Six who make an impact in No. Brunswick schools
Winners of Gov.'s Teacher Award for 2007 honored by district officials
BY JENNIFER AMATO
Staff Writer

Six educators from North Brunswick were honored with the Governor's Teacher Award last week. Pictured left to right: Superintendent of Schools Brian Zychowski, Linwood Middle School Dean Sally Neal, North Brunswick Township High School art teacher Colleen Gahrmann, Livingston Park Elementary media specialist Julie Gamble, Parsons Elementary first-grade teacher Joyce Dreger, Judd Elementary School academic support teacher Dottie Osborne, John Adams Elementary fifth-grade teacher Christine Altmann, and Assistant Superintendent Geri Margin.

NORTH BRUNSWICK - Six educators were presented with the Governor's Teacher Award on May 23 during a special presentation at the Board of Education office.

"We are celebrating great teachers and great administrators - the best in Middlesex County and the best North Brunswick has to offer," Superintendent Brian Zychowski said. "I thank my fellow administrators for selecting such a great group of candidates."

Christine Altmann, who began student teaching in North Brunswick six years ago, now teaches fifth grade at John Adams Elementary School.

"I have a love of learning and I like helping kids in discovering they can do it," she said.

She said the most rewarding part about being a teacher is seeing a student pull through a challenge and finally understand a concept. She said she learned little teaching tricks from being with special education students for a time.

"This feels really amazing. I'm a hard worker in general. I stay late and do what I do. It feels good to be recognized - but I certainly don't need to be recognized - but it feels nice," she smiled.

Principal Barbara Tylka read excerpts from some of Altmann's nomination letters, which included descriptions of her as an instructional leader, innovative, a well-oiled machine, respectful to students, and ensuring that no child is left behind. She also commended Altmann's commitment to the children in offering support tutorial sessions as early as 8 a.m. and as late as 4:30 p.m. on most school days.

Joyce Dreger, a first-grade teacher at Parsons Elementary School, has spent 22 years of her 26-year career teaching first grade.

"Joyce- you can almost look at her and see it, see the light that says first grade. Joyce is first grade. ... She's a woman who brings the very rich, personal life she leads ... and brings all that into her classroom so her kids' lives are enriched by the life she lives and the wonderful skills she brings to the kids," Principal Bruce Rothenberg said.

Dreger uses a collection of puppets to help project her lessons, since she feels children are more open to expressing themselves through the arts, including music and poetry. She does a lot of modeling to encourage children to be on their own and she tries to concentrate strongly on having respect for others. She said she has a love for learning that she tries to pass on to her students, teaching them to learn from their mistakes, become problem-solvers, take risks and share ideas, all while encouraging each other.

"I don't even have words for it," she said of her first-time Teacher of the Year award. "You do this job because it's what you chose. To have other people say they're thankful and they think you deserve that, and you don't even think of yourself in that way, is a wonderful experience."

Julie Gamble, a media specialist at Livingston Park Elementary School, has the library set up with a beach umbrella and chair, surfing music and ocean sounds.

"Why?" questioned Principal Peter Bowman. "Because we're generating interest in summer reading. She had a book, [the students] were sitting out on beach towels, and they were having a great time. This is indicative of what she does."

"She really generates an interest in the library," he continued. "Kids really love coming to the library and digging into these books because Julie gives great recommendations and picks out books for them to read."

Gamble began as a public librarian and then came to North Brunswick in 1985, inspired to enter the media specialty field by her high school librarian who became her mentor.

"I try to help with research and reports, which are very important, but I also stress that reading can be fun," she said.

She said her activities include a read-a-thon in the winter, a yearly visit from an author, and weekly book suggestions based on the students' interests.

"It makes me feel very proud that the staff I work with are the ones who nominated me for this award, and to work with all of them is really an honor," she said.

Dottie Osborne taught in the Gifted and Talented program in the district for 12 years before becoming an academic support teacher at Judd Elementary, spending 26 years total in North Brunswick. She finds the reward of her new position is the one-on-one attention she can provide to her students, because "sometimes all they need is a little extra push and support to get back on track."

"There are so many wonderful, wonderful teachers in this district that it's overwhelmingly flattering; however, I feel like there are other people who are wonderful teachers, so it kind of makes a piece of me feel like almost any teacher could have won this award because there are so many wonderful teachers. Although I appreciate it, I feel I am one of many and I am very, very honored," she said.

Kathy Cave, the director of elementary instruction at Judd, created a top-10 list, a la David Letterman, as to how you know you are a top teacher. Citing reasons such as sharing knowledge, developing a sense of self-worth in students, being a cheerleader for the school and being optimistic and positive, Cave said the No. 1 telltale sign is having the name Dottie Osborne.

Sally Neal, the current White House dean at Linwood Middle School, who will be retiring this year after a 35-year career, began in special education physical education, became a science teacher and then moved on to the mediation program. This year she garnered her third Governor's Award, after receiving the other two for her work in the science and mediation fields.

"To receive this is just unbelievable. It really was a shock and made me really proud," she said. "You don't realize the impact you have on educational growth, but it's also about the growth as people; you don't always know that."

Assistant Principal Patricia Van Langen polled her colleagues for the best adjectives to describe Neal, and the answers included fair, honest, respectful, democratic, flexible, perceptive, loyal, meticulous, personable and patient.

"Teachers of her caliber are few. Professionals of her caliber are few. People of her caliber are few. There is no question many of us will grieve her loss when we return to school in September," Van Langen said.

Colleen Garhmann was described as "trailing ceramic dust" through the hallways of the North Brunswick Township High School. She has been an art teacher since 1980, coming to North Brunswick six years later. Since then, she has taught ceramics, which was the concentration of her master's degree, as well as drawing, painting, sculpting and photography.

"I like arts and I like people, so I figured this was a good way to combine the two," she said. "Over the years, I've built friendships as well as student-teacher relationships."

Peggy Sica, the director of fine arts at the school, said that Garhmann takes a raw piece of clay, i.e., a student, and molds the child into a wonderful, respectful, artistic person who appreciates the aesthetics of art. She described her as being even-tempered, unflinching in her standards, and an active-learning model in her enjoyment of the arts, the environment and Japanese raku firing.

"This is quite an honor and quite a surprise," Garhmann said. "I'm tickled pink."

Even more impressed than the teachers was Zychowski, who got to see the quality of North Brunswick education firsthand.

"My time [with the district] has been short, but I am very, very impressed and very refreshed in a new sense of my being here with the teachers," he said. "I thank you, teachers, for doing what you do. This award will not change your life, because you will continue to do what you do, but this award tells you have changed so many lives."