BROCKWAY, Pa. (EYT) – The Brockway Area School District’s last school board meeting before school starts had updates on retirements, hiring, donuts, and Germany.
The board accepted, with regrets, the retirement of First Grade Teacher Christine Worokey. Worokey has been with the district for 35 years, according to Superintendent Jeff Vizza. Boardmember Robert Cherubini said that Worokey was his student teacher back in his teaching days.
“She is a remarkable person,” Cherubini said. “She made a huge impact on her students.”
Worokey’s retirement will be effective December 21.
Mariah Alanskas, Weston Hrin, and Eric Stawecki at the Brockway School Board.
While one teacher says goodbye to Brockway, another one says hello. The board hired Spanish teacher Tara Deemer for the 2018-2019 school year, replacing a retirement that happened at the end of the last school year.
The district also had some football coaches leave their positions at the end of the last season. To fill those positions, the district hired Ryan Benson, Bill Edwards, and Gene Painter. The district also hired co-coaches for the junior varsity soccer team, Phil Esposito and Zach Puhala.
Student representative Cecilia Manno gave the board a quick update of August events going on at the school. She focused on the band activities, which included playing the National Anthem at an Altoona Curve game on August 23. She added that the farmers’ market is still going at the school on Fridays. The main reason she suggested going was for the donuts. That got the attention of the board, with Vizza saying he’s had some of the donuts. Cherubini said that the vendor introduced cream-filled donuts on Friday and they were very good.
Eric Stawecki, Brockway’s German language teacher, talked to the board about how the students did on the German-American Partnership Program’s trip to Germany over the summer. This year, six students went to Hann. Münden for three weeks. Hann. Münden has been a city since around the thirteenth century, and some of the historic buildings are nearly 600 years old, according to Wikipedia.
“The trip was pretty great,” Weston Hrin told the school board. “Their culture is very similar to ours. We got to see how they live, which was amazing.”
“I think this creates lifetime friendships,” Mariah Alanskas said. “My German student and I were sending packages to each other all year, and I hope to go back to visit her.”
Students in the partnership connect with German exchange students when those students come to Brockway. The students host the Germans, but when they get the chance to go over to Germany, the roles are reversed.
Alanskas’ mother, Christine, said that this trip can change a child’s life.
“Mariah is my second child to do this,” she said. “My son went when the program started. He now travels outside the country for his job. I don’t know if he would have done this without the program.”
The school board meets again September 11.
GAPP students on the trip to Germany. Pictured: Mariah Alanskas, Austin Bullers, Weston Hrin, Kayla Jamison, Taylor Little, and David Nagele IV and Chaperones Eric Stawecki and Christine Alanskas
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