Teachers & Students
We all have wonderful, heart-warming stories about former students or colleagues with whom we keep in contact. When we share them, the "I had him/her!" or "I remember that!" are so enjoyable. So, this space is to share stories and contacts. We can also share other items of interest about teaching opportunities. Just email the Webmaster, and your anecdote will become part of this page.
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From Marilyn Gilbert: Alex Boyer, Manorhaven student and Schreiber alum, was here to cover rehearsals of La Rondine at the Metropolitan Opera House, where he was understudying the tenor role of Ruggero.
Alex's credentials include performances at the San Francisco Opera, Hawaii Opera Theater, Chicago Opera Theatre, West Edge Opera, and Livermore Valley Opera.
I had the joy of seeing him at my house. In this photo, I am listening to his heart beat!! He didn't use to be this tall!! Or I this short!
From Trish Rex (in the PWTA 25 Year Book):
How has teaching in Port Washington changed since you first joined the staff 25 years ago?
Teaching has changed in so many ways, the curriculum level has become so much more challenging for students in the elementary grades. Some of what was second grade work is now first grade work. But the biggest change beyond all others is the implementation of individual computers for students.The expectation for 5 and 6 year olds to learn and practice skills daily through a computer screen has its benefits. But it is also a challenge to balance the use of the computer with what we know about how a young child develops physically and emotionally. As a teacher of young children it is important to offer students many different modalities of learning. It’s important for primary teachers to remember that you can do more than the screen can. Your students will need you to help them develop communication and social skills, provide them with sensory-filled activities, build stamina to increase attention and reading skills and be fully present and attentive in order to learn.
What is your most rewarding experience in your 25 years of teaching? Or what is your fondest memory?
I think my most rewarding experience happens every year, when my students and I "transform into a community." When the students arrive they are nervous and awkward (and so am I!) and aren't sure what to expect. You work on routines, get to know each other, work through some friction as you navigate first grade together and then somewhere around October, you hit a stride together and become one strong team. You start to understand who they are as humans and they start to trust you. And from that point on you really set off on your learning journey together.
As you see it, how did your being a teacher make a difference to a particular student?
Over the years I have had several students who challenged conventional practices and required additional help from many sources to succeed. I am hopeful that I made a difference in the lives of these children. But more importantly it was these students who made a difference in my life. From these special students I learned patience, and how to push myself to go beyond what was expected of me or what I expected of myself. I had to dig deeper to find approaches that reached them. I had to use every resource I could find, especially the help of other colleagues.
Some days there were tears....from me.....there were moments when I questioned if I was doing everything I could and doubted if I could truly help. There were times when that quiet voice at the start of the year would whisper "I don't know if I can do this." But then somewhere along the way with repeated attempts as successes and failures occur, the tides turn and you establish rapport and work from mutual respect and together you reach your shared goals.
What advice would you give to a teacher new to Port Washington?
From years of lessons learned, here is my advice for new teachers:
*Be devoted to your craft, but make time for yourself.
*Understand that not everything is as it seems, with students, parents, or colleagues. Take time to learn and know the truth before you make a judgment or decision.
*Support each other. Everyone has a time when they are the leader and when they are the follower. Know when it's your turn to be each.
*Allow yourself grace. Some lessons will be the best ever and some will be a complete flop! When you know better, you do better.
*No matter what happened the day before, start each day fresh. It is completely true that you are the "decisive element in the classroom." (Haim Ginott)
*Never underestimate the power of taking a break and taking your students outside.
Discuss a teacher who has had an influence on you, personally and/or professionally?
When I started teaching at Manorhaven School I was 26 years old. I had some teacher training, a few years experience, and a passion for teaching my kids. But when I first started in Port I was lucky to have a group of smart, strong, women as my informal mentors. They taught me what it meant to be part of a team. They showed me the benefits of working in a collaborative community and the understanding that we were a family. They taught me the importance of supporting each other professionally and personally. They have all since retired (leaving me to take their place as one of the veteran teachers) but they absolutely deserve a place in my words. Kathy Reilly, Christine Vasilev, Pat Lynch, Jane Tafarella, and Marilyn Gilbert, thank you for your time, valuable lessons, and friendship.
Port Washington Retired Educators Scholarships for 2022 were awarded to the following Schreiber graduating seniors by Marilyn Gilbert at the recent Schreiber Awards Cermony:
Chloe Anderson - In honor of Chris Haring
Sadie Mandel - In honor of Dorothy McDougald
Alexandra Papa - In memory of Jim Lyman
Mollie Tashlik - In honor of Kathy Reilly
Vielka Bran Herrera received the Penny D'Antonio Memorial Scholarship
Congratulations to ALL!
Katie Lowes, Schreiber Class of 2000 (who began her acting career as Dorothy in Barbara Mayer's Guggenheim School 4th grade production of The Wizard of Oz over 25 years ago!) made her Broadway debut, along with her husband, Adam Shapiro, in Waitress, in July 2018. They both appeared in the show until October. Read all about it here. Katie starred as Quinn Perkins in Scandal on ABC. The show ended after seven successful seasons.
