RCDS Teachers Travel the World to Expand Knowledge for the Classroom

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As students learn new subjects every school year, many teachers see new faces but curriculum can only vary so much. While students are inspired to return to school with the anticipation of being challenged by concepts advanced from the previous year, teachers must also find inspiration each September.

In an effort to inspire both students and faculty at every education level, The Rumson Country Day School provides faculty with the opportunity to take advantage of a Faculty Enrichment Program. Thanks to past charitable donations, an endowed fund has been established for faculty enrichment. Annually, faculty members can apply for a compensated grant to travel somewhere they believe would enhance the curriculum of their specific field, whether it be studying ancient Rome through European museums, attending film school in Los Angeles, or completing various workshops.

For second grade teacher, Dovey Valerio, a grant took her on a community service trip to Uganda and Tanzania in the summer of 2009. When founders of ChangeALife, Jean Semler and Dave Thelen, visited RCDS to present their program and partnership between RCDS and the School of Migyera in Uganda, Valerio immediately wanted to get involved with their mission to influence children and families of Uganda through education.

“I wanted to become a part of that growth and vision,” says Valerio of the ChangeALife mission. “I proposed that it would benefit The Rumson Country Day School if I visited the School of Migyera in Uganda. I wanted to see the children that the families of RCDS sponsored,” continued Valerio describing the school uniforms, books, and classroom materials that have been donated to the School of Migyera.

For her young students, Valerio uses what she learned in Uganda to help instill important values.

“This year we will learn about the differences in opportunities, lifestyle, community living, and overall responsibilities of each family member,” describes Valerio of how her experience has directly affected her curriculum.

RCDS wood shop teacher Walter Treacy participated in a weeklong course this past summer at The Wooden Boat School in Brooklin, Maine.

“The trip itself exceeded my expectations. It was what I learned and the people I met that reignited what I’ve been doing at RCDS for so long that is special to me,” said Treacy of his experience.

Treacy was enrolled in a fine-wood making course where all work was handmade without the use of machinery. One of the best skills he took away from the course was the precise process to sharpen tools to show students and enhance the efficiency of the classroom.

Usually an opportunity found for professors at colleges and universities, the Faculty Enrichment Program has been serving as an asset to the classrooms of RCDS since 2000. Because of the donated funds for faculty enrichment, the program has been able to sustain the unpredictable economy while similar programs at the college level have been forced to cut back.

The result is a truly inspiring experience exposing faculty to different cultures and ways of life they may have only read about in textbooks.

The Enrichment Program is an opportunity for faculty to further their own education while they become more inspired than ever to share their love for the subject with students. Their passion for the field they teach every year is rekindled to bring the most engaging lessons to the curriculum. Personal photographs decorate classrooms while first hand accounts illustrate stories that cannot be described in a book.

A teacher’s new approach to the curriculum brings lessons to life to provide a unique learning experience for students. Not only do students benefit from the faculty’s increased awareness of a subject, but also learn that you can never stop learning and growing in knowledge.