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ICC teacher receives prestigious Freeman Scholar Grant
By Paul Crossman
Local Ichabod Crane teacher Erica Svatek was recently named a Freeman Scholar grant recipient, an honor only given to a very few people around the entire United States.
The application process was long and rigorous, with 60 people in the entire North East district making the requirements to even apply, and only 13 of these being accepted. Out of these 13, only two others besides Svatek were from the state of New York.
This exacting selection process makes the honor of receiving the grant even greater, and Ichabod Crane is excited to be one of the few schools which can boast having a Freeman Scholar on their staff.
The Freeman Scholarship consists of a three week study tour which is funded and sponsored by the Freeman Foundation in conjunction with the Five College Center for East Asian Studies at Smith College.
Before she could even apply for a chance at the grant itself, Erica had to go be accepted into — and complete — a program run by the National Consortium for Teaching about Asia (NCTA) in upstate New York. After being accepted and going through another rigorous field of study, she was finally eligible to apply to be a Freeman Scholar.
Erica grew up in Concord, MA, and eventually went on to recieve a B.A. in Political Science from Ohio State University, and an M.A.T from Union Graduate College. She currently lives in Schaghticoke, NY with her husband Jeff, and has always enjoyed being around children.
“I always liked working with kids,” she told the Register Star. “I started out as a music education major, and then switched to political science due to severe nerve damage in both wrists, but my desire to work with kids was always a constant, helping them to be successful and love learning are my goals.”
Though the aforementioned foundations supply the majority of the funding for the trip, the recipients are required to a portion of the fee — $1.200 — out of pocket, and while Erica was extremely excited about the trip she was also very worried about coming up with the money.
This issue was touched on briefly during a conversation with Robert McCloskey, the Director of Special Education for ICC and a member of the Masonic Temple of Schenectady, and then, for a long time, Erica thought nothing more about it.
Months later though, the money was brought back into sharp relief when McCloskey showed up at a June School Board meeting and, after Erica was given recognition by the school for her achievement, presented her with a check from the Masons for all $1,200. While the entire crowd at the meeting applauded, Svatek held back tears of joy and relief, thanking both the board and the Masons profusely.
Erica would also like to publicly thank Catherine Snyder and Dave Besozzi from NCTA for their support, mentorship, and knowledge; Maureen VanDeusen, ICC Assistant Superintendent for her support both in pursuing this grant and other professional opportunities; Mimi Stephens and the Five College Center for accepting her onto the study tour; her family for unconditional love and support; and last but certainly not least, her students who she hopes will never stop learning.
For anyone interested in checking out the guidelines necessary for application to become a Freeman Scholar, or for people interested in more information on the program itself, feel free to visit Freeman Asia’s website at www.iie.org/programs/Freeman-ASIA/.
To reach reporter Paul Crossman call 518-828-1616, ext. 2266,
or e-mail pcrossman@registerstar.com.
The application process was long and rigorous, with 60 people in the entire North East district making the requirements to even apply, and only 13 of these being accepted. Out of these 13, only two others besides Svatek were from the state of New York.
This exacting selection process makes the honor of receiving the grant even greater, and Ichabod Crane is excited to be one of the few schools which can boast having a Freeman Scholar on their staff.
The Freeman Scholarship consists of a three week study tour which is funded and sponsored by the Freeman Foundation in conjunction with the Five College Center for East Asian Studies at Smith College.
Before she could even apply for a chance at the grant itself, Erica had to go be accepted into — and complete — a program run by the National Consortium for Teaching about Asia (NCTA) in upstate New York. After being accepted and going through another rigorous field of study, she was finally eligible to apply to be a Freeman Scholar.
Erica grew up in Concord, MA, and eventually went on to recieve a B.A. in Political Science from Ohio State University, and an M.A.T from Union Graduate College. She currently lives in Schaghticoke, NY with her husband Jeff, and has always enjoyed being around children.
“I always liked working with kids,” she told the Register Star. “I started out as a music education major, and then switched to political science due to severe nerve damage in both wrists, but my desire to work with kids was always a constant, helping them to be successful and love learning are my goals.”
Though the aforementioned foundations supply the majority of the funding for the trip, the recipients are required to a portion of the fee — $1.200 — out of pocket, and while Erica was extremely excited about the trip she was also very worried about coming up with the money.
This issue was touched on briefly during a conversation with Robert McCloskey, the Director of Special Education for ICC and a member of the Masonic Temple of Schenectady, and then, for a long time, Erica thought nothing more about it.
Months later though, the money was brought back into sharp relief when McCloskey showed up at a June School Board meeting and, after Erica was given recognition by the school for her achievement, presented her with a check from the Masons for all $1,200. While the entire crowd at the meeting applauded, Svatek held back tears of joy and relief, thanking both the board and the Masons profusely.
Erica would also like to publicly thank Catherine Snyder and Dave Besozzi from NCTA for their support, mentorship, and knowledge; Maureen VanDeusen, ICC Assistant Superintendent for her support both in pursuing this grant and other professional opportunities; Mimi Stephens and the Five College Center for accepting her onto the study tour; her family for unconditional love and support; and last but certainly not least, her students who she hopes will never stop learning.
For anyone interested in checking out the guidelines necessary for application to become a Freeman Scholar, or for people interested in more information on the program itself, feel free to visit Freeman Asia’s website at www.iie.org/programs/Freeman-ASIA/.
To reach reporter Paul Crossman call 518-828-1616, ext. 2266,
or e-mail pcrossman@registerstar.com.
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