Barbara took some photos of Katie, first from the left, and her husband, Adam Shapiro, second from the left, during their curtain call after Waitress and backstage. See below...what an exciting day!
Congratulations, Katie...All in Port Washington, but especially your 4th grade teacher, are VERY proud of you!
From Marilyn Gilbert: Lin-Manuel Miranda went to Hunter College Elementary School, where the students were taught a song about Martin Luther King written in 1985 by music teacher Mrs. Barbara Ames. "Miranda never forgot Ames-"our amazing elementary teacher"- and her inspiring song. So for MLK Day this year, he quietly enlisted 50 of his former classmates to sing it in her honor....Watching it (Ames) now recalls, "I could hardly breathe. There were my dear, beloved students singing the song I taught them so long ago. It was, she says, "the greatest gift ever.""
To see the performance, and hear about its history, go to bit.ly/lin_manuelMLK_song.
Jeanine Tesori, former Port student, won a Tony Award for Best Original Score for Fun Home at the 2015 Tony Awards! Jeanine was the speaker at our one of our spring luncheons. She gave her Port teachers a great deal of credit for her success!
Mary Anne Cariello and Tessa Jordan have done an unbelievable job compiling our PWTA history from 1932 to 2005. Mary Anne and Tessa, past presidents of the Port Washington Teachers Association, are shown presenting the Port Washington Public Library with a copy of the 75-year history of the Association. Accepting the new addition to the library is director Nancy Curtin.
The book, in limited printing, is available for purchase for $15, proceeds going to the Port Washington Teachers Association Scholarship Foundation. Just a bit of the book is available at this link, and the total volume is a beautifully bound 122 page history. To buy a copy, please send a check payable to the PWTA Scholarship Foundation to Tessa Jordan - her address is in the PWRE Directory. Orders will be filled while quantity lasts. Thanks, Mary Anne and Tessa!
Archived issues of The Schreiber Times - from Hannah Fagen:"I'm a 2013 Schreiber grad, and a few classmates and I worked to create an archive of old copies of high school newspapers from Port Washington, with the generous support of the school and the historical society. It's not completely done, and there were gaps in our collection, but feel free to browse and enjoy!"
From Claudia Horowitz Bartner, Class of 1977:
To All My Teachers,
I am not sure why I woke up so nostalgic this morning, thinking and wondering about my wonderful teachers at Daly, Sousa, and Schreiber. Maybe it is because I am finishing my 28th year as Speech Pathologist/Preschool Special Education Chairperson and realize that teachers work so hard but are so unrecognized for their instrumental effect on children's lives. Maybe it's because as I get older and my parents get older, (my mother Barbara Horowitz is a retired Port Washington teacher from Main Street/Sousa Elementary), I get more reflective. Maybe it's just because I want to recognize some of the very special people who helped me learn and grow. I loved school and I loved learning. In every school I had special teachers. My fond memories go way back and are not limited to 1970 in 5th grade in Daly School with Mr. Huckabee, and continue through Sousa with Mr. Gutlener, Mr. Acevedo, Mr. Gober, and Mr. Granato, and then onto high school with Mr. Booth and many more. I just really want to say thank you, and that you did make a difference in my life and filled my life with wonderful memories.
Now THIS is what retirement looks like and the weather that we love at Cape Cod. Here are Sally Reinhardt, Judy Keller, Lois Baslaw, Gail Femmel & Elaine Berman.
Dick Feingold was contacted by his former music student, Brandon Woolf. Brandon let Dick know that he completed his Ph.D. in Theater and Performance Studies from U.C. Berkeley. He currently lives in Berlin, and is the co-founder of two public performance ensembles – Shakespeare im Park Berlin and the UC Movement for Efficient Privatization (UCMeP). Congratulations, Brandon!
David Lobell, Schreiber graduate and son of former Weber teacher, Nancy Lobell, was a 2013 recipient of the prestigious MacArthur Fellowship. When Nancy found out about her son's honor, she shared this on Facebook, along with the link to the articles about the winners: "We are excited for David and proud of his accomplishments and hard work. I personally want to acknowledge and thank the many great teachers he had in Port Washington, including Mary Ann Leonard, Don Fish, Dick Boyle, Barbara Mayer, and Elaine Labrocca." Read about David here: Stanford News, New York Times, Port Washington Patch, and MacArthur Foundation. Another accolade for David: David Lobell named one of 100 'leading global thinkers' Most impressive! We are all proud of David, Nancy!
Barbara Mayer had a most memorable visit with her former Main Street School student, Jody Litwin Paul, and her children. Jody and her husband, Brian, were in the same third grade class. What a delightful trip down "memory lane!"
*How to Make Retiree Scholarship Fund Contributions: Make your check out to PWRE Memorial Scholarship Fund and mail it to Geri Ganzekaufer, 51 Longview Road, Port Washington, NY 11050. Donor and donee will be notified. Thank you.