Desi Nesmith, 2000 recipient of an Alma Exley Scholarship, has received the first Promising Young Professional Award from the Neag School of Education Alumni Society of the University of Connecticut.

Mr. Nesmith began his career as a fifth grade teacher in East Hartford in 2002 and was named principal of America’s Choice at SAND School in Hartford, Conn., in 2009.

Former Neag Dean Richard Schwab said that “Desi is one of the most talented graduates that we had during my tenure as dean.”

Mr. Nesmith holds B.S., M.A. and post-graduate degrees from UConn. He was named a New England Scholar in 2001. He was selected as Teacher of the Year in 2006 at the Mayberry Elementary School. In 2007 he was honored by the Connecticut State Board of Education for contributions to the profession of teaching. In 2009 he was presented with the CAEOP (Connecticut Association of Educational Opportunity Programs) Award for his outstanding educational, community and personal success. And he was the keynote speaker at the 2009 Neag School diversity celebration.

Posted October 14, 2009

Ollie-Rubiah Williams, who was honored as an Alma Exley Scholar in 2001, has been named Teacher of the Year for her school for the 2008-2009 academic year.

She is a teacher at the Farmington Valley Diagnostic Center, Avon, Conn., which is operated by the Capitol Region Education Council (CREC).

Ms. Williams, who grew up in Windsor, Conn., holds a bachelor’s degree from Temple University, Philadelphia, Pa., and a master’s degree from Saint Joseph College, West Hartford, Conn.

She is the second Alma Exley Scholar to be named a Teacher of the Year. Desi Nesmith, a scholarship recipient in 2000, previously was named Teacher of the Year for Mayberry Elementary School in East Hartford, Conn. He current serves as principal of SAND Elementary School in Hartford.

Dr. Sibani Sengupta and Sacha Kelly, second and third from left,are congratulated by previous recipients, from left, Miguel Cardona, Violet Jiménez Sims and Chi-Ann Lin. 

Sacha Kelly, a student at Saint Joseph College, and Sibani Sengupta, Ph.D., a graduate of the University of Connecticut and the Alternate Route to Certification, have been chosen as 2009 recipients of Alma Exley Memorial Scholarships. They were honored at a reception on May 20, at Charter Oak Cultural Center, Hartford.

Ms. Kelly, a graduate of Stuyvesant High School, New York City, received a bachelor of science degree in mathematics from Trinity College, Hartford, and is scheduled to receive a master’s degree in education in 2009 from St. Joseph College, West Hartford. She has accepted a teaching position at Big Picture High School in Bloomfield, Conn.

Dr. Sengupta holds B.S. and M.S. degrees from the University of Calcutta, India, and a Ph.D. from UConn. She earned her Connecticut teaching certificate through the Alternate Route to Certification in August 2008, and she is teaching biology and genetics at Sacred Heart Academy, Hamden. She is the fourth recipient to be recognized from the Alternate Route to Certification, a state-run program that enables professionals from various fields to become teachers in Connecticut’s public schools.

Ms. Kelly and Dr. Sengupta join 17 previous recipients of Alma Exley Scholarships from Central Connecticut State University, Connecticut College, the University of Connecticut, St. Joseph College, Southern Connecticut State University, Yale University, and the Alternate Route to Certification. Previous recipients are making a difference in classrooms in Avon, East Hartford, Hartford, Manchester, Meriden, New Britain, New Haven and Westport, Conn., as well as in California, Massachusetts and North Carolina.

Posted May 21, 2009