WDIV (Neag School alumnus and Lions general manager Bob Quinn is interviewed about the draft and maintaining work-life balance)

Tara Amatrudo has been hired as the new principal at Marine Science Magnet High School in Groton. Amatrudo earned her undergraduate and master’s degrees from Southern Connecticut State University and her Sixth Year Professional diploma at the University of Connecticut.

The University had originally planned to conduct remote learning for two weeks following spring break, but growing health concerns led to a fully online transition for the Spring 2020 semester. UConn faculty members, some of whom had never administered remote courses before, had to transition their coursework quickly to align with the new remote teaching style. Neag School alumna Karen Skudlarek ’88 (BUS), ’16 MA and her colleagues at CETL have been instrumental in the process.

With the recent transition from educating in the classroom to the virtual realm due to the pandemic, the teaching world has changed drastically. We wanted to hear from Neag School alumni now serving as teachers about how they are managing the online teaching and learning environment.

Our Neag School Class of 2020 will be remembered as one of UConn’s most resilient graduating classes ever.

Former UConn women’s basketball player and recreational therapy graduate Bert Wachtelhausen ’81 (ED) has shaped a thriving career combining skills she honed as a Division I athlete with her longtime interests in physical health and helping others. Climbing the corporate health insurance ladder in what for many years remained a male-dominated industry, Wachtelhausen has long since shattered the glass ceiling to excel as a senior executive who now serves as president of startup WellSpark Health.

Alumna Jessica Stargardter ’16 (ED), ’17 MA, a gifted and talented educator for Norwalk (Conn.) Public Schools, shares four tips for educators to serve gifted learners through remote instruction.

“Schools everywhere have closed their doors, and many gifted students find themselves without rigorous work and the camaraderie of their peers,” says Jessica Stargardter, a gifted and talented teacher at Norwalk (Conn.) Public Schools. “It is up to us to continue to nurture the development of our brightest young minds with learning opportunities, and it is time to collaborate, especially given our social distance.”

“These books are going directly home to kids,” said East Hartford Superintendent Nate Quesnel. “The thought process is that we’re trying to really push literacy and to help families to provide opportunities for rich text opportunities in their home.”

The Neag School of Education, UConn’s Department of English, and the Connecticut Writing Project (CWP) at UConn are proud to announce Connecticut’s winners of the 26th annual Letters About Literature competition, a nationwide contest sponsored by the Library of Congress for students in grades 4 through 12.