Teachers

All six Eastern Panhandle Republican members of the West Virginia House of Delegates voted against a bill that requires central office administrators to substitute for absent teachers three days a year. Senate Bill 80 was sent Tuesday to Gov. Earl Ray Tomblin as a move to reduce substitute teacher costs, which can amount to $125 per day per substitute. Seventy-eight Democrats in the House of Delegates voted for the bill, while 20 Republicans opposed the measure. Area Republicans opposed the bill because the authority to enforce it rested with the state, not local school boards.

Hagerstown-Washington County Chamber of Commerce Foundation and Washington County Public Schools will celebrate excellence in education and recognize the 2013-14 Washington County Teacher of the Year Finalists. The event will take place Wednesday, April 17, from 5 to 9 p.m. at Fountain Head Country Club, 13316 Fountainhead Road in Hagerstown. The teachers to be honored are:  Beth Hoffman, North Hagerstown High School, 10th grade English teacher  Sally Irwin, Washington County Technical High School, Project Lead the Way biomedical science teacher  Tameron Marriner, Rockland Woods Elementary School, kindergarten teacher  Ayako Shiga, Boonsboro High School, Japanese language teacher  Matt Tack, Fountaindale Elementary School, fifth-grade magnet teacher The winner will receive the use of a car for one year.

A child exploitation investigation involving a former Chambersburg Area Senior High School teacher so far has not indicated he perpetrated any physical sex crimes against victims, the lead investigator said Tuesday. Jeffrey Schmutzler was arrested March 21 at his Fayetteville, Pa., home by federal agents. The Spanish teacher submitted his resignation Tuesday morning, according to school officials. Schmutzler remains incarcerated on charges of receipt and possession of child pornography.

Faced with a $1.4 million budget deficit, the Greencastle-Antrim School Board will vote Thursday whether to outsource support staff positions, cut athletics and extracurricular activities, or not replace four retiring teachers. With the Greencastle-Antrim School District looking for places to cut to cinch up the gaping hole in its $34 million 2013-14 budget, the administration is recommending that the board approve outsourcing support staff, which includes transportation, cafeteria, custodial and technology services.   Superintendent C. Gregory Hoover said it comes down to three options.

Four Washington County Public Schools teachers were recognized this week for being certified or recertified as National Board certified teachers. Schools Superintendent Clayton Wilcox and Board of Education members recognized the teachers during Tuesday's school board meeting. Boonsboro High English Teacher Brooke Jozik became a National Board certified teacher, according to a presentation document. Paramount Elementary kindergarten teacher Lucy Austin, Rockland Woods Elementary music teacher Linda Barnhart, and Bester Elementary library media specialist Diane Mentzer were recognized for becoming recertified.

Federal prosecutors said Thursday a Chambersburg Area Senior High School teacher used a computer program to superimpose the faces of students on child pornography, which he then sent to others. Jeffrey Schmutzler was arrested at his Fayetteville, Pa., home Thursday and appeared before Chief Magistrate Judge Martin C. Carlson in Harrisburg, Pa., on charges of distribution and receipt of material involving the sexual exploitation of minors, according to the Associated Press and the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Middle District of Pennsylvania.

Washington County Public Schools has announced the five finalists for the school system's Teacher of the Year. A judging committee will complete an additional review of the five finalists, including interviews and classroom observations, leading to an announcement of the 2013-14 Washington County Teacher of the Year at the annual dinner and recognition April 17 at Fountain Head Country Club, Hagerstown. The program is sponsored by the Hagerstown/Washington County Chamber of Commerce Foundation.

Put 1,100 teenagers in one room and what do you get? Energy, enthusiasm and excitement! Put 110 teachers in one room and what do you get? Suggestions, instructions and commands. Last weekend I attended the Capital District Key Club convention in Baltimore with a great group of area youth. We heard motivational speakers, learned about service projects, attended workshops, considered candidates' platforms and elected new district leaders. It was as close to a political convention — minus the politics — that these kids will get at this age. The weekend was educational and fun, if not just a tad bit exhausting.

Lincolnshire Elementary School in Halfway will receive nearly $900 in May for collecting nearly 9,000 box tops coupons from the end of December through March 1 to send to the Box Tops for Education program. Gail Vaughn, the program's fundraising coordinator for the school, said this makes the school's total for the year $2,188 after collecting box tops through mid-October as well. “Our school alone since we started collecting them in 2004 has raised $19,570,” she said. Teachers collect the box tops, clipped from qualifying products, and twice a year send them to Vaughn, who submits them to the program.

The Waynesboro Area School District's teachers' union and school board have reached a contract agreement after less than five months of negotiations. The new, two-year contract provides an average salary increase of 1.6 percent each year, according to the school board. Over the weekend, an overwhelming majority of the approximately 275 teachers who belong to the Waynesboro Area Education Association (WAEA) ratified the contract. The school board voted 7-0 Tuesday to accept the same deal.