Branches

Our thanks to the UNH Cooperative Extension partners who bring community and science education into focus for TRRE Residents. Claes Thelemarck -  STEM Education Field Specialist, Carroll County Claes has been teaching TRRE Graduates a science inquiry class as a part of TRRE induction. He also was instrumental in enabling TRRE to connect with the community at the Sandwich and Fryeburg Fairs. Claes is responsible for promoting science education and youth development through the NH 4-H program. He helps volunteer leaders build and run 4-H clubs throughout Carroll County and helps run county 4-H events including 4-H programs at both the Sandwich and Fryeburg Fairs. Claes specializes in science education, where he helps train 4-H volunteers and afterschool professionals in science curricula and science teaching techniques with a focus on inquiry-based science. Heidi Barker -  Healthy Living Field Specialist, Community Health & 4-H Heidi has enjoyed the...

Alayna on Mt. Katahdin As a teacher at a Montessori school and an educational program coordinator for The Society for Protection of New Hampshire Forests, Alayna demonstrated her passion for experiential learning and children’s natural curiosity prior to joining TRRE. She choose the TRRE program because as she said, “I was drawn to its strong focus using community resources and connections to further students' education while including the importance of elementary science education.” Alayna was born in Portsmouth and spent summers in Thornton, NH. She is a graduate of Dalhousie University in Halifax Nova Scotia, with a bachelor’s and master’s degree in international development studies. Alayna is currently completing her r esidency in a kindergarten classroom at Whitefield Elementary .

Tina Mooney has been employed at the Whitefield School for the past 28 years. She graduated in May of 2007 from Plymouth State University with a Bachelor's Degree in Childhood Studies, Teacher Certification K-8. Tina taught Second grade for three years, then transitioned to become a Kindergarten teacher, and has taught Kindergarten for the past 8 years. Tina has recently taken on the challenge of opening and creating Natural Outdoor Classrooms and Nature Trails at the Whitefield School. When Tina is not at school she enjoys family time with her 5 grandchildren, working/playing in the outdoors with family, and hanging out with her best friend, a Great Dane named Pepper. The TRRE Program has been extremely beneficial in my classroom.  "The amount of time these residents are able to spend with students is invaluable. They learn the ins and outs of a classroom environment and responsibilities of a classroom teacher. My hope is that residents who go through the TRRE Program wil...

William Church,  Executive Director White Mountains Science Institute (WMSI) A former high school Physics teacher, Bill has worked in and with public schools for over twenty years. His passion is for supporting learning through projects using engineering design challenges and real-world science investigations.   Through his career, Bill has collaborated on many educational projects and programs with a wide range of local, regional, and national schools, organizations and businesses including; NH SAU 35, NH SAU 84, North County Educational Services, New Hampshire Science Teachers Association, Plymouth State University, New Hampshire Charitable Foundation's Christa McAuliffe program, Tufts Center for Engineering Education and Outreach, Lemelson MIT's InvenTeams, iCreate to Educate, Sparkfun Electronics, LEGO Education, and National Instruments. As an Advisory Board member and community partner with the UNH Teacher Residency for Rural Education (TRRE) program,...

Lori Langlois is the Executive Director of North Country Education Services (NCES) in Gorham, NH. Her professional experience and expertise lies in regionalized educational services in rural areas. Lori is a liaison to various partners for the TRRE program. She hopes to contribute to TRRE by connecting the program and its residents to people and opportunities that further enhance the project. Rural schools are the heart of rural communities and our students are our best hope for sustaining and growing the vibrancy of these small NH towns. Strong STEM skills will only serve to help that cause and therefore TRRE’s work to develop teachers with strong mathematics and science content and pedagogical knowledge can play a vital role in moving these communities forward. In addition to boosting the number of math and science educators in rural schools, Lori anticipates the development of enduring relationships among cohort members that strengthen and expand networking amongst NH’s rural scho...

Jamie  graduated from Unity College in 2011 with a degree in sustainable design and technology. She also earned a Master's of Arts in Teaching Secondary Education Social Studies from Rivier University in 2015. Most recently, Jamie worked for Project Youth at the Family Resource Center in Gorham.   She has experience as Site Director of the Edward Fenn Afterschool Program. Prior to that, she was employed for two years as a paraprofessional at the Berlin Middle School. Jamie is enrolled in the elementary (K-6) certification pathway. Currently, she is a teaching resident at SAU 3 in second grade at Brown Elementary School. 

UNH Aims to Recruit and Retain More Math, Science Teachers in the North Country On November 19, 2018, Daniela Allee of NH Public Radio published a feature story about TRRE. Follow this link and read or listen to the full article at  NHPR White Mountain Regional High School Students at work with a TRRE Teaching Resident (Photo Courtesy of Daniela Allee, NHPR) The NHPR story illustrates how the design of TRRE's teacher residency program is specific to the context of place. Rural students work on a survival project using local natural resources, teaching residents value the small community, and TRRE fills a need within the community to build the capacity of highly-qualified teachers in rural NH. 

Kayla Croteau and Alexzandria Steiner When Kayla Croteau earned her master's in secondary education from UNH in 2015, she never imagined that she was only three short years away from another teacher education experience — this time as a teaching mentor for the University of New Hampshire’s Teacher Residency for Rural Education (UNH-TRRE) program. UNH-TRRE, designed to prepare elementary and secondary math and science teachers to work in rural, high-need New Hampshire schools, is working with its second cohort of future teachers. These UNH students, known as teaching residents, live, learn, teach and volunteer in rural New Hampshire communities over the course of the 15-month master’s program. Croteau serves as a UNH-TRRE teaching mentor to Alexzandria Steiner, a native of St. Johnsbury, Vermont, and current teaching resident in the TRRE program. Steiner, who is seeking secondary certification in life sciences, works with Croteau at Groveton High School, one of the UNH-T...

