Wallington High School

As a language arts teacher, Sharon Smolen has excelled for over 15 years at Wallington High School. Equally important is the strong bond she has formed with all of her students. Smolen expects a lot out of her students. Her resource-rich classroom, along with her focused and purposeful lessons, prepare her students for success.

Smolen has pioneered a number of initiatives that challenge students, including the Arts Day Program that allows students to participate in hands-on workshops in acting, dance, singing, arts & crafts, calligraphy, and fashion design. She also established Books for Breakfast to encourage independent reading. Students come to school early, get a bagel for breakfast and read a book of their choice while they eat. Smolen also coordinated the highly successful Home of the Free Photo Journalism Project. Students were professionally trained and took community photographs that were exhibited at the New York Historical Society.

As a respected member of the teaching staff, Smolen is at the forefront of the school’s learning initiatives, which emphasize literacy development, student engagement, differentiating instruction and computer integration. As part of the Governor’s Teacher Recognition Program, Smolen was chosen as the 2002 District Teacher of the Year. She consistently demonstrates effectiveness as a teacher and an unyielding concern for the intellectual, emotional and social development of her students. All these attributes and abilities qualify her as a teacher making a difference.