LETTER OF RECOMMENDATION

I highly recommend Dawn Prescott for any position for which she may apply. Having served as Dawn's assistant principal during the past two years at Schuyler Grade School, I can attest to her strengths as a classroom instructor and as a person. As the computer literacy instructor, Dawn has been able to successfully manage and organize her classroom. She is a self-starter and strives to complete any and all tasks assigned to her. For example, this past year it was her idea to start providing our staff with monthly after school technology sessions. Plus, she offers a computer camp for the students during the summer.

In addition, Dawn was asked to be a part of a team to write a competitive grant from Enhancing Education Through Technology this year. She definitely played a key role in writing this grant and provided the team with current technology information and expertise. Dawn has truly brought our technology curriculum into the 21st century.

I am confident that Dawn would make an excellent contribution to any school in which she is employed. I would urge any prospective employer to strongly consider her for any technology position you may have available. If she were to leave us, it would be another school district's good fortune as she would be an excellent addition to any staff.

Amy Christ
Assistant Principal
Schuyler Grade School

It is with great pleasure that I write this letter of support for Dawn Prescott, a friend and colleague in both the education and technology arena. For the past two years, I have known and observed Dawn in the role of facilitator, educator, and leader of technology integration through her work with the Nebraska PT3 Catalyst grant. Dawn has a clear vision and working understanding of educational leadership and theories of educational change, particularly in the areas of instructional technology integration and community building. From what I have observed, she demonstrates "putting theory into practice", and does this in a way that directly empowers and enlightens her fellow educators as well as her students. Her responsibility for the revitalization, development, and implementation of technology-focused efforts for curricular technology integration within her district has been a strong model for K-12 districts across the state.

Dawn is an active member of a Catalyst Task Force that has been instrumental in successfully creating a K-12 teacher cadre of technology proficient teachers in an effort to establish stronger partnerships between K-12 teachers and higher education faculty. She was also involved in designing a brochure utilized by student and cooperating teachers entitled "Technology Questions Every Student Teacher Should Ask", an instrument that has been widely used by higher education institutions statewide as student teachers begin their practicum experience. Dawn demonstrates and shares her work in a number of ways: by presenting at conferences, by agreeing to be featured as the "outstanding teacher" of the K-12 Teacher Cadre newsletter, and by becoming involved as an active field trainer for both Marco Polo and I-Safe programs. Her willingness to take these responsibilities has proved to be an important component for the sustainability of the work of technology integration for teachers across the state. Ms. Prescott's motivation and professional commitment to these efforts has been exemplary. She is well respected for her thoughtful questions and high level of participation within the grant.

New challenges that face educators always involve risk and change. Dawn is willing to take those risks, as she is firmly grounded in her purpose and role as leader and facilitator. Her sincere commitment to education and the community in which she works will make her successful in whatever area she chooses to pursue. Therefore, it is with strong conviction that I write this letter of support for Ms. Prescott and strongly recommend her as a teacher candidate.

Sincerely,

Jean Jones, Ph.D.
Director, Nebraska PT3 Catalyst Grant
Nebraska Department of Education

I have been asked to write a letter of recommendation for Dawn Prescott, and I am pleased to do so.  I have been the Library Media Specialist at Schuyler Grade School for the past five years and from the vantage point of our centrally located media center, I am able to interact with all school staff and observe their programs on a daily basis.  I have been especially close to Dawn during her first year at Schuyler due to the proximity of our teaching areas, and I am able to observe her extensive use of the library’s computers and other equipment for her classes. Dawn’s classes routinely exhibit their class projects in common areas of the school, which makes her students proud of their effort and other students anxious to get involved.   I must say that I have come to perceive Dawn as a very knowledgeable, resourceful, helpful and outgoing person who immediately made herself a favorite colleague and a tremendous technology resource person for staff and students.
 

The best way I can describe Dawn’s arrival at our school is that she hit the bricks running.  There was no easing into her position.  She knew what our students needed to become proficient users of technology and she set out to find the tools and resources to build an exemplary program for our school. She did not lament over what she lacked in hardware and software, but set out to make best use of what was available. Previously our computer lab was used predominently for keyboarding and word-processing, and I must say that Dawn’s predecessor did a great job in those areas.  However, with Dawn’s vision, enthusiasm and hard work, the whole program moved to a new level.
 

This year students used spreadsheets to do an Olympic medal project and a Nebraska snowfall amount comparison.  Desktop publishing skills enabled students to contribute to the school’s efforts to publicize information about townhall meetings and saving Boxtops for Education.  A digital camera and scanner were utilized to do an “All About Me” autobiography project.  One project of particular interest to everyone was a “Christmas Greetings Around the World” project.  Using Hyperstudio and Internet skills, the class exchanged Christmas greetings with students all over the world.  Our student population, consisting of either students who have lived in Schuyler all of their lives, and Hispanic students, who have had limited exposure to technology, really enjoyed this project, as did all of us who viewed their display of greetings from distant places.   A major project of the year was designing and maintaining the school’s web site.  It was very impressive to see students using the digital camera to catch all aspects of school life and confidently using the scanner to scan and manipulate images.  Interpersonal skills were also emphasized as students did interviews with staff and students to glean information for the school’s web pages.  All of these projects were done with high regard for ethical uses of technology and the Internet.
 

As well as revitalizing the technology program for students in our school, Dawn took the initiative to train our staff. Unpaid, and during her after school hours, Dawn held workshops complete with handouts outlining the steps for using the scanner, the digital camera, HyperStudio, web design, and any other application staff members requested.  Comments solicited from staff concerning Dawn’s professionalism include, “ Dawn takes the initiative to try activities that have not been done and puts them into her curriculum”, “ She has drive and has been instrumental in getting the computer lab somewhat updated”, “She spends extra time at her job getting what she needs done”, “She is very confident about her knowledge, presenting at NETA in Omaha”,  “She is knowledgeable, giving in-services to fellow teachers”,  “Dawn has a terrific work ethic”,  “She was the leader in initiating computer workshops for students in the summer”.  As evidenced by these comments, Dawn has become a very valuable member of our staff.  She was selected as “Teacher of the Month” for December; this after she had been on our staff for only four months!  The recipient of this honor is chosen from the staff of both the elementary and high school, including well over a hundred educators.  Obviously, her expertise and dedication were recognized immediately.
 

Dawn’s impact on the community goes beyond the school facility.  Her presentations to the PTA garnered seven new iMacs, multimedia software, and disk drives for the computer lab.  She also proposed a “Partner in Education” plan to the Excel plant in the community to gain additional funding for our technology program.  Her plans include a portable computer lab to enable classroom teachers to implement technology skills in the classroom.  Next year she plans to have students do a weekly school newscast over the cable network.  She is also planning field trips into metro areas to show students the impact technology will have on their future careers.  This summer she and another teacher are sponsoring a computer camp with many of the students receiving financial help with the tuition. Dawn does not wait for opportunities to enrich the lives of her students----she creates them!
 

When Dawn asked me to write this letter of recommendation, I was honored that she considered me equal to the task of writing a letter that may enhance her application for the Peter Kiewit Foundation Nebraska Achievement Award.  I know that she seeks no recognition for herself, but is pursuing any avenue that may gain support for our technology program.   Any funding she might receive from this honor will impact our entire educational community.
 

I believe I can speak for our entire staff when I give my unreserved recommendation for Dawn Prescott. Please contact me if I can offer any other assistance in Dawn’s application.
 

Sincerely,
Shirley Kroenke
Media Specialist
Schuyler Grade School