By: Rebecca Miller
The administration and students of Swanton Middle School could not be prouder of their Special Education teacher, Mrs. Emily Tomanski. As a quiet person who just loves what she does,
Tomanski didn’t really want any recognition, but they couldn’t help it and held a reception for her with a giant cookie stating in cursive, Congratulations Emily” with a big paw in the middle saying, “Bulldog Proud.”
“I am honored to receive the Franklin B. Walter Special Education Teacher Award this school year. I am grateful to work with a dedicated group of teachers and staff, and to be supported by great leadership who always put students first.”
“It’s a team effort and I’m proud that Swanton Middle School was recognized for doing great things. I’m looking forward to the virtual celebration in March,” Mrs. Tomanski said in an email interview.
Middle School Assistant Principal Leigh Pancoast said in a phone interview that without knowing that they were both sending in applications for Tomanski to be chosen, both Pancoast and Student Services Director Sharon Marvin recommended her to NWOESC (Northwest Ohio Educational Service Center). “She is so humbled by it,” Pancoast said.
NWOESC, who chooses the yearly recipients, gives the Franklin B Walter award to students and teachers in the Northwest Ohio four county area, including Fulton, Defiance, Williams and Henry counties.
They have already sent two people to interview Tomanski and will be doing a Virtual Ceremony on March 8, 2021 and it will probably be posted on the District and Middle School Facebook pages.
Pancoast said that the school administrators and students feel sad that it has to be virtual instead of held in person, but with the COVID pandemic that is just the way things are.
Some of the statements made about Mrs. Emily Tomanski in the application sent in by Pancoast, included things such as how she:
•makes meaningful and relevant connections between lesson content and other disciplines
•purposely plans assessments and differentiates assessment choices to match the full range of student needs, abilities and learning styles.
•works very hard every day to help her students, builds relationships with her students, and motivate her students.
•uses understanding each learner’s prior knowledge and supports their development. She makes meaningful and relevant connections between lesson content and other disciplines. She plans and sequences instruction that reflects an understanding of the important concepts and processes in the district/state curriculum. She provides multiple pathways for learning.
•demonstrates an understanding of the purpose and value of learning about the students’ backgrounds. She does an analysis of student data and preferred learning styles to accurately connect the data to instruction.
•explanations are clear, coherent, and precise.
•uses well-timed, developmentally appropriate strategies and language designed to actively encourage creative and critical thinking, including the appropriate use of questions and discussion techniques.
•accurately anticipates confusion by presenting information by clarifying content before students ask questions.
•matches strategies, materials, and/or pacing for the students’ individual needs, to make learning accessible and challenging for all the students in the classroom. She uses effective, independent, collaborative, and whole-class instruction to support individual learning goals and provides varied options for how students will demonstrate mastery.
There were many other aspects about her that were pointed out in the applications but you get the idea. Mrs. Emily Tomanski is one of those teachers who will always be remembered with affection.
Everyone needs a teacher like that. At the school, besides being a special ed teacher, Tomanski also “Just this year, founded, implemented, and is chairing the middle school data team.
She founded this team after realizing the school had a major need for data analysis and data analysis implementation. Because of Mrs. Tomanski our students are now improving on their STAR data.
Also, our middle school teachers are seeing the importance of data analysis to improve our students learning gaps. This is an incredible improvement for Swanton Middle School,” according to Mrs. Pancoast.
Pancoast completed her reasons for why Mrs. Tomanski should receive the award, with these comments, “Besides being an excellent teacher and going above and beyond all of her teaching responsibilities, Mrs. Tomanski builds relationships with her students that make them want to learn and be the best they can in her classroom.
This is what sets her high above the rest. Her ability to get down to a student’s level and truly feel what they are feeling is beyond words. If you ever get a chance I highly recommend you sit through one of her lessons. You will be amazed.
Mrs. Tomanski also co-teaches with our math and language arts teachers and their teamwork and engagement level are miles above the rest. She uses instructional materials and resources that are aligned to instructional purposes, are varied and appropriate to ability levels of students, and actively engages students in ownership of their learning.”
CONGRATULATIONS to Mrs. Emily Tomanski of Swanton Middle School!
Rebecca can be reached at publisher@thevillagereporter.com