Barbara Williams
MACSA Vice President and Chair of the MACSA Scholarship Committee
Lehigh Christian Academy ~ Allentown, PA
Each year MACSA awards several scholarships to educators (teachers and/or principals) in Christian schools who will be taking graduate courses during the summer months. The Lord has continued to bless this effort and each year we award a scholarship to several candidates.
This year we had many applicants and awarded eight scholarships. The educators chosen answered questions about their educational background, current responsibilities, future plans, and the impact that the coursework would have on their professional growth.
We trust that we will be able to continue to offer these scholarships to teachers and administrators dedicated to Christian education and the students they serve.
Tim Connor
Summit Christian Academy
Michael Stell
Lancaster Christian School
Jane Seaman
Keystone Christian School
Deborah Thomas
Carlisle Christian Academy
Brenda Leibundgut
Carlisle Christian Academy
Cheryl Bogardus
Greater Grace Christian Academy
Andrea Graybill
Christian School of York
Alice Latour
Calvary Academy
Friday, August 7, 2009
Monday, August 3, 2009
Dealing with Difficult People and Dealing with Criticism
At we prepare for another school year, take a few minutes to read these posts by Dr. Barrett Mosbacker as orginally posted on his blog, The Christian School Journal.
How To Deal Effectively with Conflict and Difficult People
How Not to Be Offended When Criticized
Great reminders for teachers and administrators!
Enjoy the rest of your summer and prayers for a smooth opening of the 2009-2010 school year!
How To Deal Effectively with Conflict and Difficult People
How Not to Be Offended When Criticized
Great reminders for teachers and administrators!
Enjoy the rest of your summer and prayers for a smooth opening of the 2009-2010 school year!
Monday, June 15, 2009
Lead On, O King Eternal
Nancy R. DeHaan
MACSA Executive Director
Friday night was high school graduation at the Christian school where I serve. All in all – the graduation was pretty traditional and fairly typical.
MACSA Executive Director
Friday night was high school graduation at the Christian school where I serve. All in all – the graduation was pretty traditional and fairly typical.
- Processional
- Opening Hymn
- Student Speeches
- Student Awards
- Graduation Speaker
- Granting of Diplomas
- Moving of the Tassel
- Closing Prayer
- Recessional
Our graduating class was 27 students – leaving us and embarking on a new chapter in their lives. Of those 27 young men and women, 13 had been at the school since Kindergarten with another 2 joining them in First Grade! That’s over HALF of the class! The graduation speaker (a pastor dad of one of the graduates) commended this group of parents for the sacrificial commitment they made in order to provide a Christian education for their children.
At our school, the processional, opening hymn and recessional are the same each year – a tradition. Pomp and Circumstance for the processional, O Worship the King for the opening hymn and Lead On, O King Eternal for the recessional. (I heard whispers in the Teachers’ Room that perhaps THIS year, we should break with tradition and play the Hallelujah Chorus as the recessional! Just kidding!)
I have attended many graduations at the school – and each year, something different solidifies for me why those of us who minister in Christian schools are SO committed to Christian education. The “moment” might be a tidbit from one of the student speeches, a truth from the graduation speaker, or a heartfelt “Amen” as the class is prayed over by one of our faculty members. This year, it was the recessional.
At the end of the ceremony, the students move their tassels and are officially graduated! They are no longer students – they are now alumni. We - Moms and Dad, teachers, staff members, everyone in the audience - have invested much time and prayer into the lives of these young men and women. Now, tassels moved, they leave the stage, leave the gym, leave our school - and we pray that the spiritual and academic lessons we have taught and modeled will “stick” and we pray with all our hearts that they will continue to follow God and trust Him “in all their ways.” It is our prayer that our newest graduates will say with boldness:
Lead on, O King eternal,
The day of march has come;
Henceforth in fields of conquest
Thy tents shall be our home.
Through days of preparation
Thy grace has made us strong;
And now, O King eternal,
We lift our battle song.
Lead on, O King eternal,
Till sin’s fierce war shall cease,
And holiness shall whisper
The sweet amen of peace.
