By TIFFANY RAZZANO
Sicinski, who was nominated once before but did not win, says she was completely surprised by the news. "I've known past recipients very well and to be included in that category of educators is a huge honor to me," she said. "I feel highly honored."
She was nominated for the award by the SSMS's Assistant Principal Rosemarie Cammarata. "Faculty and staff would wholeheartedly agree that she is a role model, a professional and a master educator inside and out of the classroom," Cammarata said. "She is a role model for adults to emulate, for teachers and of course, our children. Students have benefitted from her expertise and dedication for many years and she has certainly helped to make the children in Rockville Centre take on the independence to absorb the knowledge of the world through the eyes of literature. Mrs. Sicinski deserves to be recognized as truly a master individual - a master teacher."
"She's just an amazing teacher who knows how to meet the needs of every student," said Sheilagh McGinn, principal of SSMS. "She always gets the kids to the next level, every time. She's just genuine - a true master educator. She's great; we love her. She really deserves this."
Sicinski has been extremely active with the Teachers Association. She developed and taught a course to help district teachers better implement the New York State learning standards and assessments. Also, as the current district coordinator of the Rockville Centre Mentoring Program, she helped to renovate that program. "I've loved working in the mentoring program," she said. "I've enjoyed crafting the way the program is going to go. That's very rewarding to me because like doctors, all teachers need a mentor to help guide them in their first experiences in the field." She has also served as building representative for the Teachers Association for three years.
She is also active in the middle school, where she has served as the newspaper advisor and the advisor to the literacy magazine club.
After 22 years at SSMS, Sicinski says she loves her job. "There are so many things about it I love," she said. "I obviously love working with the children and seeing them grow. That's the joy of middle school, seeing them just blossom." She said one of the nicest things as a teacher is to have students come back years later after college and to see they're doing well in life.
Cammarata calls Sicinski a "life-long learner" who is constantly seeking to expand her personal knowledge in order to serve the classroom better. She also says Sicinski has always been ahead of her time, utilizing differentiated instruction, before it "became in vogue to do so." "She has always monitored and adjusted her curriculum and materials to address the academic and behavioral needs of her students," Cammarata said. "Addressing different learning styles and using many of the multiple intelligences are mainstays in her classroom."
Lately, Sicinski says she's taken an interest in technology and how to implement that in the classroom. "The explosion in technology makes this world such an instant place," she said. "It's my job to teach students this information and as an English teacher you realize the most important learning experiences take time."
Comments about this story? TRazzano@
liherald.com or (516) 569-4000 ext. 221.
