Elementary School Conference Scholarship Announced

Extended Deadline: May 31st

Have you ever attended the NC Elementary School Conference? It’s an exciting 3-day event that will inspire you to return to your classroom energized and full of ideas for the coming year. If you haven't attended, perhaps you would love to go to the conference, but your school isn't able to pay your way. If that’s the case, you’re in luck! Read on to find out how you might receive free registration and two nights so that you can attend this year’s conference!

NCAEE is pleased to offer the Presidents’ Award again this year. This is a complete scholarship for conference attendance with a value of approximately $500.00! The award will cover the cost of one NCAEE conference registration and two nights lodging at the Embassy Suites Resort in Concord, NC (near Charlotte) where the event will be held.

This award is sponsored by the past presidents of NCAEE who enjoy using this as an opportunity to give back to the organization. The Presidents' Award will be given in the spring of each year to a deserving NC elementary educator who has never attended the Elementary School Conference. This year's deadline has just been extended to May 31st. Award winners will be announced by the middle of June.

Eligibility Requirements:

• First and foremost, the applicant must be a member of NCAEE and a NC resident who has never attended the Elementary School Conference before. If you are not a member, it’s easy to become one. You can join online and pay with PayPal right from the NCAEE website. 
• Second, the applicant must agree to attend the full conference from Sunday afternoon until Tuesday noon and agree to pay for his or her own travel and meals.
• Third, upon selection, the applicant must submit a letter signed by his or her school principal stating that the school will release the applicant for Monday, October 20th, and Tuesday, October 21st and that the school will provide a substitute.

To apply for the award, complete the online application form by May 31st. If you are not currently a member, be sure to become a member before completing the application. Just go to the Join NCAEE page on our website to sign up. The winning applicant will be selected by a committee of at least three former NCAEE Presidents.

Also, I want to thank all former NCAEE presidents who have joined me in offering this award. The organization appreciates their unending support of NC elementary educators with their expertise, finances and professionalism! Our presidents are shown on the right in the order of their service.

The Presidents’ Award is just one way that NCAEE supports elementary teachers in and out of the classroom! If you are not a member, visit our website and join now. When you visit our website, be sure to read about our two other awards. Our $1,000 scholarship is available for those seeking an advanced education degree. This year we will also be presenting $100 DonorsChoose gifts certificates to TEN lucky teachers!  Be sure to let your friends and colleagues know about our organization and the Elementary School Conference in October!

By Tricia Smith

Tricia Smith was the 2010 - 2011 President of NCAEE and she currently serves as an NCAEE Board Member. She’s been an educator for most of her life, first as an elementary teacher for 23 years and later as Reading First Consultant for 6 years. She’s now retired and continues to support elementary educators through her work with NCAEE.

We Created, We Connected, We Collaborated…

Region 6 Conference Reflection
by Lisa Pagano, Melissa Mooney & Nancy Betler

Our second annual NCAEE Region 6 Conference was everything we hoped it would be…and more!  Nearly 75 elementary educators from across our region gathered together on a Saturday morning at Lansdowne IB Elementary School in Charlotte, North Carolina for a fun day of learning, creating, connecting, and collaborating!

After months of careful planning and collaboration, our dedicated Regional Advisory Council arrived early on the morning of March 1st and began preparing for the event. Snacks were organized and drinks were refrigerated, the Presenters’ Lounge was set up, signs were posted, and all technology was checked to ensure our day would run smoothly. We wanted to set the stage for a positive experience for everyone involved.

The day began with an inspiring, uplifting, and informative keynote session by Kathy Bumgardner. She validated the crowd and kept them engaged and smiling throughout her entire keynote with her wonderful sense of humor, entertaining photos and slides, and anecdotes. You could hear the laughter emerging from our crowd down the hallway! She also shared fun, practical, and interactive strategies to help students and meet and exceed expectations for CCSS in English Language Arts.

The breakout sessions were amazing!  We could not have asked for a group of better presenters.  We had sessions on topics such as Using Interactive Notebooks in the Content Areas with Jaime Deming, a session that taught teachers how to effectively utilize interactive notebooks into the content areas to help you differentiate instruction to Expanding the Impact of Great Teaching with Blended Learning with Romain Bertrand, which shared how blended learning can allow you to reach more students in a personalized way.

We also had sessions on technology integration, balanced literacy, student leadership, and differentiation to meet the needs of all learners. Our interactive and engaging breakout sessions truly provided something for everyone. Our participants were able to customize their experience at our conference. Experience our conference through the eyes of one of our presenters and attendees, Gretchen Schultek. Click here to read her blog post and see the terrific pictures she shared!

We enjoyed a delicious lunch from Firehouse Subs while connecting with one another. Each participant was entered for a chance to win door prizes. The two big door prizes were a session with Kathy Bumgardner and a Kindle Fire! These lucky winners were so excited and can’t wait to take advantage of their prizes.

Thank you to everyone who made our 2nd Annual Region 6 Conference a great success!  We can’t wait to start planning for our 2015 Region 6 Conference! In the meantime, you can keep up with our region by following us on Twitter, joining our Facebook group, and checking out our website.

We are thrilled that the 11th Annual State Elementary Conference will take place in our region-in Concord (October 19-21, 2014)! Have you registered yet?  We hope to see you there!