Professional development grants awarded to faculty members

Darlington School awarded professional development funds to faculty members following a competitive grant application process. The winners were officially announced at the annual Brown Faculty Appreciation Dinner.

The Wood Fellowship has been awarded to two teams of faculty this year. Crystal Cleveland, world language department chair, will be developing, through project-based learning, an instructional framework and Darlington Portrait Gallery exhibit space, with the end goal of operationalizing the process of how a teacher uses innovative instruction to help students express themselves in an individual portfolio. Jennifer Sikes, Upper School English teacher, and Molly Jordan, second grade teacher, will be collaborating to create learner-centric classroom environments so that Darlington’s 21st century students become active, inspired participants in their own learning process.  Established in 2011 by Carla and Leonard Wood during the Second Century Campaign, the Wood Fellowship seeks to create a culture for professional growth and perpetual improvement in our faculty by funding scholarly activity of an exceptional character. Applicants submit an ambitious and rigorous proposal which must identify the critical steps of planning and execution, and clearly state how this project will benefit both students and faculty. 

Thatcher Faculty Development Fund
 
Established in 2014 by the Thatcher Foundation, these annual awards honor the memory of Samuel E. and Mary W. Thatcher, the parents of John Thatcher (’44). This fund provides grants to faculty or staff who wish to pursue professional development directly related to their duties. 

Karen Bennett - Hip Hop, Harper Lee, and the Geodesic Dome
Crystal Cleveland - International World Language Conference Presentations
BeBe Cline - The NCTM 2018 Annual Meeting and Exposition in Washington, DC
Jennifer Collins - Storycenter Digital Storytelling Workshop
Jody Deaton - Sensory-Cognitive Processing in Literacy Instruction 
Chris Earnest - Certified Wireless Network Professional
Chris Eberhart - Leadership/Math Conference
Julie Fine - Pre-K to 8 Curriculum Development for Reading/English, The Neuroscience of Reading Conference
Kimberly Human - General Music Curriculum Development
Tara Inman - TABS-NAIS Global Symposium 2018
Owen Kinney - Field Research at the University of Michigan, SumoRobots at DragonCon 2017
Rebekah Kinney - Ron Clark Academy Visit
Steve McConnell - Native American/Westward Movement Summer Expedition
Ben McVety - Pro Tools  Master Class 
Jennifer Moore and Kathy O’Mara - National Art Education National Conference
Kiki Rowsey - AP Annual Conference
Al Shorey - Anja S. Greer Conference on Math and Technology
Beth Wardlaw - International Society for Technology Conference 2017
Bebe Zazzaro - American Counseling Association Conference and School Visits

Professional Development Grants:

Chris Babb - MakerFaire in Duluth
Tammie Braden and Beth Pollard - Continuing Professional Education for CPA License
Jennifer Broome, Jonathan Broome and Annie Camp - The Midwest Clinic, International Band and Orchestra Conference
Justin Bruce - Southeastern Association of Learning Specialists
Carrie Eady - MISBO Human Resources Intensive
Derek Fine - Graduate School, Kennesaw State (MSIT)
Cindy Gordon - Emory University Continuing Education, Adobe InDesign
Melinda Holmes - Association of Independent School Librarians Atlanta Conference 2018
Mike Hudson - National Association of Biology Teachers National Conference
Hope Jones - Educational Record Bureau Fall Conference 2017
Thad Mathis - Graduate School, Kennesaw State (MED in Educational Leadership)
Ben McVety - American Choral Directors Association National Conference
Matt Peer - NAIS/TABS Conferences
Alicia Raymond - National Coaching Conference
Kim Tunnell - School Visits Focusing on the Arts
Beth Wardlaw - Georgia Educational Technology Conference