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Contact Information: 884-7270
Biography, Tamara McCarthy
tmccarthy@bscsd.org
Mrs. McCarthy came to teaching later in life. After volunteering in her sons’ classrooms, she decided that school was an exciting place to be. Her bachelor’s degree from SUNY Albany was in German Culture and Society, so she needed to go back and get a Master of Science in Teaching from SUNY Plattsburgh. She also took additional reading courses from the College of Saint Joseph in Vermont. After teaching 1st and 3rd grade as a classroom teacher, Mrs. McCarthy came to Ballston Spa Central Schools as a reading specialist in 2002. She worked at Wood Road Intermediate School for three years before transferring to Malta Avenue Intermediate School in 2005. She has also worked as a reading teacher for summer school for two summers.
Recent Professional Development:
* "2008 East Region Reading Leadership Symposium" sponsored by Macmillan/McGraw-Hill
* Literacy For All Reading Conference
* New York State Reading Conference
* Capital Region Teacher Center Summer Institute for Reading
* Balanced Literacy workshops
* “Meeting the 25 Book Challenge” workshop
* Writing Workshop: “Living a Writerly Life”
Committees Served On:
* Mentor to non-tenured teachers
* K-5 New Reading Series Committee
* SST (Student Success Team)
* AIS Committee
* Malta Avenue Health Index Committee
Biography, Sarah Unser
sunser@bscsd.org
Mrs. Unser received her Bachelor of Science degree in Elementary Education Pre-K-6 and a Master of Science degree in Reading K-12 from SUNY Cortland. She has been a Reading Teacher for the Ballston Spa Schools since 2002. Before that, she was a Special Education Teacher in another district.
When not at school working with students, which she has always adored, she spends her free time with her 1 year old son and husband doing activities such as reading, hiking, boating and playing with her son.
Biography, Holly Rummel-Jackson
hrummeljackson@bscsd.org
Mrs. Rummel-Jackson has always loved reading. As a child, she loved being read to by her parents and her teachers. She found adventure and tremendous joy in books. Mrs. Rummel-Jackson wanted to be a reading teacher so she could help her students enjoy the wonderful world of reading and become life-long learners.
Mrs.Rummel-Jackson received her Bachelor of Science Degree from SUNY Oneonta in 1991 and her Master of Arts Degree from Castleton State College in 1992. In 1992 she got her first teaching job in Newport News, Virginia as a Reading Recovery Teacher. In 2001 Mrs. Rummel-Jackson became a Reading Teacher for the Ballston Spa Central School District at Milton Terrace Primary and then Milton Terrace North Elementary School. In 2013 she joined the teaching staff of Gordon Creek Elementary School. She loves teaching reading and thinks it’s the best job in the world.
Mrs. Rummel-Jackson lives in Queensbury with her husband, two sons, and two dogs. One of Mrs. Rummel-Jackson’s dogs is a certified therapy dog through Therapy Dogs International. Mrs. Rummel-Jackson brings her therapy dog, Lucy, to school so her students can practice their reading skills by reading to Lucy.
Recent Professional Development:
Reading Recovery Training and Continuing Contact National Reading Recovery Conference Southeastern Reading Recovery Conferences Ruby Payne: Working with Students from Poverty Joetta Beaver: Developmental Reading Assessment Training Jim Trelease: Turning on the Turned-Off Reader Regie Routman: Effective Strategies for Teaching All Students to Read and Write Successfully Literacy For All Conferences Balanced Literacy Workshops Enhancing Your Effectiveness as a Reading Specialist/Literacy Coach Project Read Training in Comprehension and Decoding Fountas and Pinnell Benchmark Assessment System Training Harcourt Storytown and Journeys Training Word Study Workshop with Shane TempletonCommittees Served On:
District-Wide Special Education Committee Building Literacy Team SST (Student Success Team) IST (Instructional Support Team) District Reading Committee District Response to Intervention Committee Building Sunshine Committee