For not with swords’ loud clashing,
Nor roll of stirring drums;
With deeds of love and mercy
The heavenly kingdom comes.
Lead on, O King eternal,
We follow, not with fears,
For gladness breaks like morning
Where’er Thy face appears.
Thy cross is lifted over us,
We journey in its light;
The crown awaits the conquest;
Lead on, O God of might.
Tuesday, May 26, 2009
Hang in There!
Dr. Tim Sierer
MACSA President
Headmaster, The Christian Academy
Growing ‘tired or weary’ as we draw close to the end of another school year is not uncommon nor an indicator that we are somehow sub-par or sub-standard. It is simply an unpleasant fact and part of the teaching profession. Come mid-May we are physically, and in some cases emotionally, spent from a year of investing ourselves into the lives of our students. Frankly, I would be more concerned if you as a classroom teacher had reached this point in the year and were not feeling that way. I would then ask, “What have you been doing?”
As we drag ourselves out of bed each morning to face another day, we can do so knowing that our strength comes not from ourselves but from the very Creator of the universe. We can face the day knowing that He will provide the strength, energy and wisdom to deal with whatever lies before us. Because of Him, we are able to finish this year strong knowing that He has enabled us for each task that we encounter. What better way to end a school year than to know that we are spent, physically and emotionally, because of investing ourselves into the lives of our students.
HANG IN THERE - the blood, sweat and tears of today will result in great joy when we see what God has done with those seeds planted into your students during this year!
MACSA President
Headmaster, The Christian Academy
“Do you not know?
Have you not heard?
The Lord is the everlasting God,
The Creator of the ends of the earth.
He will not grow tired or weary,
And His understanding no one can fathom.
He gives strength to the weary
And increases the power of the weak.” Isaiah 40:28-29
Have you not heard?
The Lord is the everlasting God,
The Creator of the ends of the earth.
He will not grow tired or weary,
And His understanding no one can fathom.
He gives strength to the weary
And increases the power of the weak.” Isaiah 40:28-29
Growing ‘tired or weary’ as we draw close to the end of another school year is not uncommon nor an indicator that we are somehow sub-par or sub-standard. It is simply an unpleasant fact and part of the teaching profession. Come mid-May we are physically, and in some cases emotionally, spent from a year of investing ourselves into the lives of our students. Frankly, I would be more concerned if you as a classroom teacher had reached this point in the year and were not feeling that way. I would then ask, “What have you been doing?”
As we drag ourselves out of bed each morning to face another day, we can do so knowing that our strength comes not from ourselves but from the very Creator of the universe. We can face the day knowing that He will provide the strength, energy and wisdom to deal with whatever lies before us. Because of Him, we are able to finish this year strong knowing that He has enabled us for each task that we encounter. What better way to end a school year than to know that we are spent, physically and emotionally, because of investing ourselves into the lives of our students.
HANG IN THERE - the blood, sweat and tears of today will result in great joy when we see what God has done with those seeds planted into your students during this year!
Thursday, May 21, 2009
An end of the year check-up – looking back, looking forward
As originally posted on Nuturing Faith blog (May 19, 2009)
Click here to view the original post.
For most of us it’s time to put things back in the cupboards and close the book on this school year. As a school leader, it is good to reflect back on the school year, and worthwhile to ask yourself some reflective questions:
Click here to view the original post.
For most of us it’s time to put things back in the cupboards and close the book on this school year. As a school leader, it is good to reflect back on the school year, and worthwhile to ask yourself some reflective questions:
- Did I move my school closer to meeting our mission this year? What evidence do I have? How do I know?
- How did I as a leader improve the school this year? Did my words and actions encourage faith and motivation to learn in my staff and students?
- Did I settle for only visible improvements of bricks and bucks or did I also improve the less visible aspects such as the quality of instruction, the distinctiveness of the curriculum, the quality of instruction, and the bondedness of the staff and parent community?
- Was my focus on how successful my school was or how much students and staff understood how to be bringers of shalom?
- What must I commit to in the next school year?
