Attitude, creativity and drive have added up to a mathematics award for Radio Park Elementary School teacher Kate Hallinger.

Hallinger, who teaches fourth grade, recently received the Pennsylvania Council of Teachers of Mathematics New Teacher Award. According to the PCTM, the award recognizes “promising, beginning teachers of mathematics so that they will be encouraged to remain in the profession.”

“I am excited and humbled to get the PCTM New Teacher Award,” Hallinger said. “I have been fortunate to work with amazing colleagues and mentors who have helped me grow as a new teacher.”

Award candidates with one to three years of experience are nominated for their “contagious enthusiasm for students’ learning of mathematics” and initiatives for developing innovative teaching strategies. In Radio Park Principal Zachary Wynkoop’s eyes, Hallinger fits the bill.

"Kate Hallinger is an awesome person and an excellent educator,” Wynkoop said. “She is well beyond where I would expect a third-year teacher to be. She is constantly pushing herself to grow in an effort to meet the needs of her students. This award is well deserved."

A New Jersey native, Hallinger graduated from Penn State after teaching in the district for a year with the Professional Development School program. Continuing the commitment that PDS interns display in the long-running annual partnership between SCASD and Penn State’s College of Education, she seeks to build the best environment for learning and growth she can in Room 3 — an equation for success.

“I use a workshop approach to meet the needs of diverse learners in my classroom,” she said. “I teach my students the value of sharing their mathematical thinking and I strive to make students feel comfortable taking risks and learning from each other.”

By Chris Rosenblum