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06/13/2018 08:30 AMRenee McIntyre has taught 2nd grade at Deer Run School ever since the school opened its doors to 2nd-graders eight years ago. But she was teaching long before that, too.
“I’ve been teaching in East Haven for 20 years—19 of which have been in the 2nd grade,” says Renee, who moved from Ferrara School to Deer Run when the schools reconfigured in 2010.
That much time in the school system says that Renee is doing something right. There’s more evidence, too. Renee was recently nominated for a Connecticut PTA Outstanding Administrator of the Year Award by Deer Run’s PTA.
“I did not know that our PTA nominated me, so when I received the certificate I was very humbled and very surprised by it,” she says. “I was very honored to know they appreciated all my work I had done.”
At Deer Run, Renee has acted as a liaison between parents and teachers. She’s helped with events like the Halloween Dance, and organized fundraisers such as each class creating themed raffle baskets. She’s also the union representative—called the building representative—for Deer Run School, a position she held at Ferrara School, too.
Renee always had a keen interest in teaching. She grew up in Branford, then attended Wheelock College in Boston, a school focused on education.
“I worked with the Pre-K to start, I did a lot of subbing here in East Haven,” she says. “Finally, when the job [at Ferrara] came up, I interviewed and got the job—that was back in ‘98.”
Though she loves 2nd grade, due to reduced enrollment at Deer Run School, next year Renee will be moving to teach 5th grade.
“At first I was upset,” she relates. “Your teachers and the school and the kids—they become your extended family. The kids all know me and I high-five them off the bus. Then as I reflected more, I realized my time has come to start a new journey, and I am looking forward to it. Next year my new adventure is going to Tuttle School to be a 5th-grade teacher doing math and science.”
For Renee, it’ll be an opportunity to learn: mastering the Common Core math standards, for example.
“Teachers are always learning, as much as students are,” she says.
It’s also a bit of a return to her roots.
“I actually started my career student teaching as a longtime sub in 5th grade, and I always kind of wanted to go back to it,” she notes.
For now, she’s looking forward to a relaxing summer spent poolside with a book—or, as much relaxing as she can do with her kids Carlie, 16, and Cameron, 13, their friends, and a Cockapoo named Skipper, too.
“It’s a very active household in the summer, but it’s a lot of fun,” says Renee, who enjoys biographies and novels by Jodi Picoult. “My house is the hub for people to come and have lunch, and swim and relax and enjoy themselves.”
This year, she’s also celebrating 20 years of marriage with her husband, Scott—they were high school sweethearts at Branford High School. After the couple married, they moved to North Branford, where they currently reside.
Despite her positive attitude about the change, there’s no doubt that Renee will miss her students and the school that’s been her home for the past eight years.
“I love 2nd grade,” she says. “The kids are just so eager to learn. I love their eagerness, I love how much they want to come to school.”
Plus, 5th-graders are probably too old for her dinosaur impression. One of Renee’s proudest achievements is the 2nd-grade Dinosaur Expo, where the kids research dinosaurs, create and paint life-size dinosaurs, and put on an expo for their parents featuring a song about dinosaurs.
“I put on this dinosaur head and I dance with them as they sing this song,” she says with a laugh. “It’s been a lot of fun.”