Recently McKinsey & Company put out an interesting report “How the World’s Best-Performing School Systems Come Out on Top.” In the report they make this summative statement: “The available evidence suggests that the main driver of the variation in student learning at school is the quality of the teachers.” They go on to say that high-performing schools consistently do three things well:
- Hire the right teachers – “The quality of an education system cannot exceed the quality of its teachers.”
- Develop teachers into effective instructors.
- Put in place systems and targeted support to make sure that each child benefits from excellent instruction.
According to their synthesis of research, each principal’s time in effective schools is focused on instructional leadership. In our schools spiritual leadership is even more important. What implications does this have as you make plans to foster spiritual and instructional leadership growth in your school next year?
Wednesday, May 20, 2009
Summer Break at the Philadelphia Zoo
Did you know . . . the Philadelphia Zoo offers a FREE Summer Break pass to CLASSROOM TEACHERS (public and private)?
Get Your Summer Break Pass!
Click here to register. Registration is online only, and ends on June 30, 2009. (Please allow 2-3 weeks to receive your pass.)
Teacher Passes are available for classroom teachers only, and are not transferable.
Please note: In order to receive free admission, you must show your Teacher Pass, along with your teacher ID, union card, or school district pay stub, every time you visit the Zoo.
Your Summer 2009 Teacher Pass is valid for your Zoo admission only. There are no discounts or parking privileges associated with this program.
Your Summer Break Teacher Pass can help you plan your fall field trips and see all the new animals and adventures your students will encounter. As America’s first zoo, and one of the region’s foremost conservation education organizations, we are sure that your students will enjoy an enriching and fun-filled experience that they will remember for years to come. Thank you for your support of the Philadelphia Zoo. Enjoy your visit!
Get Your Summer Break Pass!
Register online before June 30, 2009.
This pass, along with a teacher ID, union card, or school district pay stub, entitles teachers to receive FREE Zoo admission anytime from June 1 through August 31, 2009, Monday - Friday only. Come as many times as you’d like all summer long!Click here to register. Registration is online only, and ends on June 30, 2009. (Please allow 2-3 weeks to receive your pass.)
Teacher Passes are available for classroom teachers only, and are not transferable.
Please note: In order to receive free admission, you must show your Teacher Pass, along with your teacher ID, union card, or school district pay stub, every time you visit the Zoo.
Your Summer 2009 Teacher Pass is valid for your Zoo admission only. There are no discounts or parking privileges associated with this program.
Your Summer Break Teacher Pass can help you plan your fall field trips and see all the new animals and adventures your students will encounter. As America’s first zoo, and one of the region’s foremost conservation education organizations, we are sure that your students will enjoy an enriching and fun-filled experience that they will remember for years to come. Thank you for your support of the Philadelphia Zoo. Enjoy your visit!
Monday, May 18, 2009
PLAN to Finish Strong!
Nancy R. DeHaan
Executive Director, MACSA
About twenty years ago, my family and I were preparing for a 700 mile “cross country” move – from Michigan to New Jersey. We had about a month to pack and get ready for “moving day.”
I remember those first few days and weeks of packing. The boxes were chosen with care – not too big (they would be too heavy) but not too small (who wants to haul bunches of little boxes). Packing tape, rolls of bubble wrap and color coded “room labels” were ready and waiting! Each box was packed with care, carefully taped and accurately labeled – not just with the color coded room label, but with an “inventory list” taped to the outside of the box! We were organized – and we were moving right along! We didn’t ask for much help – we knew how we wanted it done, so “Thanks, but no thanks” was often the response!
And then . . . the days were passing faster than we were packing! We had deadlines to meet and the moving day was not very flexible. So . . . the unthinkable happened, we began just putting “stuff” in boxes (and size, any shape – if it was cardboard, it was being used) and labeling them as “Miscellaneous – Kitchen” or “Miscellaneous – Kid Stuff”. Color coded? Who needs color coded labels anyway!
Well – we got the packing (and moving) done – but I still think there might be a few missing boxes!
Interesting story, but . . . what’s the point?
