Two of our staff members received a new position over the summer. Mrs. Emily Johnstone and Ms. Jeanne Heinze have new jobs within the school.
Ms. Heinze was a student counselor last school year, now she works as an Apprenticeship and WorkForce Development Teacher Specialist. Heinze mainly works now with juniors and seniors to connect students with apprenticeship programs around the county and works at job sites.
Heinze’s job is new to the school; originally there was one person who was in charge of apprenticeships for all high schools in the county. Now people in her position are shared among two to three schools. She enjoys getting out and talking to businesses and employers. “I enjoy working with students to work towards something good for them,” she says. Her position within the program helps to allow students to get real life experience in the workplace.
Her biggest struggle with changing her mindset from working with students and careers to now being in just the workforce aspect. “I struggled to get organized,” she stated. But, after a few weeks of school, she is getting into the swing of things.
Johnstone transitioned from a Mathematics Department Chair and teacher to an Instructional Assessment and Data Specialist (IADS). Her transition during the first week of school “was extremely weird not being in the classroom, getting to know my new students and making a fool of myself to try and get them to laugh,” she says.
Johnstone said she has enjoyed organizing tests, and she compares it to a huge puzzle. She commented that she enjoys the challenges the new position has given her, learning new testing platforms and wrapping her head around new information has been kind of fun. She has also taught herself many commands on Excel, she added.
Over the past few years, Johnstone has been very involved in testing, so her position which focuses on that was very tempting for her. Her children attend North Harford Elementary, so she did not want to leave the area. Johnstone stated that even though tests are not always easy, she wants to encourage students to try their best on all assessments.
Both Heinze and Johnstone said they are excited to continue their new positions at the school and students should reach out if they have any questions.