We had a great meeting last Friday. Sorry, many of you missed it.
We started off by recognizing Dawn Penkalaas our teacher of the quarter. Dawn teaches second grade at Harding University Partnership School on the Westside of Santa Barbara. Dawn was introduced by the Principal of Harding, Veronica Blinkley.
This is what Veronica said about Dawn in her nomination:
Dawn Penkala, simply put, is an outstanding teacher. Her dedication to each and every student, year after year has been a gift to not only our students but to our school and community. It is not unusual for Dawn to teach a class of 25 second graders whose abilities range from Kindergarten to 6th grade and, without exception, she challenges them all. She uses inquiry to provoke wonder and collaboration to share knowledge and language. Inevitably, she creates a team of students who lift each other up and her student outcomes, year after year, exceed most others. She is a motivator and a coach with a firm but fair demeanor that makes her a warm demander. She celebrates students’ successes, no matter how small, with specific praise. She will often send them to the office to share with the principal and they always walk into the office just beaming with pride. She is dedicated to the art of teaching and to every child that comes through her door.
Both Dawn and Veronica are obviously dedicated educational professionals who care deeply about educating the youth of our community. Dawn was presented a plaque recognizing her award and a check for $1,000 to be in her classroom.
Thanks also to Steve Keithley, from the County Office of Education who helped select Dawn and who has been our partner in the teacher awards for many years. And thank to Dan Herlinger and Dave Shea for organizing the presentation.
Next, Past President Michael Baker interviewed new member Glen Adams. We learned several interesting facts about Glen. He worked for the same company in Santa Barbara for 54 years, likes the Beatles more than the Rolling Stones, and fortunately, is a Rams and Dodgers fan.
Our program for the day was a presentation by Steve Epstein and Andrew Salzman about the state of literacy instruction in our community. They discussed the new programs being implemented in the Santa Barbara School District based upon the “Science of Reading” approach, and the need for more teacher training, establishing metrics to track results, and the need to hold District officials accountable for results. An important topic for sure.
Just a reminder. No meeting this week. We’ll see you again on Friday, November 1.