On Mission

Summer 2016 • Volume 15, No. 2
Sister Andrienne gives some teaching tips to a beginning teacher, Sister Kathryn Teresa,
after observing in her classroom. Teaching is a combination of art and science and
Sister “Addy” knows how to bring out the best of both in an aspiring teacher.
“It’s not the
theory I see,
it’s the reality
of the classroom.
I continue
to learn from
those I serve.”
IHM schools as well as other
Catholic schools in the Archdiocese
of Philadelphia. This year, besides
mentoring in IHM schools, Addy is
working with beginning teachers in
five lay-administered schools and
one administered by another
religious community. She is proud to
say that by word of mouth, the
program, begun in 2002 is growing.
“There’s a sense of satisfaction that I
feel,” she says, “when a teacher tells
me that something I’ve suggested has
proved beneficial to the students.
Also, most principals would covet
what I do, but they don’t have the
time to do it. They tell me that
mentoring is a great help to them
especially the one-on-one
conferencing. My travels from
northern New Jersey to Virginia
Beach and all points in-between put
me in touch with the real world of
what’s happening in education.
Boots on the ground, so to speak. It’s
not the theory I see, it’s the reality of
the classroom and that changes year
after year. I continue to learn from
those I serve.”
WHAT WILL SISTER DO
FOR YOU?
So… what exactly does a Teacher
Mentor do? Sister Addy organizes
and administers teacher induction
workshops (required for first year
teachers in the state of
Pennsylvania): three for the
Archdiocese of Philadelphia and two
for the Diocese of Allentown. She
provides three on-site visits a year
for each new teacher where she
observes a lesson, conferences with
the teacher, has a conversation with
the principal before and after the
observation and leaves a written
report for both teacher and principal.
Sister will also tailor a professional
development day or faculty meeting
to the specific needs of the school;
Sister writes timely articles for the
IHM academic newsletter, ABC
Notes; she is a consultant to Loyola
Press in Chicago for the decades-old
IHM publication Voyages in English..
LEFT & RIGHT BRAINED
Addy is well known for her beautiful
singing voice. Often engaged as a
cantor for Mass, Addy draws
everyone in by her very presence and
total engagement in the moment.
According to Addy, “Most people
associate me with music, but I was
never a music teacher. I studied
piano and voice in elementary and
secondary school, but spent most of
my classroom years teaching math.
Sister Mary Anne Bolger, principal at
St. Laurence School in Upper Darby,
has this to say about Addy, “A while
ago, there was an ad for Tastykake
that said: ‘All the good things
wrapped up in one.’ That’s Addy!
Her professionalism in reaching out
to principals, her expertise with new
teachers, her insights . . . she does it
all and in a very positive manner.
Teachers who have worked with her
and have ‘graduated’ all ask if she
can return and continue to work
with them. Quite a compliment!
Quite an IHM!”
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