Onondaga Central
While you have walked through the hallways the past few weeks, you may have noticed a few new faces. Although most of them are new 7th graders, we actually do have three new staff members that joined the OCS team this year. We have our new Spanish teacher, Mrs. Tompkins-Solan, our new CTE teacher, Miss Byrne and our new Guidance Counselor, Miss Sawyer. It is nice to familiarize yourselves with these new teachers because most likely you will have to interact with at least one of them this school year.
The first teacher I talked to was Mrs. Solan, our new Spanish teacher. She attended Liverpool High School and participated in rowing and was the Assistant Yearbook Editor. After high school, Mrs. Solan intended on going to law school, and actually interned with a lawyer, where she realized law wasn’t for her. She ended up attending SUNY Albany and SUNY Oswego. Initially, she majored in Mediterranean Archaeology before switching to Education. Mrs. Solan decided on an education career because she believes “educators get to shape all careers. We get to experience human growth on a daily basis.” She has a great deal of experience in teaching and has taught in a handful of places, including Soule Road Middle School for six years. She also taught English in Germany for a year and taught at Homer Junior High for eight years before coming to OCS. So far, for Mrs. Solan, working at OCS has been an awesome experience. She says that the staff and students have been very welcoming towards her. Her goal for herself is to challenge the Spanish students at OCS by increasing the number of students to attempt to obtain the NYS Seal of Biliteracy on their diploma. Another interesting fact about Mrs. Solan is that if she could teach anything it would be Latin, not Spanish! Outside of the classroom, Mrs. Solan enjoys spending time with her family, traveling and crocheting. Be sure next time you see Mrs. Solan in the hallway or by her classroom you say “Hello”, “Hola”, or even “Salve!” The second new teacher at OCS is Miss Byrne, our new CTE teacher. Miss Byrne grew up in Skaneateles and graduated from Skaneateles Central School. In high school, she ran cross country, played basketball and lacrosse. She also really loved math in high school and wanted to teach math one day, which got her interested in the education field. After high school, Miss Byrne attended Le Moyne College to get her bachelor's degree and then SUNY Albany for her master’s degree. When she graduated from Le Moyne, she began teaching middle school math at Hamilton Central School. Miss Byrne also recently became interested in computer science, emerging technologies and other STEM topics that she looks forward to teaching her students. So far, OCS has been welcoming towards Miss Byrne and she loves working here. Miss Byrne’s long term goal is to continue learning and earn a Ph.D in education. Outside of work, Miss Byrne loves to travel around the world and does it quite often. This past year she was lucky enough to travel to England, France, Germany, Italy, Switzerland, Ireland and Greece!! Over the summer, she also spent time exploring Yosemite National Park in California and Acadia National Park in Maine. Be sure to give her a friendly hello and a friendly welcome if you pass her in the hallway! The last new staff member is our new guidance counselor, Miss Sawyer. She is originally from Baldwinsville and graduated from Baker High School in 2011. In high school, she participated in soccer, track & field, Key Club, Art Club and worked at Outback Steakhouse. Before she went into the counselling career, her first career choice was the medical field. As she continued in her art and photography she decided to go to school for graphic design, which she did for a few years before she returned back to school to pursue her Counselling Degree. She started her college career at Utah State University because she wanted new experiences and was an avid snowboarder. After her first year, she graduated with a BFA and transferred to RIT. Miss Sawyer was drawn to education due to it being a part of her family for many years. Her mother is also a school counselor, her grandmother was a reading teacher and her aunt is a principal. It was an easy choice for her to be back in a school for her career because she really enjoyed her high school experience. She wants students at OCS to also have their own great experience in high school. Before she was at OCS, she lived out in Rochester for a while and then outside of New York City where she worked as an admissions counselor for a private college. While she has been at OCS, she says her students have been amazing and that the staff are the best set of co-workers she could ask for. Overall, she feels the community as a whole is very supportive. Her goal for her career is to continue learning every year and become better at what she does and wants to become more involved in local counseling seminars or groups. She also would love to pick up her hobby of photography and art again as a side job. Outside of work, Ms. Sawyer and her fiancé have two dogs and a cat. She likes to spend most of her time outside of school with her dogs. She and her fiancé go for hikes and walks with their dogs all the time. Being outside is her own version of therapy, since she grew up fishing with her dad. She also grew up walking miles of trails, kayaking and exploring new places. She really enjoys being busy, which is why she also volunteers for Big Brothers Big Sisters. She likes to travel a lot as well and has been to eight countries so far! Hopefully she bundled up in any colder climates, because Miss Sawyer is actually allergic to the cold. It is a real condition called Urticaria, which means she breaks out in hives if it is cold. She likes ramen noodles and rice. Make sure if you see her in the hallway, or have her as a guidance counselor, you give her a nice welcome and let her help you with school problems you may have.
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