Are you familiar with these rural facts? Nearly forty percent of New Hampshire’s population is considered rural (Economic Research Service, 2018). On average, rural students have lower achievement outcomes and graduation rates than their suburban counterparts (Institute of Education Sciences, 2013). (TRRE Partner Schools) In 2016, the University of New Hampshire, Department of Education, received one of the few rural Teacher Quality Partnership awards in the United States establishing the Teacher Residency for Rural Education (TRRE) program. TRRE graduates commit to work in a rural partner school for three years and receive induction support the first two years of their career after successful completion of the M.Ed. and NH teacher certification requirements. TRRE is preparing high-quality teachers to teach in rural NH engaging the partner communities in the future of education in the process. Renewed interest in teacher preparation in the context of rural education has ...

As we plan for TRRE's expansion to the Lakes Region south of the notch NH, we'd like to introduce two new key TRRE team members, Bryan Mascio and Emilie Coppinger. The planning process will begin this fall and will continue through the winter as we prepare for the next cohort of TRRE students (known as “residents”) who will begin in May 2019. Bryan Mascio, TRRE Postdoctoral Associate, main responsibilities for TRRE are to establish and maintain partnerships with schools and districts south of the notch; conduct research on teacher learning, development, and practice; and teach courses to graduate students enrolled in the TRRE program. Bryan earned a master’s degree in Mind Brain and Education, and recently completed his doctorate in Human Development and Education at the Harvard Graduate School of Education (HGSE). His primary research focuses on the social-emotional-cognitive skills of teaching and the development of those complex skills. He continues to work with scho...

Meet a TRRE Teaching Resident Rebecca graduated from Plymouth State University with a B.S. in Environmental Science and Policy and an M.S. in Natural Resources from the University of New Hampshire. She has participated in many research experiences including a six-month stormwater management internship in Ohio, climate research in Northern Sweden, and an environmental service learning semester in Italy. Rebecca was a paraprofessional in Berlin public schools prior to learning about TRRE. “Pursuing teacher certification through the TRRE program will allow me to integrate my love and enthusiasm for science, real world scientific experiences, and my interest in teaching.” Rebecca is enrolled in the elementary with middle school science with (K-8) certification pathway. She is currently working in a Groveton Middle School science classroom with a teaching mentor.

There’s no such thing as average. Of course, that’s speaking neurologically. Learning about the variability of human brains was just one of the takeaways from TRRE’s Universal Design for Learning (UDL) Institute, attended by teaching residents from cohorts I and II, teaching mentors, and members of the TRRE management team. Participants gathered at North Country Education Services (NCES) on June 27 th and had the opportunity to learn about UDL, neuroscience, and what learner variability means for instructional curriculum and design.     Led by Allison Posey, curriculum and design specialist from CAST, the Institute focused on learning the core principles of UDL and applying them to design lessons and classroom environments to meet the needs of all learners. Rooted in concepts from architecture and technology, as well as neuroscience, UDL focuses on proactive design to allow for flexibility, and emphasizes that barriers to learning are often social, instru...

T he school year may have just started, but districts in the Lakes Region are already looking to the future, and the possibility of supporting new math and science teachers in local schools over the next several years. In May 2019, future teachers enrolled in the University of New Hampshire’s Teacher Residency for Rural Education (TRRE) will begin a 15-month program based in Lakes Region community organizations and area schools. These “teaching residents” will live and teach in rural New Hampshire communities while earning their graduate degrees. After graduation, they will commit to teaching in rural, high-need New Hampshire schools for at least three years. TRRE, a grant-funded teacher education program supported by the United States Department of Education, has recently confirmed a planned expansion into the Lakes Region. Conway Elementary, Kenneth A. Brett School, Pittsfield Elementary and Middle Schools, Ossipee Central Elementary School, Farmington Valley View and H...

TRRE Cohort Update - Saplings and Seedlings TRRE Cohort I is moving on to the first year of teaching and the new cohort has survived the first Summer Institute. The school year is just about to start and 80% of cohort I is preparing to teach in district partner schools. The hiring school districts include Colebrook, Gorham, and Berlin. Our new teachers are excited to set up their classrooms and launch their career with continuing support from TRRE. Cohort II is twice the size of our first group and more diverse. We have a wider age range and a combination of men and women teacher residents. Three of the new TRRE program participants have moved to the North Country to participate in the program; one from Vermont and two from other parts of New Hampshire. TRRE residents in Cohort II have chosen the following certification pathways: two high school science, one middle school science, one middle school science/elementary, and six elementary. Members of cohort II ar...

Michael J. Kelle y Superintendent SAU 58, Northumberland - Stark - Stratford I am the Superintendent of Schools for SAU #58 in Groveton, NH. The district consists of four small schools; Stark Village School, Stratford Public School, Groveton Elementary School, and Groveton High School. This is my third year in the role of superintendent; previous to that I was a principal for eight years, assistant principal for ten years, and high school social studies teacher for four years. After twenty years of public school administration, it feels like I have seen and done it all!! I have been involved with the TRRE program since its inception in the North Country; first as a listener and now as an advisory board member and advocate. The TRRE program has several dimensions that are mutually beneficial for   university studen...