Do you remember those first few days and weeks of teaching? The lesson were chosen with care – not too long (the kids had been out of school all summer and needed to be eased back in) but not too short (you still had to fill a FULL day of school). The supplies were ready: workbooks were new, no dog-eared pages in the textbooks and the lunchboxes didn’t have the “lived in” look (or smell). Your lesson plan book was up-to-date with the specifics of each lesson carefully written in the appropriate square, including the appropriate page numbers and supplemental activities!
And now . . . the days are passing faster and the kids are already “shutting down”. There is still SO much to cover and the last day of school is not very flexible (you can stop praying for a snow day this time of year!) By now – your lesson plan book (if you can find it) is full of arrows, sticky notes and an occasional coherent activity –and you LOVE filling in those squares with the words FIELD TRIP, SPECIAL ASSEMBLY or EDUCATIONAL VIDEO!
Are you about ready to do the “unthinkable” in your classroom? Are you doing “stuff” for the sake of the stuff - just to “finish” the book? Are you letting “group projects” replace your teaching (you HAVE to have time to grade those book reports, right)?
Don’t let the end of the school year just “happen.” Be proactive in your planning – yes, PLANNING. The end of the school year will still be hectic and the kids will still be spending more time talking/thinking about summer vacation than the lesson at hand - unless your “lesson at hand” is about summer and summer vacation – planning a road trip (geography, math, English). With creative planning – you can finish strong and you won’t spend the summer wondering if there were any “missing boxes” from this school year!
Executive Director, MACSA
About twenty years ago, my family and I were preparing for a 700 mile “cross country” move – from Michigan to New Jersey. We had about a month to pack and get ready for “moving day.”
I remember those first few days and weeks of packing. The boxes were chosen with care – not too big (they would be too heavy) but not too small (who wants to haul bunches of little boxes). Packing tape, rolls of bubble wrap and color coded “room labels” were ready and waiting! Each box was packed with care, carefully taped and accurately labeled – not just with the color coded room label, but with an “inventory list” taped to the outside of the box! We were organized – and we were moving right along! We didn’t ask for much help – we knew how we wanted it done, so “Thanks, but no thanks” was often the response!
And then . . . the days were passing faster than we were packing! We had deadlines to meet and the moving day was not very flexible. So . . . the unthinkable happened, we began just putting “stuff” in boxes (and size, any shape – if it was cardboard, it was being used) and labeling them as “Miscellaneous – Kitchen” or “Miscellaneous – Kid Stuff”. Color coded? Who needs color coded labels anyway!
Well – we got the packing (and moving) done – but I still think there might be a few missing boxes!
Interesting story, but . . . what’s the point?
Do you remember those first few days and weeks of teaching? The lesson were chosen with care – not too long (the kids had been out of school all summer and needed to be eased back in) but not too short (you still had to fill a FULL day of school). The supplies were ready: workbooks were new, no dog-eared pages in the textbooks and the lunchboxes didn’t have the “lived in” look (or smell). Your lesson plan book was up-to-date with the specifics of each lesson carefully written in the appropriate square, including the appropriate page numbers and supplemental activities!
And now . . . the days are passing faster and the kids are already “shutting down”. There is still SO much to cover and the last day of school is not very flexible (you can stop praying for a snow day this time of year!) By now – your lesson plan book (if you can find it) is full of arrows, sticky notes and an occasional coherent activity –and you LOVE filling in those squares with the words FIELD TRIP, SPECIAL ASSEMBLY or EDUCATIONAL VIDEO!
Are you about ready to do the “unthinkable” in your classroom? Are you doing “stuff” for the sake of the stuff - just to “finish” the book? Are you letting “group projects” replace your teaching (you HAVE to have time to grade those book reports, right)?
Don’t let the end of the school year just “happen.” Be proactive in your planning – yes, PLANNING. The end of the school year will still be hectic and the kids will still be spending more time talking/thinking about summer vacation than the lesson at hand - unless your “lesson at hand” is about summer and summer vacation – planning a road trip (geography, math, English). With creative planning – you can finish strong and you won’t spend the summer wondering if there were any “missing boxes” from this school year!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
Posts
