Ms. Joanne Collins This is Me

Education

 Web References

1. 1. October Newspaper Articles 2003 - Hebron Dollars & Sense

   www.hebrondollarsandsense.com/ - [Cached]

   Published on: 10/1/2003   Last Visited: 3/11/2004

   Joanne Collins can't wait for Monday.
   
   Collins, the new principal at Hebron Elementary School, starts Nov. 3. As was reported last week, Collins was recently hired by the Hebron Board of Education to be the new principal at the school, which serves students in the third through sixth grades. She replaces Paul Sales Jr., who left for the Salisbury school system in June.
   
   "I can't start fast enough, honestly," Collins said this week. "I just want to be able to get in and help in any way I can."
   
   Collins said she's looking forward to getting back into elementary school administration. This week, she wrapped up a brief stint as interim vice principal at Hudson High School in Hudson, Mass. However, from July 2000 until this past June, she was principal of Forest Avenue School, also located in Hudson, Mass. For two years prior to that, she served as assistant principal for the T.C. Passios Elementary and Lunenburg Primary schools in Lunenburg, Mass.
   
   Collins, 49, said she thinks she does a good job as an elementary school principal. Also, she added, it keeps her feeling young.
   
   "The role of elementary administrator suits me well, and I don't seem to age," she said. "It keeps me very, very active, and I enjoy my work."
   
   Collins and her husband, Richard, live in West Hartford. They have two daughters ¾ Kimberly, 25, who teaches sixth grade English at King Phillip Middle School in West Hartford, and Kelly, 23, who is a student at Central Connecticut State University. Collins said she is happy to give up the daily commute to Hudson, Mass., which she said is an hour and 45 minutes each way.
   
   The commute from West Hartford to Hebron "will be door-to-door, a little more than half hour, a wonderful commute, and a wonderful community," she said. "I look forward to it."
   
   Collins began her academic career as a teacher. She said she was inspired by Lake Garda Elementary School Principal Lucy Mehta to become a principal. Collins taught at the Burlington elementary school for three years, and while there, she saw Mehta interact with the students.
   
   "She had this ability to help people recognize their strengths," she said. "It helps people to feel they're part of an exciting educational environment when everyone feels that they're a contributing member."
   
   Collins said she saw an advertisement in a newspaper earlier this year for a principal at Hebron Elementary, and, she said, "I became very excited."
   
   "I thought it would be a very exciting place to work," she said.
   
   Collins said she knows about the high academic standards already in place at Hebron Elementary, and, she said, she's looking forward to helping maintain those high standards.
   
   "It's a challenge that I welcome very much," she said.
   ...
   West Hartford resident Joanne Collins was hired last week by the Board of Education.
   ...
   Collins is currently serving as an assistant principal at Hudson High School in Hudson, Mass. However, she is no stranger to elementary school administration. From July 2000 until this past June, she was principal of Forest Avenue School, also located in Hudson, Mass. For two years prior to that, she served as assistant principal for the T.C. Passios Elementary and Lunenburg Primary schools in Lunenburg, Mass.
   
   Locally, Collins was an assistant to the principal at Henry A. Wolcott Elementary School in West Hartford from August 1997 through December 1998. While there, she worked on the development of a town-wide curriculum.
   
   Like most school administrators, Collins' career began as a teacher. She graduated from Central Connecticut State University in 1985 with a bachelor's degree in elementary education, and quickly went to work with special education students. Collins taught special education at the Harwinton Consolidated School in Harwinton from 1985 through 1988. She also taught summer school to special education students from 1989 through 1993. In 1991, she received a master's degree in special education/certification, also from CCSU.
   
   In 1993, Collins began a three-year stint as a first grade teacher at Lake Garda Elementary School in Burlington. While there, she was named the 1993 Connecticut Teacher of the Year for Regional School District No. 10/Burlington/Harwinton.
   
   Towards the end of her time as a first-grade teacher, Collins served an administrative internship at Lake Garda Elementary School, lasting from January through May 1996. In 1997 earned a sixth-year certificate in educational leadership/administration, which, like her master's and bachelor's degrees, came from CCSU.
   
   School officials this week said they were very pleased at the opportunity to bring Collins to Hebron.
   
   "We're very excited about Joanne," Assistant Superintendent of Schools Katherine Scheidler said.

2. 2. Passover conflict alters Grade 3 MCAS dates

   www.telegram.com/news/east/pas - [Cached]

   Published on: 3/19/2002   Last Visited: 3/20/2002

   Joanne Collins, principal at Forest Avenue School in Hudson, said a few teachers have asked to be off March 28, the first full day of Passover. She indicated that the MCAS will be given the first week of April because no parent has said that time conflicts with their observance of the holiday. "We've been telling parents in our newsletters every single month that April 1 to 12 is when the MCAS will be taking place, and we haven't heard of one family that needs to take the time off," Ms. Collins said.
   
   Tuesday, March 19, 2002
   
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