Introductions

[Scott Habeeb]

Please tell the other members of the network a little about yourself. Nothing is too short and nothing is too long. Just let us know who we are so we can turn this network into a true community.

[Scott Habeeb]

Thanks for joining, Kim.  And thanks for your interest in The 9th Grade Opportunity.  Please let me know if there is anything I can do to help you.  I regularly work with schools around the country on their Freshman Transition needs and would love to assist you.

[Sharon Krasner]

Hi, everyone. Thank you for approving my membership.

A little bit about me. I'm the 9th grade lead teacher at a public charter school in Southfield, MI. I am starting a Freshman Transition program this fall, with the full support of my administration. Looking forward to working with and learning from all of you.

[Scott Habeeb]

Welcome aboard, Sharon. Let me know if there is anything I can do to help you out. I routinely work with high schools around the country helping them make plans to support their freshmen. I hope you can benefit from the resources on this website. Please let me know if you have any questions. You also might want to check out the book The Ninth Grade opportunity that I co-wrote. There is a link to it on the main page.

[Sharon Krasner]

I did see that, Scott. I'm actually planning on sending the link to my principal with a request that she get copies for our 9th grade team, including our 9th grade special education teacher and our social worker/counselors. I look forward to exploring the website - I've been looking for a resource like this, and know that it will be extremely helpful. Thanks!

[Scott Habeeb]

Sounds great. Let me know if you have questions. Feel free to contact me through this site or at 540-389-2610. Good luck!

[Lisa Munoz]

Hello! My name is Lisa Munoz and I am a first year teacher at MaCES in Maywood, CA. I have been looking into different resources to help me develop as a teacher and since I work with Freshman I thought this would be a great resource to look into. I currently teach Biology and Marine Biology but we are a brand new school and are expanding our curriculum soon. I just wanted to say so far from what I have seen this is an amazing approach and I'll have to spend much more time looking into it in the near future. 

[Scott Habeeb]

Welcome aboard, Lisa. Let me know if I can do to help you out. I work with high schools around the country helping them make plans to support their freshmen. Please let me know if you have any questions. You also might want to check out the book The Ninth Grade opportunity that I co-wrote. There is a link to it on the main page.

[Susan L. Murphy]

Hello!

My name is Susan Murphy, and I am a Reading Intervention Teacher at Dublin Scioto High School in Dublin, Ohio. I am getting ready to wrap up my 18th year. I have only been working as a reading teacher for about 2 years now. My first 16 years had me teaching various levels of English classes as well as some theatre. Within the past year or two, my school has been working on trying to create a more guided approach in transitioning our 8th to 9th grade students. This school year, we have focused on the needs we have as freshman teachers and what we see as struggles in our freshman students. We are one of three high schools in my district. On the surface, Dublin is (overall) an affluent district, but my school contains the largest population of students on free and reduced lunch as well as the largest special education population. We struggle more with students who are coming to us from very diverse and troubled backgrounds. But because we are under the "Dublin" umbrella, I do feel like our issues are sometimes overlooked. I have wanted to begin a freshman initiative for a while now - something to give more support and assistance to our 9th graders in order for them to be more successful throughout their high school years. We are now at the point where this may become a reality. I appreciate this site and hope that it can help me with any questions I may have as we begin to build our program. Thanks!

[Scott Habeeb]

Susan

Thanks for joining and thanks for introducing yourself.  

If you all ever need assistance in creating your freshman transition initiative, just let me know.  You can contact me through this network or call me at 540-389-2610.  

Have a wonderful weekend!

Scott

[Renee Irwin]

I am an Assistant Principal in Pleasantville, New Jersey at Pleasantville High School. I have recently been charged with bringing back and overseeing our Freshman Academy. I have never done this before, so I am looking for guidance from those who have. We are an urban district with approximately 900 students 9-12. I want to do as much as I can for our Freshman in an effort to see them through the four-year plan. I welcome any advice, documents, ideas, etc. I love to share as well.

I have been in education for 25 years. I was a teacher of ELA for many of those years teaching 6-12 grade, gen ed, special ed, and alternative high school ELA. I have been an AP in an elementary school, middle school, and high school, where I hope to stay for the remainder of my career. I am a mother of two amazing adult children, 23 and 27 and a wife of 28 years. I do not tweet or use Instagram, as I don't really understand them, but I use Facebook. LOL.... I look forward to networking with fellow educators.

Renee Irwin

[Scott Habeeb]

Renee - you have a big task ahead of you, but it's a meaningful one for sure!  I have been working with schools helping them build freshman transition programs for about 20 years.  I would love to see if I could be of service to you.  Please feel free to email me at [e-mail] and we can arrange at time to chat on the phone.