Many beginning teachers within the Hanover School Division assumed the role of students this past week at the Summer Institute for New and Early Career Teachers. 

Assistant Superintendent Colin Campbell says the three-day long program was lead by HSD’s senior leadership team who welcomed the young teachers, illustrated various HSD policies, and partnered them with more experienced teachers called learning coaches. “It was really just to introduce ourselves,” notes Campbell, “we want to let them know that we do care about them and that we are really happy to have them as part of our staff.”

Jaycia Koop is one of almost 40 first and second-year teachers employed by HSD in the coming fall. She explains what she will be taking away from her past week of training: “We have talked a lot about the culture we want to create in our classroom and how important that is that kids feel safe coming to school every day and are excited to learn and grow.”

Koop indicates this Teacher’s Institute has both inspired her and given her an incredible eagerness to get into her classroom for the first time and meet her kids. “I am super, super excited,” she exclaims, “it has been really good to have some time to plan over the summer, and yet I can’t wait to get into my classroom and start setting things up.”

Campbell says positive outlooks like Koop’s were contagious throughout the Teacher’s Institute: “You could feel the energy on the first day they showed up here that they were very excited to get their year started and we were excited to have them. This felt like the first day of our school year.”

Ultimately, Campbell says the new teachers show all kinds of potential and expects them to contribute great things to the division.