on the board of the Seacoast Area Mothers of Multiples (SAMOM) organization as well as the board of the Portsmouth Symphony Orchestra. She is a graduate of Northwestern University and the Eastman School of Music.

Craig Alie is currently the Chief Revenue Officer for Computershare, a global financial services firm. He has extensive prior experience leading corporate strategy, sales, marketing and client relationship teams. A native of Dover and a graduate of Colby College with a bachelor's degree in Economics, Alie and his wife Diane live in the Seacoast area and are the parents of two sons.

“We are so excited to have these dedicated community members sharing their time and talent with SEED,” said Erin Tellez, Chair SEED Nominations Committee. “I am consistently impressed by the caliber of people SEED attracts, that speaks directly to the good work of the entire board.”  In addition to these new members, SEED accepted a fresh officer slate for 2022-2023: Tobey Arkwell, President, Mindy Marcouillier, Vice President, Jason Gaskell, Treasurer, and Julie Black, Secretary. Other members include: Stacey Angers, Markus Brave, George Dailey, Deb Fennesey, Andrea Kersha, Lori Nollet, Maureen Staples and Erin Tellez. Special thanks to outgoing members Natalie Koellmer and Pat Duffy for their years of service.

SEED is celebrating its tenth anniversary promoting the teaching and learning of 21st century skills to create a legacy of academic excellence in Dover public schools. To date, more than $275,000 has been granted to educators to purchase tools and curriculum. To learn more about SEED, visit www.DoverSEED.org.

SAT bootcamps offer free test prep for NH students

CONCORD — New Hampshire students are invited to participate in two upcoming SAT prep courses, at no cost, to prepare for the November and December SAT exams.

Schoolhouse.world announced two, four-week bootcamps for students planning to take upcoming SAT tests: Oct. 8 to Nov. 4 (for the Nov. 5 SAT exam); Nov. 5 to Dec. 2 (for the Dec. 3 SAT exam).

Each bootcamp will include eight sessions with 75-minutes each of test prep with a certified, online tutor with Schoolhouse.world. Students will work in a cohort with students of similar abilities for their tutoring sessions, which will focus on mastering skills, building strategies, time management and completing full-length practice exams. Sessions will highlight both reading and math SAT practice test questions.

“This is a great opportunity for New Hampshire youth to take advantage of free SAT prep courses. These small-group SAT tutoring sessions can help students of all abilities find the motivation, knowledge and confidence to reach their goals,” said Frank Edelblut, commissioner of education.

On average, students who complete the bootcamp often improve their test score by about 90 or more points across both sections, according to organizers. NHED was the first state in the nation to partner with Sal Khan and Schoolhouse.world to provide free tutoring to its high school students.

To pre-register for one of the sessions, visit SATbootcamp. This program also serves as a research study around the efficacy of SAT tutoring, meaning students may be asked to complete occasional surveys, short exercises and participate in focus groups about their bootcamp experience; full details will be provided upfront during the sign-up process.

Seabrook Elementary celebrates with fall festival

SEABROOK — Seabrook Elementary School students celebrated the start of the fall season with a Fall Festival. Already named, “The First Annual”, this day had students, staff, and community members smiling from start to finish. Students joined their grade-level peers outdoors for collaborative scarecrow-making throughout the morning. The sun was shining, the creativity was flowing and teamwork was in full force as students designed dozens of unique scarecrows with materials donated from Savers, the PTO, and local families. The Seabrook Fire Department was there to lend a hand in the assembly of these new scarecrow friends which are on display on the Seabrook Elementary grounds.

“The music was cheerful and awesome, I loved playing the instruments,” said fourth grader Bella Carter. “All of our classes were together and we enjoyed it with all of our friends together,” added fourth grader Skylar Way.

As a culmination of all of the creative efforts from the morning, students and staff were invited back outdoors to view and celebrate the morning’s event. The SES community enjoyed delicious fall treats from Applecrest Farms including fresh apple cider and cider donuts, sharing in the taste of the season.  Local musician Skip had everyone dancing and moving.

“It was great to see students working together to build their scarecrows and use problem solving skills,” said School Counselor, Yi-Fu Han. “Students are already looking forward to the next event.”

This event is part of the School Leadership team’s goal to increase community partnerships and create school-wide traditions.  Each month the Unified Arts team, along with other school teams, will host a community-building event with these goals in mind.  In November teachers will jump into turkey costumes for the second annual Turkey Trot. Other planned days include themes such as: National Outdoor Education Day, STEM Day and Celebrate Seabrook Day.

Fourth grader Leah Pollard said, “I enjoyed building scarecrows and I was able to be my real self dancing in the fall air.”

This article originally appeared on Portsmouth Herald: N.H. educators skydive for a cause: Seacoast education news